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The Boston Red Sox will look to avoid a three-game sweep at the hands of the Minnesota Twins on Sunday afternoon at Fenway Park. Ahead of Sunday's game, the team announced that they have activated left-handed reliever Danny Coulombe from the 15-day injured list.
Coulombe was placed on the injured list on May 4 with cervical spasms and shut down from throwing until the pain subsided. He made two rehab appearances, the first in Double-A Portland, where he allowed one hit in a clean inning of work. The second outing with Triple-A Worcester didn’t go as smoothly; the 36-year-old reliever allowed a solo home run in 0.2 innings. Still, the Red Sox saw enough in those two appearances to feel comfortable activating him from the IL.
Coulombe signed a one-year, $1-million deal with Boston in mid-March. He appeared in 12 games before landing on the injured list, allowing five runs on nine hits across eight innings of work, good for a 5.63 ERA.
To make room on the active roster for Coulombe, rookie left-handed reliever Tyler Samaniego was optioned to Triple-A Worcester.
Unfortunately for Samaniego, he is the victim of the numbers game in a Red Sox bullpen that is chock-full of lefties. Fellow left-handed reliever Jovani Moran is out of minor league options; Boston would have to designate him for assignment in order to send him to Triple-A. While Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow could have optioned a right-handed reliever with options remaining, like Greg Weissert, who has struggled mightily in 2026, that would have left Boston with an incredibly left-handed-heavy bullpen, making Samaniego the clear odd-man out.
The 27-year-old rookie has far exceeded expectations since making his Major League debut in early April. Samaniego has allowed just two earned runs in 17.1 innings spanning 18 appearances, allowing opponents to hit .206 against him. His 1.04 ERA is the eighth-lowest among all qualified relievers in the sport.
Still, the gap between Samaniego and the veteran Coulombe is not very big. If Coulombe continues to struggle upon his return, Breslow could make the decision to cut ties with Coulombe and recall the more effective Samaniego for a more permanent spot on the major league roster.
The Red Sox will look to salvage the series finale against the Minnesota Twins as Sonny Gray (5-1, 2.98 ERA) takes the mound for Boston opposite Bailey Ober (5-2, 3.63 ERA) for Minnesota. First pitch from Fenway Park set for 1:35 p.m. ET.
Remember to join our RED SOX on ROUNDTABLE community, which is FREE! You can post your own thoughts, in text or video form, and you can engage with our Roundtable staff, as well as other Red Sox fans. If prompted to download the Roundtable APP, that's free too!
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Coulombe was placed on the injured list on May 4 with cervical spasms and shut down from throwing until the pain subsided. He made two rehab appearances, the first in Double-A Portland, where he allowed one hit in a clean inning of work. The second outing with Triple-A Worcester didn’t go as smoothly; the 36-year-old reliever allowed a solo home run in 0.2 innings. Still, the Red Sox saw enough in those two appearances to feel comfortable activating him from the IL.
Coulombe signed a one-year, $1-million deal with Boston in mid-March. He appeared in 12 games before landing on the injured list, allowing five runs on nine hits across eight innings of work, good for a 5.63 ERA.
To make room on the active roster for Coulombe, rookie left-handed reliever Tyler Samaniego was optioned to Triple-A Worcester.
Why was Samaniego optioned?
Unfortunately for Samaniego, he is the victim of the numbers game in a Red Sox bullpen that is chock-full of lefties. Fellow left-handed reliever Jovani Moran is out of minor league options; Boston would have to designate him for assignment in order to send him to Triple-A. While Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow could have optioned a right-handed reliever with options remaining, like Greg Weissert, who has struggled mightily in 2026, that would have left Boston with an incredibly left-handed-heavy bullpen, making Samaniego the clear odd-man out.
The 27-year-old rookie has far exceeded expectations since making his Major League debut in early April. Samaniego has allowed just two earned runs in 17.1 innings spanning 18 appearances, allowing opponents to hit .206 against him. His 1.04 ERA is the eighth-lowest among all qualified relievers in the sport.
Still, the gap between Samaniego and the veteran Coulombe is not very big. If Coulombe continues to struggle upon his return, Breslow could make the decision to cut ties with Coulombe and recall the more effective Samaniego for a more permanent spot on the major league roster.
The Red Sox will look to salvage the series finale against the Minnesota Twins as Sonny Gray (5-1, 2.98 ERA) takes the mound for Boston opposite Bailey Ober (5-2, 3.63 ERA) for Minnesota. First pitch from Fenway Park set for 1:35 p.m. ET.
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Remember to join our RED SOX on ROUNDTABLE community, which is FREE! You can post your own thoughts, in text or video form, and you can engage with our Roundtable staff, as well as other Red Sox fans. If prompted to download the Roundtable APP, that's free too!
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