Prior to tonight's game against the Cleveland Indians, the Boston Red Sox made the following roster moves:
Outfielder Rajai Davis was added to the active major league roster. He will wear number 25.
Right-handed pitcher Blaine Boyer was returned from his injury rehab assignment with Triple-A Pawtucket and activated from the 10-day disabled list.
To make room for Davis and Boyer on the 25-man roster, infielder Deven Marrero and right-handed pitcher Hector Velázquez were optioned to Pawtucket following last night's game.
President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski made the announcement.
Davis, 36, was acquired yesterday by the Red Sox from the Oakland A's in exchange for minor league outfielder Rafael Rincones. He batted .233 (70-for-300) with 17 doubles, two triples, and five home runs in 100 games with the A's this season, also stealing 26 bases in only 32 attempts. In 30 games since the All-Star break, the right-handed hitter has gone 23-for-76 (.303) with an .848 OPS and 11 stolen bases. The Connecticut native has recorded five assists and two double plays in 79 games (62 starts) in center field, also making nine starts in right field and two in left field. He has stolen at least 20 bases in 10 of his major league seasons, recording 40 or more steals five times with a career-best 50 in 2010. In Game 7 of last year's World Series against the Chicago Cubs, Davis tied the score at 6-6 with a two-out, two-run home run off Aroldis Chapman in the eighth inning at Progressive Field.
Boyer, 36, was placed on the disabled list on August 8 (retroactive to August 6) with a neck strain. He made his lone rehab appearance for the PawSox on Monday against Buffalo, allowing one hit in a scoreless fifth inning. The right-hander has held opponents scoreless in 17 of his 22 appearances with Boston this season, going 1-1 with a 3.21 ERA (10 ER/28.0 IP) and 21 strikeouts against nine walks. Originally selected by Atlanta in the third round of the 2000 June Draft, Boyer has a 4.11 ERA (198 ER/433.1 IP) in 416 appearances, all in relief, over parts of 11 major league seasons with the Braves (2005-2009), St. Louis Cardinals (2009), Arizona Diamondbacks (2009-10), New York Mets (2011), San Diego Padres (2014), Minnesota Twins (2015), Milwaukee Brewers (2016), and Red Sox (2017).
Marrero, 26, has hit safely in each of his last 10 games for Pawtucket, batting .447 (17-for-38) with three doubles and two home runs in that span. In 58 games over three stints with Boston this season, the right-handed hitter has batted .212 (32-for-151) with seven doubles, three home runs, and 23 RBI, helping the club to a 27-16 record in his 43 starts. He has posted a .977 fielding percentage (three errors in 130 total chances) at the major league level in 2017 while appearing in 49 games at third base, four at second base, three at shortstop, and one at first base. Originally selected by the Red Sox in the first round of the 2012 June Draft (24th overall), Marrero has hit .208 (45-for-216) with seven doubles, four home runs, and 26 RBI over 96 career major league games, all with Boston (2015-17).
Velázquez, 28, is 2-1 with a 4.08 ERA (8 ER/17.2 IP) in four appearances (two starts) over four stints with Boston this season, allowing zero runs and only three hits in 7.1 innings as a reliever. The right-hander most recently pitched in a major league game on July 18 against Toronto, when he threw 4.0 scoreless innings and earned the win in a 5-4, 15-inning victory over the Blue Jays. He is also 7-4 with a 2.39 ERA (25 ER/94.0 IP) and a .225 opponent batting average in 17 starts with the PawSox, striking out 75 batters and walking 23. A native of Sonora, Mexico, Velázquez has made seven scoreless starts of at least 5.0 innings for Pawtucket. The Red Sox purchased his contract from the Piratas de Campeche of the Mexican League on February 18, 2017.