What Matt Barnes and His Future Mean for the Boston Red Sox

Boston Red Sox pitching prospect Matt Barnes made his big league debut on Tuesday, hurling three innings of shutout relief in a 4-1 loss to the Baltimore Orioles.  Called up from Triple-A Pawtucket at the beginning of the week, Barnes will now have the opportunity to finish the season in the Red Sox bullpen.

Via Sean McAdam of CSNNE, the newest member of Boston's pitching staff said the following about his first MLB appearance:

"

After I got on the mound, instincts took over, and I wasn't really nervous at all. Once you get past the (initial) nerves and who you're playing against, it's the same game I've been playing for 20 years. Once you get out there, you don't really see anything else except for the (catcher's) glove.

You just try to execute pitches. I felt like I was doing the same thing I've been doing my whole life.

"

The 24-year-old righty has New England roots, which will likely make him a sentimental favorite for many Boston fans.

Barnes is from Bethel, CT, and also played college ball for the University of Connecticut.  As a member of the Huskies, he set a school record with 247 strikeouts and was twice named to the All-Big East team. In 2011, Barnes was chosen as the conference's pitcher of the year and selected by the Red Sox with the 19th pick in the first round of the MLB draft.

Over 22 regular-season starts this year for Pawtucket, Barnes finished 8-9 with a 3.95 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and 103 strikeouts in 127.2 innings pitched.  Despite his somewhat mediocre numbers, Barnes was very good after the All-Star break, posting a 2.10 ERA in nine outings (including one playoff game).

From ESPN Boston's Kyle Brasseur, Red Sox manager John Farrell explains the decision to promote Barnes to the majors:

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As effective as he’s been and the progress he’s made throughout the course of the season, we felt like exposure in September would be beneficial for him. He was to have been protected [from the MLB Rule 5 draft by being added to the 40-man roster] this offseason so selecting him now wasn’t that much of an issue from a roster standpoint.

"

Barnes has been a starter for his entire professional career, and scouting reports from SoxProspects.com and MLB.com's Prospect Watch both suggest that he has middle-of-the-rotation potential on the major league level.  However, the competition among young arms in the Red Sox organization looks to be extremely fierce.  Brandon Workman, Rubby De La Rosa, Allen Webster and Anthony Ranaudo are all currently in the rotation, and Henry Owens is looming down in Triple-A.

It's quite possible that Barnes' long-term role in Boston may be as a reliever, potentially even as the team's future closer.  Whether or not the Red Sox bring back free-agent Koji Uehara, who'll be turning 40 years old at the start of next season, the club will still need to find a replacement for him soon. 

WEEI's Alex Speier says Barnes has "perhaps the best fastball in the system."  Following the rookie's three-inning stint to finish the game on Tuesday, McAdam wrote:

"

Barnes regularly hit 95-96 mph with his fastball, improved velocity compared to his starts at Triple-A when his fastball was closer to 92-93 mph.

'Knowing that I'm not going to go out there and get six or seven (innings),' he [Barnes] said, 'I can take the intensity up a little bit.'

"

With an intimidating 6'4" 205-pound frame and a 96 mph fastball, Barnes has all the makings of a shut-down late-inning reliever—but is it the job description he's looking for?

When asked about joining the Red Sox and what his goal might be for next year, Barnes answered (via Brasseur):

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This is where we all want to be. This has been my dream since I was a young kid. To be able to finally get up here, it's awesome.

My goal for 2015 is to be in the big leagues in whatever role the Red Sox see me being there in.

"

Barnes will use the final few weeks of the 2014 season to try to prove that he belongs, and Boston can get a good look at how he performs out of the bullpen against major league hitters.

Even if he doesn't crack the Opening Day roster next April, Barnes is still young and talented enough that he'll be sure to earn another chance with the Red Sox further down the road.

Statistics courtesy of MiLB.com