PT TOMORROW: AL East—Casting call for BOS closer

Boston Red Sox

Despite reports that Jean Machi (RHP, BOS) would get the first chance to close games for the Red Sox in the absence of Koji Uehara (RHP, BOS), the first actual opportunity went to Junichi Tazawa (RHP, BOS), who promptly blew it (1 IP, 1 ER, 2 H). The performance continued a stretch in which Tazawa has been quite hittable (5 1/3 IP, 10 H, 5 ER in last five outings). Otherwise, Tazawa’s skills would seem to make him the team’s best option in the ninth inning, as detailed by Playing Time Today analyst Matt Dodge.

Machi's performance in a Red Sox uniform has been OK: 5 2/3 IP, 3 ER, 3 BB, 7 K. But, as Dodge noted, his larger body of work hardly screams "closer." The distance is growing between Machi and his 2013 Dom, and a 9%...

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