- Day-To-DayHobie Harris (RP) — Harris was optioned to Triple-A Rochester on Saturday, Jesse Dougherty of The Washington Post reports.05/08
- 10-Day-ILRoman Anthony (LF) — Anthony (finger) took 12-to-15 dry swings without any discomfort Tuesday, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.05/26
- 10-Day-ILTrevor Story (SS) — Story underwent surgery to repair a sports hernia Thursday and will be sidelined 6-10 weeks, Tim Healey of The Boston Globe reports.05/22
- 15-Day-ILGarrett Whitlock (RP) — Whitlock has been unavailable to pitch since tweaking his left knee on a wet mound in his last appearance Sunday against the Twins, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.05/28
- 15-Day-ILGarrett Crochet (SP) — Crochet (shoulder) said that he's scheduled to throw a second live batting practice session Sunday, Mac Cerullo of the Boston Herald reports.05/27
- OutBrendan Rodgers (2B) — Rodgers (shoulder) re-signed Friday with the Red Sox on a two-year, minor-league contract, Chris Hatfield of SoxProspects.com reports.05/08
- 60-Day-ILTriston Casas (1B) — Red Sox interim manager Chad Tracy told reporters Wednesday that Casas (abdomen/knee) is close to being cleared to swing a bat, Christopher Smith of MassLive.com reports.05/27
- 60-Day-ILPatrick Sandoval (SP) — Sandoval (biceps/elbow) threw a 30-pitch bullpen session Wednesday, Christopher Smith of MassLive.com reports.05/27
- 60-Day-ILRomy Gonzalez (1B) — Gonzalez (shoulder) has started hitting flips, MLB.com reports.05/24
- 60-Day-ILKutter Crawford (SP) — no05/22
- 60-Day-ILTanner Houck (SP) — Houck (elbow) has been making throws out to 105 feet three days per week, MLB.com reports.05/15
- 60-Day-ILJohan Oviedo (SP) — Oviedo (elbow) will be reevaluated by Dr. Keith Meister in two weeks to determine his progress, Marcos Grunfeld of ElEmergente.com reports.05/08
- Day-To-DayCarlos Hernandez (RP) — Hernandez (shoulder) began his rehab assignment with Triple-A Omaha on Friday.05/08
- 10-Day-ILGabriel Arias (SS) — no05/29
- bereavementSteven Kwan (CF) — Kwan went 3-for-4 with an RBI in Sunday's 3-1 win over Philadelphia.05/28
- 15-Day-ILErik Sabrowski (RP) — Sabrowski (elbow) underwent an MRI on Tuesday which confirmed inflammation but no structural damage, MLB.com reports.05/27
Cleveland has its own bodies missing — Steven Kwan is on the bereavement list and Gabriel Arias landed on the 10-day IL on Friday morning — but the Guardians are 33-25 and just took the rubber game from Washington 3-2. Pinnacle has them at -114 on the moneyline with the run line set at -1.5 (+182), and the total sits at 7.5. That moneyline price tells you the market sees this as close to a coin flip despite the records, mostly because Boston is throwing relievers and Cecconi's 5.18 ERA is what it is.
Recent form is a mixed bag on both sides. The Sox have dropped 4 of 5, with the lone bright spot being an 8-0 blanking of Atlanta on Tuesday before getting punched in the mouth 10-2 the next night. The Guardians are 2-3 in their last 5 and got run 10-2 by the Nationals at home earlier this week, so the home crowd is not exactly walking in feeling bulletproof either.
The angle to watch: how deep can Boston actually go with this staff? Samaniego has been excellent in short bursts (1.04 ERA over 17.1 innings), but stretching the bullpen across 9 innings against a Cleveland lineup that grinds at-bats is the kind of plan that looks fine in innings 1-4 and ugly in innings 5-7. If Cecconi gives Cleveland anything resembling 5-and-3, the Guardians should be in the driver's seat. If he doesn't, the under at +105 starts looking less appealing in a hurry.