NEW YORK -- Working off of the main mound at Yankee Stadium, Red Sox righty Nathan Eovaldi fired 22 pitches in a simulated game on Friday and didn’t look like he was all that far from being able to do it for real.

“I feel normal and back to myself,” said Eovaldi, who underwent surgery to remove loose bodies in his right elbow in April.

Eovaldi faced teammates Michael Chavis and Brock Holt, marking the first time he’s thrown to hitters since going on the injured list.

“He was really good,” said Red Sox manager Alex Cora. “Actually, the stuff was great. We’ll see how he reacts to it, but it seems like he’s getting close to seeing some action. Delivery was clean. Feedback from the hitters, obviously it was good.”

How close does Eovaldi think he is to being able to pitch for the Red Sox?

“It’s going to be up to them. It’s going to be their decision. I feel good though,” Eovaldi said.

As eager as the Red Sox are to get Eovaldi back, they won’t skip any steps in the process.

“So we’ll see how he feels tomorrow, and from there, we’ll sit down and just map it out and see if his next one is on a rehab assignment or he has to do the same thing one more time,” said Cora. “We’ve got time. But it seems like he’ll be with us sooner rather than later.”

Though the Red Sox’s bullpen has sprung some leaks of late, most notably when they couldn’t hold a 5-2 lead in the ninth inning against the Indians on Tuesday, Cora said that Eovaldi won’t be coming back as a reliever.

“No, obviously this is a guy who is very important for us, and the way we’re structured, that fifth [starter] is very important for us, too,” said Cora. “When these guys are pitching the way they are, they start giving us six and seven innings, it helps. I think overall our bullpen has done an outstanding job the last 10 days.

“We had the David [Price flu] situation in Houston and the short [start] on Wednesday. We had to go to guys early and often, so it’s not easy. Having the rotation and having those guys go deep into the game, that’s how we operate here. I think that’s where we’re going with them.”

When Eovaldi re-signed with the Red Sox on a four-year, $68 million deal in the offseason, it was with the general understanding he would be in the rotation.

“I think for him, actually, I’m not 100 percent sure, but I think that was part of the negotiation,” said Cora. “Dave [Dombrowski] is the GM. But I think that’s what he wanted to do, too. He had some conversations with other teams that saw him as a reliever. He enjoys starting. At the same time, he enjoys winning. I don’t know. I think that was part of the decision he made for him to come here.”

Price gets Yankees on Sunday

Due to Thursday night’s rainout, the Red Sox could have pitched Eduardo Rodriguez on Saturday and Rick Porcello on Sunday, which would have pushed Price back to the series at Kansas City next week.

Instead, Porcello will start Saturday and Price will take the ball on Sunday night. Rodriguez, who was available in the bullpen for Friday’s series opener in New York, will make his next start on Tuesday against the Royals.

“We can get multiple innings from Eddie tonight,” said Cora. “If we don’t use him tonight, he might give us one tomorrow. Hopefully we don’t have to use him today.”

Meanwhile, Sunday will present the opportunity for Price to finally have a strong road showing against the Yankees. In six starts at Yankee Stadium since he joined the Red Sox, Price is 0-6 with a 9.79 ERA.

Pearce exits with back spasms

Cora planned on giving Chavis a rest on Friday night, but that all changed when first baseman Steve Pearce had to exit the 4-1 loss to the Yankees with back spasms in the bottom of the second inning.

With starting first baseman Mitch Moreland currently on the injured list with a back injury, Chavis came on to replace Pearce, who is listed as day to day.

"I've got to talk to him. It’s back spasms, but I’ve got to see him," Cora said. "I haven’t talked to him. But as soon as he came into the dugout, he told me he felt numbness in his legs, so we’ll address it after we’re done with you guys and we’ll see where we go."