May 9, 2013 at 9:30 AM
De La Torre to Boston, Webster optioned
Red Sox General Manager Ben Cherington announced in an interview on WEEI that Pawtucket reliever Jose De La Torre will be promoted to Boston, with Allen Webster returning to the PawSox after his disastrous start on Wednesday. To make room for De La Torre on the 40-man roster, Joel Hanrahan was moved to the 60-day disabled list. This will be De La Torre's first major league call-up.
De La Torre was acquired from Cleveland in exchange for Brent Lillibridge in July 2012. He's pitched well in Triple-A this season, with an ERA of 1.56 in 17 1/3 innings out of the bullpen. Last season, he combined to throw 74 innings between Double-A and Triple-A, and he also threw another 24 1/3 innings this winter in the Roberto Clemente (Puerto Rico) Baseball League. He performed well in each league, but it was not until 2013 at the World Baseball Classic that he put himself on the map.
Pitching in a WBC game for his native Puerto Rico, De La Torre struck out Jimmy Rollins, Brandon Phillips and Ryan Braun in succession. He allowed three runs in 5 2/3 innings, but he walked only one and struck out 12 in six appearances. The 27-year-old right-hander features a low-90s fastball and above-average slider, which you can see in this video.
Photo Credit: Jose De La Torre by Kelly O'Connor