KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The back end of the Red Sox rotation has been seeking qualified, reliable applicants for some time now.
Last night, Hector Velazquez started to stand out.
In a strong 51⁄3-inning start against the Royals, Velazquez allowed only five hits, walked nobody and struck out three. He also gave up a home run to Eric Hosmer, a two-run shot in the third inning that was pretty much the only mistake of Velazquez’ night in which he did not factor in the decision of the 4-2 loss.
On a night when the Red Sox took and lost a couple of gambles, Velazquez was left looking like the safest bet.