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FORT MYERS, FLORIDA – FEBRUARY 17: Johan Oviedo #29 of the Boston Red Sox poses for a picture during the 2026 Boston Red Sox Photo Day at JetBlue Park at Fenway South on February 17, 2026 in Fort Myers, Florida. (Photo by Julio Aguilar\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
The Boston Red S<\/a>ox are already at the bottom of arguably the toughest division in MLB with a 1-5 record. While it is early, it\u2019s still significant in a tough American League East division.<\/p>\n Their attempt to get back to the top of the division will be slowed by an ominous injury to their pitching staff.<\/p>\n In a flurry of roster moves made Friday morning, the Red Sox placed right-hander Johan Oviedo on the 15-day IL with a right elbow strain.<\/a><\/p>\n The #RedSox<\/a> today announced the following roster moves: <\/p>\n In a corresponding move, Boston called up right-hander Tyler Uberstine for his major league debut.<\/p>\n The Red Sox also placed right-hander Garrett Whitlock on the paternity list, where he can spend a maximum of three days, and recalled right-hander Zack Kelly.<\/p>\n Whitlock has not given up an earned run in three innings of work in 2026 and is one of the team\u2019s best relievers.<\/p>\n Kelly has a career 4.15 ERA in 98 games.<\/p>\n What Does the Oviedo Injury Mean for the Boston Red Sox?<\/p>\n Obviously, an elbow injury of any kind is worrisome for a pitcher. When coupled with a decline in velocity, it makes the situation a lot worse.<\/p>\n The St. Louis Cardinals<\/a> signed Oviedo out of Cuba back in 2016. He would make his major league debut for the team during the COVID-shortened 2020 season.<\/p>\n He struggled to a 4.65 ERA in 33 games (112.1 innings) before the Cardinals traded Oviedo to the Pittsburgh Pirates<\/a> in exchange for Jose Quintana and Chris Stratton.<\/p>\n Oviedo would start just 48 games from 2022 to 2025 for Pittsburgh with a 4.05 ERA. After the 2023 season, Oviedo would undergo Tommy John surgery. This sidelined him for the entire 2024 season and most of 2025.<\/p>\n After the 2025 season, the Pirates would trade Oviedo to Boston in exchange for outfield prospect Jhostynxon Garcia.<\/p>\n In one game in 2026, Oviedo pitched 3.2 innings of relief, with four earned runs given up, including two home runs. While not expected to start for Boston, he provided rotation depth and length out of the bullpen.<\/p>\n The Red Sox will have to hope that Oviedo\u2019s injury is not as significant as currently thought.<\/p>\n Who Is Tyler Uberstine?<\/p>\n As mentioned before, Uberstine will be making his major league debut with the Red Sox.<\/p>\n Uberstine is currently the No. 15 prospect in the Boston farm system, per MLB<\/a> Pipeline, and carries an interesting story.<\/p>\n He was cut by the University of Southern California\u2019s club team as a freshman and the varsity team as a sophomore.<\/p>\n Uberstine then started working with former big leaguer Joe Biemel and transferred to Northwestern, where he would also struggle.<\/p>\n Boston saw enough, however, to select him in the 19th round of 2021\u2019s draft. However, he would blow out his elbow during spring training in 2023, causing him to miss the better part of two seasons.<\/p>\n Uberstine would come back better than ever, posting a 3.58 ERA in 2025 between Double-A and Triple-A. Now, Uberstine will make his dream a reality, overcoming the obstacles he faced.<\/p>\n However, it could come at the expense of Oviedo.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tMatthew Singer<\/a> Matthew Singer is a sports reporter covering MLB for Heavy.com. He has written for Heavy since 2025, and has two years of experience covering local professional, collegiate and high school sports, including writing for Cronkite News and Arizona PBS. More about Matthew Singer<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tMore Heavy on Red Sox\n\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\tLoading more stories\n\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t