Josh Winckowski has become an important piece of the Red Sox' puzzle

For much of the season, Josh Winckowski was the one who had been left behind.

First, there was the missed opportunity to find a spot in the starting rotation in spring training. And then came enough of a rough stretch out of the bullpen that the Red Sox pitcher would be sent to Triple-A Worcester on May 12.

While the feel-good evolution of pitchers such as Tanner Houck, Kutter Crawford, and a bevy of relief pitchers was highlighting the 2024 Red Sox success story, the promise Winckowski had offered a season before was heading the other way.

Now, he is part of the club, living life as part of the solution rather any sort of problem.

"He’s one of the best pitchers that we have," said Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers after his team's 4-1 win over the Padres Sunday afternoon. "I don’t know why he was in Triple-A. I feel like he’s a very good pitcher, and I hope he keeps doing what he did today and he stays with us the rest of the year."

Why Winckowski was sent to Triple-A was to uncover the kind of pitching he showcased in the series finale. There was no runs over five innings, with the Padres managing just four hits against the righty. It as the second time in his career he had gone as many as five frames without giving up a run, the other occasion taking place on June 15, 2022 against Oakland.

The complete control exhibited by Winckowski throughout the Sox win was a testament to his acceptance that things needed to change. And change, he did ... thanks to a revamped changeup.

Winckowski threw the pitch 12 times, with San Diego hitters swinging at nine of them while taking the other three for strikes. The commitment to throwing the pitch over the plate was a difference-maker.

"I kind of figured out something at Triple-A," said Winckowski. "I was throwing changeups that were literally just a ball down and almost never, ever getting swings on it, so we just kind of started trying to throw it in the zone at all times. It's been turned into, like, a high-percentage strike pitch for me and then gets a lot of ground balls. So I think in those 2-0, 2-1 counts, it has been a huge help."

So, why is all of this so important beyond just helping the Red Sox avoid a series sweep?

With Alex Cora's club sitting 1 1/2 games out of a wild card spot, the top need for these Red Sox as trade deadline talk starts getting sifted through is finding more starting pitching. For the month of June, the Sox' starters possessed the 25th-best ERA in baseball (5.02), going fewer than five innings 11 times in 25 chances. (The Red Sox are 34-21 when their starters go five or more innings.)

Even with Winckowski, there might be a need for starting pitching fortification. There wasn't a single Red Sox' starter whose ERA sat under 4.44 for June.

But until Craig Breslow and Co. can sort out what might be feasible when it comes to starting pitching acquisitions, the internal option that WInckowski has presented becomes increasingly important.

"Winck helped us today," Cora said. "He might help us next week. There’s a good chance he’ll make the next start because he earned it, and the bullpen is in a good spot."