ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Red Sox reliever Tyron Guerrero is back in the major leagues for the first time since 2019.
The 35-year-old righty said there were “so many times” he didn’t think he would ever make it back.
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He reached a dark point in 2023 when he was pitching for Cincinnati Reds’ Triple-A affiliate, Louisville. He allowed 29 runs in 22 ⅔ innings over 20 relief outings that season. After one bad outing, he struggled with his mental health.
“I think it had been the worst year that I had in baseball. There’s a lot of things go through my mind,” Guerrero said. “And it was one night that I was about to do something that I cannot say right now.”
In a year when not much has gone right for the Red Sox (27-37), Guerrero has provided a feel-good story of perseverance.
The righty — who always dreamed of pitching for the Red Sox — signed a minor league deal with Boston on Jan. 9. He began the season at Triple-A Worcester where he allowed just two runs in 19 ⅔ innings (0.92 ERA).
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Boston selected his contract May 21. He allowed four runs in his first three outings with the Red Sox, but he has had five straight scoreless outings. In all, he has struck out 12 batters in 7 ⅓ innings with a fastball that has reached 102.9 mph and a swing-and-miss slider.
“There were so many times during my career that (I thought) just to quit but I had my family on my side to give me the power to keep going,” Guerrero said.
The Colombia native asked “What’s that sport?” when his grandfather was watching Game 4 of the 2007 World Series between the Boston Red Sox and Colorado Rockies. Guerrero, who knew nothing about baseball, sat down to watch the final couple of innings at his grandparents’ home, saw the Red Sox win the championship and began playing the game the next day.
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He touched 102.9 mph against the Braves on May 26 and 102.8 mph against the Yankees over the weekend.
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However, the big difference for Guerrero is command. He has struggled with control throughout his career, averaging 5.4 walks per nine innings in 121 major league outings and 5.6 walks per nine innings in 322 minor league games.
But he has just seven walks in 27 innings (2.3 walks per nine innings) between Boston and Worcester this year.
“It was really hard for me because the time that I was out of the major leagues, I passed through so many things,” Guerrero said. “But at the same, every morning just waking up with the intent to keep going. My family really helped me in this process.”
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He said he returned to the majors as a different pitcher with a different mindset and more experience.
“Because I’ve been playing Japan and Mexico and I was in the minor leagues for a while,” he said. “And all those time out there gives me more time just to understand more of the game, how to be out there and attack the strike zone every time that I have the opportunity to go out there.”
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