Despite his injury woes since 2017, and not being in baseball this season, former Boston Red Sox All-Star Steven Wright is not ready to call it a career.
In 2016, Steven Wright was near the pinnacle of the baseball world. The latest Boston Red Sox knuckleballer was coming off of an All-Star season, having posted a 13-6 record with a 3.33 ERA and a 1.245 WHiP. In his 156.2 innings, Wright struck out 127 batters with just 57 walks. While knuckleballers are always a risky proposition, he appeared to have become a part of the Red Sox future.
Instead, that would be the apex of his career. Wright struggled in his first five outings in 2017 before requiring season ending surgery on torn cartilage in his left knee. He was later arrested that offseason, charged with domestic assault. While charges were dropped, he still served a 15 game suspension at the start of the season.
Wright had a strong start to his 2018 campaign, but missed time again as his knee issues flared up once more, keeping him off the postseason roster. His 2019 campaign was another disaster, as he served an 80 game suspension for a failed PED test, then ended his season on the IL after just six games. Wright was released by Boston after the season, and announced he would need Tommy John surgery.
With that baggage and his rehab from surgery, one can understand why Wright did not attract any suitors this offseason. But that does not mean that he has given up on his baseball career just yet. Wright said that he is feeling healthy once more and does not want his career to end on the note his tenure with Boston did.
It is not that long ago that Wright was a productive player in Boston. When healthy, he has typically produced above average results. Even with those two rough campaigns in 2017 and 2019, Wright has a lifetime 3.86 ERA and a 13.29 WHiP, striking out 271 batters with 132 walks in 347.2 innings.
There is always a risk with knuckleball pitchers. Their success is as fleeting as the knuckleball itself; here one pitch, gone the next. But if Wright is healthy, he could be a very intriguing low cost option for a team looking to fill out the rotation next year, a fifth starter with tremendous upside.
Although his time with the Boston Red Sox did not end the way he would have hoped, Steven Wright is not ready to call it a career. He could still be a solid option at a very low cost.