FORT MYERS, Fla. -- As Red Sox camp progresses, so does Johan Oviedo’s case for being the club’s fifth man in the rotation.
The right-hander acquired via trade from Pittsburgh this offseason made yet another strong outing for the Sox Saturday afternoon in a 2-0 rain-shortened win over Tampa Bay.
Across 3 1/3 innings, Oviedo allowed just two hits, no runs, struck out four and, maybe most importantly, didn’t allow a walk. He threw 47 pitches, with 32 of them for strikes.
In the 6-foot-6 Cuban native’s first Spring Training outing, he gave up three free passes. In two starts since, his control has improved substantially.
“We executed pitches,” Oviedo said. “That’s the main planning in here -- get ahead and try to not walk and give free bases. We’re looking for results.”
Especially impressive was the 28-year-old’s fastball. Sitting a tick under 98 mph consistently, all four of Oviedo’s strikeouts came via batters swinging through the heater.
“We just keep working and getting improvement every start,” Oviedo said of his fastball control. “The main goal is to get ahead, command the four-seamer, play around the zone and get good results.”
Coming off of 2024 Tommy John surgery, Oviedo made nine starts in 2025 for the Pirates, posting a 3.57 ERA with 42 strikeouts across 40 1/3 innings, with opposing hitters batting just .182 against him. In his last full season in 2023, Oviedo pitched to a 4.31 ERA across 32 starts and 177 2/3 innings.
In 2026 with his new club, he’s hoping to be the fifth man in a Red Sox rotation with stability in front of whomever that final starter will be.
“All of my energy [goes towards] working hard every day and trying to complement everything that the team and the coaches want me to do,” Oviedo said. “I just want to be healthy and let them decide what’s best for the team.”
“I would be lying if I said ‘no,’ but for me, it’s more about a fight against myself,” Oviedo said.
“Main goal is always get better every day -- on workouts and pitches, on trying to do my homework every day. As long as I can do that, everything will be in place.”
Across three Grapefruit League starts, Oviedo has not allowed a run over eight innings, struck out nine and allowed just five hits to a .185 opponent batting average.
Manager Alex Cora said he’s pleased with the way Oviedo has found his command following his first start.
“He can live in the strike zone,” Cora said. “He induces weak contact. There’s swings and misses. If we keep doing that, we’re going to have a good one.”
On what has changed since Oviedo’s first outing, Cora said it may have come from a conversation with starter Brayan Bello.
“It’s a mindset,” Cora said. “Bello kind of showed him who he is in the strike zone compared to other good ones in the league, and, when that happens, he’s one of the best. The numbers show that. We’ve just got to stay in the strike zone.”
There are plenty of decisions to be made as camp continues, but the race for the fifth starting spot may be one of the most interesting with the Sox, as all three potential fits have shown promise not just in early 2026, but last year as well.