Getting acquainted with 2024 Red Sox roster: Starting lineup, rotation and bullpen

BOSTON -- The MLB season has officially begun ... but only for two teams. And with the two-game series between the Padres and Dodgers in Seoul in the rear view, the rest of Major League Baseball will wait until Thursday for the regular season to begin.

So we pretty much know what to expect when the Boston Red Sox open up their season in Seattle late Thursday night. While they could technically still sign free-agent pitcher Jordan Montgomery, their interest in spending that kind of money has never felt particularly strong. And Michael Lorenzen signing just a $4.5 million deal with the Rangers last week suggests the Red Sox aren't really in the business of spending money on free agents at the moment.

With that, it's time to get to know the roster for a Red Sox team that really doesn't have many -- if any -- believers entering the new year.

Red Sox Starting Lineup (Projected)

1. CF Jarren Duran
2. 3B Rafael Devers 
3. SS Trevor Story
4. 1B Triston Casas
5. DH Masataka Yoshida
6. LF Tyler O'Neill
7. 2B Enmanuel Valdez
8. RF Wilyer Abreu
9. C Connor Wong

There's some room for shuffling. Alex Cora would likely opt to bat Rafael Devers second to avoid the lefty glut in the middle of the lineup, though utilizing Devers in more of an RBI role at the three or four spot could be more appealing.Tyler O'Neill could slide up in front of Masataka Yoshida to add some more right-left balance to the lineup. Vaughn Grissom will likely start at second base when he returns from injury. And Ceddanne Rafaela could be in the starting lineup more than Wilyer Abreu, depending on how much the team wants to put on his plate.

Red Sox Bench

1B Bobby Dalbec
C Reese McGuire
CF Ceddanne Rafaela
IF Pablo Reyes

The team opted to release C.J. Cron over the weekend, opening the door for Bobby Dalbec to make the opening day roster.

Injured Position Players

OF Rob Refsnyder
2B Vaughn Grissom

Rob Refsnyder suffered a broken toe on a hit-by-pitch this spring, but he should be able to rejoin the club sooner than later. (He hit .308 with an .828 OPS against lefties last year, after hitting .359 with a 1.005 OPS against lefties in 2022.) Vaughn Grissom, who joined the Red Sox in the Chris Sale trade, suffered a groin injury during the spring and is expected to return in mid-to-late April.

Red Sox Starting Rotation

RHP Brayan Bello
RHP Nick Pivetta
RHP Kutter Crawford
RHP Garrett Whitlock
RHP Tanner Houck

That's a lot of righties. 

The team obviously has high hopes for Bello, who was named the Opening Day starter after signing his long-term deal. He'll need to prove he's capable of pitching a full season, as he faded mightily last September, going 2-3 with a 7.62 ERA over his final five starts.

Pivetta is coming off what was a deceptively strong season, as he posted a 3.05 ERA in his final 28 appearances (eight starts) in the 2023 season. A shaky start (6.15 ERA through May 24) tarnished his overall numbers, but the addition of a sweeper turned his season around.

Kutter Crawford (6-8, 4.04 ERA last year), Garrett Whitlock (5-5, 5.15 ERA last year) and Tanner Houck (6-10, 5.01 ERA last year) round out a rotation that's certainly lacking the high-end talent necessary to compete in the division and beyond. Lucas Giolito was supposed to help fill a void but suffered an elbow injury that will cost him the entire 2024 season.

And with the team sending Cooper Criswell down to Triple-A last week, he'll likely be the first call-up when the team needs a spot start.

Red Sox Bullpen

RHP Kenley Jansen
RHP Chris Martin
RHP Josh Winckowski
RHP Chase Anderson
RHP Isaiah Campbell
RHP Justin Slaten
LHP Joely Rodríguez
RHP Greg Weissert

The back end of the bullpen -- Kenley Jansen and Chris Martin -- got late starts to their spring game action, but they're both expected to be good to go this week. Josh Winckowski said last week that he's dealing with a bone chip in his ankle, but that the injury was discovered too late in the offseason for him to have it taken care of via surgery. Joely Rodriguez (who officially made the roster over the weekend) is the lone lefty on the staff, after Brennan Bernardino was optioned to Triple-A on Monday. Greg Weissert, who came over in the Alex Verdugo trade with the Yankees, won a roster spot over Bernardino. Isaiah Campbell is a newcomer via trade, having joined Boston in the Luis Urias trade. Campbell pitched 8.1 scoreless innings this spring. Bernardino is also in the 0.00 spring ERA club in his seven appearances. Rookie Justin Slaten, who was a Rule 5 pick by the Mets, will have to remain on the big league roster, or else he'll go back to the Rangers. The team also signed Chase Anderson over the weekend, a 36-year-old with 10 years of big league experience.