Carson Smith threw just 2.2 innings in three games for the Boston Red Sox in 2016. Originally shut down in Spring Training due to a forearm ailment, Smith didn’t return until May, in which his sparse use led to further aggravation and an MRI revealing structural damage in his pitching arm. He underwent Tommy John surgery on May 24, 2016, and is roughly expected to return by June 1, 2017.
The much-anticipated Red Sox bullpen led by Craig Kimbrel, Carson Smith, Koji Uehara, and Junichi Tazawa were never really given the opportunity to show how dominate they could have been over the course of a full season.