For the first time in over two years, Patrick Sandoval is back in the majors.
On Monday, the Boston Red Sox announced that they reinstated Sandoval from the 60-day injured list. The left-hander is expected to make his long-awaited team debut Thursday in Chicago, according to Chris Cotillo of MassLive.
In a corresponding roster move, left-hander Alec Gamboa was optioned to Triple-A Worcester. The Red Sox also designated Triple-A right-hander Jack Anderson for assignment, creating a spot on the 40-man roster for Sandoval.
Sandoval, 29, underwent Tommy John surgery in June 2024 while he was a member of the Los Angeles Angels. He was non-tendered by his former club after that season and signed a two-year, $18.25 million contract with the Red Sox in free agency. The initial hope was that the left-hander would impact Boston’s rotation later in 2025, but the road to recovery took longer than expected.
Last season, a series of arm-related setbacks prevented Sandoval from seeing any game action. The southpaw came to this year’s spring training hoping to be ready for Opening Day but was slow to progress, leading him to begin the regular season on a minor league rehab assignment. He then suffered another setback (biceps tightness) after two outings with Worcester, forcing the Red Sox to shut him down again.
Since beginning his latest rehab assignment on June 5, Sandoval has made six starts, including five with the WooSox and one at Double-A Portland. He threw 68 pitches in his latest outing Saturday, recording seven strikeouts while allowing one hit and one walk over five scoreless innings.
Sandoval’s return comes at a crucial time for the Red Sox rotation. On Sunday, All-Star left-hander Ranger Suarez exited his start early due to a left adductor (groin) strain. They also lost rookie starter Connelly Early to the injured list last week because of elbow inflammation. He will undergo a second opinion later this week in Dallas.
As the Red Sox head into next week’s All-Star break, they will be counting on Sandoval to help stabilize their injury-riddled staff. He pitched in 107 games (100 starts) during his six seasons with the Angels, posting a 4.01 ERA and 1.39 WHIP with 529 strikeouts over 536 innings.
Gamboa, 29, had been with the big-league club since Wednesday, when he was recalled to take Tommy Kahnle’s spot in the bullpen. He has a 3.60 ERA with four strikeouts in five MLB innings this year and a 3.20 ERA over 13 games (six starts) with Triple-A Worcester.
Anderson will be traded, claimed or released within the next week. The 26-year-old right-hander debuted for the Red Sox in April and made three appearances, allowing three runs on eight hits with six strikeouts over eight innings. He owns a 4.81 ERA in 58 innings over 16 games (11 starts) in Triple-A this season.
