Red Sox News & Links: Another Arm on the Way

Tanner Houck finally has a return date. On Monday, he’ll be joining the big league club and getting the start against the Astros. This marks the first time in a very long time that the Red Sox have their intended preseason pitching staff, assuming nobody is hurt between now and then. (Chris Cotillo, MassLive)

The emergence of Triston Casas has been a bright spot in an up-and-down 2023 season. After a slow start to the season, he’s become a huge bat in the middle of the lineup and looks to have a spot there for years to come. He sat down with FanGraphs and answered some questions about his approach at the plate. (David Laurila, FanGraphs)

The roster in Greenville is getting another exciting name. Mikey Romero has been promoted to High-A, joining Roman Anthony and Kyle Teel. (Greg Dudek, NESN)

Masataka Yoshida has been struggling lately, hitting a lot of ground balls and not getting a ton on the ball when he makes contact. Alex Cora gave him a break on Tuesday, and with a lefty on the mound for the Nationals on Wednesday, he may get another day to rest. Cora explained the decision to give Yoshida some time. (Greg Dudek, NESN)

Speaking of left-handed starters, Alex Cora has some lineup decisions to make in the next couple of days. Does he sit Triston Casas against a pair of lefties, or does he let the rookie start? I would say stat him for at least one and give him an opportunity to prove he can hit lefties. If he never gets the reps, how will we ever know? (Chad Jennings, The Athletic)