Injury or Not, Houck Can’t Afford to Overthink Recent Struggles
Boston Red Sox starter Tanner Houck has yet to regain his form this season.
His struggles, which began in spring training, continued during Monday night’s 14-2 blowout loss to the Detroit Tigers. The right-hander gave up nine runs on 11 hits — including two home runs — and issued three walks over just 2 1/3 innings before being pulled for the bullpen. After the outing, the 28-year-old admitted he felt “lost,” and the Red Sox later placed him on the 15-day injured list due to a flexor pronator strain in his right forearm.
Despite the rough stretch, former Red Sox third baseman and 2013 World Series champ Will Middlebrooks urged against panic during an episode of NESN’s “Boston Has Entered The Chat” podcast.
“Everyone hits rough patches if they’re around the league long enough,” Middlebrooks said. “It might not always look like this, but take Rafael Devers, for example — he started 0-for-19 with 15 strikeouts, which could be one of the worst starts ever for a hitter.”
Middlebrooks added: “I’ve been there. You feel like you’ll never get back to your usual rhythm — whether it’s at the plate, on the mound, or in the field. But that’s baseball. It’s a rollercoaster. The key is staying level-headed through the ups and downs.”
So far this season, Houck is 0-3 with an 8.04 ERA over nine starts. He’s only pitched into the sixth inning twice, has surrendered at least one home run in seven starts, and has allowed 11 earned runs in a game twice. It marks a sharp decline from his breakout All-Star campaign just last year.
Watch the full NESN “Boston Has Entered The Chat” episode here:
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