Red Sox promote Jack Anderson, add fresh bullpen arm from Worcester

Boston needed length after its bullpen got stretched in Minnesota, and Jack Anderson was the answer. The Red Sox selected the right-hander’s contract from Triple-A Worcester, then opened a roster spot by optioning Tyler Samaniego to Worcester and transferring Johan Oviedo to the 60-day injured list.

Anderson was not on the 40-man roster before the move, which made the timing matter. The 26-year-old was drafted by the Tigers in the 16th round in 2021, then reached Boston through the minor-league phase of the 2024 Rule 5 Draft, a path that leaves little margin for error and a lot of incentive to prove he can hold a major-league role quickly.

The surface line from Worcester was solid, but the deeper numbers are what pushed Boston to act. In his first two Triple-A starts this season, Anderson went 1-0 with a 3.72 ERA in 9.2 innings, struck out nine and posted a 1.14 WHIP. His 3.72 FIP matched the sense that the innings were earned, not fluky. For a call-up built around immediate bullpen need, that kind of indicator matters more than an ERA alone, especially for a pitcher who has worked as both a starter and a reliever in Boston’s system.

That flexibility is the point. Anderson came up as a fresh long-relief arm after a taxing Red Sox loss, and his profile fits the job: SoxProspects lists him at 6-foot-3 with a five-pitch mix, capable of working as a spot starter or multi-inning reliever. The same report also notes he can give up hard contact, which is why this is less a reward than a test. Boston is looking for innings it can trust, not just a temporary patch.

Anderson already made the first impression count. In his MLB debut against Minnesota on April 14, he worked three innings and struck out four. He also arrived with some international polish, throwing three innings of one-run ball for Team Great Britain against Mexico in the 2026 World Baseball Classic, with three strikeouts and no walks.

The roster math is straightforward now: if Anderson keeps missing bats and limiting traffic, Boston gets a controllable multi-inning option with three option years left. If the hard contact shows up too often, the Rule 5 gamble gets a lot shakier, and Worcester starts looking like the next stop again.