Garrett Whitlock underwent an internal brace procedure last May 30, which ended the right-hander’s season and seemingly ensured that he would miss some time at the start of the 2025 campaign. However, Red Sox manager Alex Cora indicated that Whitlock is on pace to rather handily beat the initial recovery timeline, as Cora told MLB.com’s Ian Browne and other reporters that Whitlock is “100 percent” going to be part of Boston’s roster on Opening Day.
Cora’s statement comes before Whitlock has even pitched to live batters this spring, though Whitlock is scheduled to throw a live batting practice session tomorrow. The reliever has thrown multiple bullpen sessions already, in line with the deloading rehab strategy the Red Sox have used with Whitlock this offseason. As detailed by The Athletic’s Jen McCaffrey last week, the plan saw Whitlock alternate between “weeks of heavy throwing” and “weeks of recovery.” This portion of Whitlock’s rehab is now over, and he is expected to have a normal ramp-up for the rest of Spring Training.
The work seems to be paying off, if Whitlock is already viewed as a lock to break camp. Internal brace procedures are a relatively new variant on the traditional Tommy John surgery, and can be performed in certain cases when the UCL damage isn’t quite as severe. The benefit is that brace surgeries come with a slightly shorter timeline — whereas pitchers who get TJ procedures usually face 13-14 months of recovery, internal brace surgeries have a timeline of roughly 11-12 months.
Because this procedure has only become more common in the last few years, there isn’t yet quite such thing as a “normal” timeline for a brace procedure, or at least the rehab process is more fluid than the more established recovery time associated with Tommy John surgeries. Still, the fact that Whitlock is on pace to return to action just 10 months after his surgery is rather eye-opening, particularly since he has a history of past elbow problems. Whitlock underwent a Tommy John surgery in 2019, and elbow-related issues sent him to the injured list twice during the 2023 season.
It probably helps that Whitlock is being brought back strictly as a relief pitcher, so his arm strength doesn’t have to be built up to handle a starter’s workload. The Red Sox used Whitlock on-and-off as a starting pitcher over the last three seasons, but the right-hander’s greatest success came out of the bullpen in his 2021 rookie season, when he posted a 1.96 ERA over 73 1/3 innings as a multi-inning relief weapon.
His production from 2022-24 was more erratic, with a 4.01 ERA over his 168 1/3 innings during those three seasons. Injuries certainly hampered Whitlock’s performance on the whole, but he still generally pitched better as a reliever than as a starter. This planned return to the bullpen might well help Whitlock stay healthy and return to his old consistent form, which would give Boston’s relief corps a major boost.
Whitlock will slot in behind closer Liam Hendriks, who is making his own return from a lengthy absence after undergoing Tommy John surgery in August 2023. The Red Sox also added Aroldis Chapman and Justin Wilson to reinforce a bullpen that underwhelmed last season.
