Boston Red Sox Activate Trade Addition, Send Reliever Down Before Rangers Series

The Boston Red Sox take on the Texas Rangers in a three-game series beginning Friday at 8:05 PM EST and have made two bullpen roster moves before the matchup commences.

37-year-old relief pitcher Luis Garcia, whom the team acquired from the Los Angeles Angels at the trade deadline, has been activated onto the 26-man MLB roster. In the corresponding move, 26-year-old relief pitcher Bailey Horn has been optioned to Triple-A Worcester to make room for Garcia.

Horn held a 6.39 ERA with the Red Sox in 12.2 innings before his demotion. He was used alongside veteran Chase Anderson, who was Designated for Assignment earlier this week, as a mop-up innings eater when games got out of hand. He returns to Worcester where he held a 1.69 ERA in 16 innings after being claimed by Boston off of waivers from the Chicago White Sox.

Garcia will look to bolster an ailing Red Sox bullpen that used four separate relief pitchers in their Thursday win against the Seattle Mariners and has seen a recent sharp decline in performance as innings counts rise. He holds a 3.71 ERA in 43.2 innings and will make his Boston debut in an important series against Texas.

Following today's roster moves, there now remains three players the team is waiting to activate. 35-year-old offseason addition Liam Hendriks, 38-year-old Chris Martin and 26-year-old Justin Slaten are all expected to return to Major League action in the coming weeks.

The Red Sox hold the 11th hardest schedule in the MLB for the rest of the season and will utilize every bullpen piece they can as they make a push for the playoffs.