​May 7, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Tanner Houck (89) pitches against the Texas Rangers during the third inning at Fenway Park. Houck made his first rehab start with Double-A Portland on Tuesday. Mand… | Source: Lastwordonsports.com – Augustus Oswald, Site EditorThe Boston Red Sox have had several injured pitchers waiting to get back to the major league level, from Garrett Crochet to Johan Oviedo. But there’s one name that just started rehab on Tuesday that could provide help for Boston in a few ways: Tanner Houck. While he may have had his ups and downs with the team throughout his career, having a reliable long relief arm in the bullpen in case a game gets out of hand fast would certainly be nice. May 31, 2024; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Tanner Houck (89) throws a pitch against the Detroit Tigers in the first inning at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY SportsTanner Houck Rehab: Tonight’s Outing and Where He Fits Houck’s 2025 Ending in Disappointment The last time Houck was with this squad, it was a rough stretch for him. For a guy who was an All-Star and (for a moment) a Cy Young candidate in 2024, there were expectations that he could be a solid back-end rotation guy after the trade for Crochet and the return of Lucas Giolito, who suffered his own UCL injury in 2024. But his 2025 season was quite the opposite. With his 0-3 record, 8.04 ERA, and .318 OBA, he did not provide any depth to the Red Sox that season. Making MLB history can always be good or bad, and in the case of Houck, it was very bad. He became the first pitcher ever to have two starts of 11 or more runs in three innings or less in the same season. It was not a great season for him outside of that either, as only three of his nine starts in 2025 were considered “quality starts”. After the second 11-run outing against the Detroit Tigers, Houck was placed on the injured list, which would eventually lead to him being shut down for the season and having UCL surgery in August. Houck’s Rehab Appearance Houck did make an appearance with the Double-A Portland Sea Dogs on Tuesday, starting his rehab to potentially rejoin the team. Unfortunately, the outing was more reminiscent of pre-injury moments for the right-hander. He came into a 5-5 tie game in the fifth and didn’t even make it out of the inning. He would allow one run, walk two batters, throw a wild pitch, and only get eight of his 20 pitches for strikes.Tanner Houck’s first rehab appearance in Red Sox Double-A Portland just ended (he was on a 20-pitch limit):Flyout
Walk / Stolen Base / Wild pitch
Walk
RBI groundout— Gabrielle Starr (@gfstarr1) September 8, 2026Now, to give him the benefit of the doubt, it’s Houck’s outing since May of 2025. He spent a season and a half on the IL. It should also be noted that the player who gave him the most trouble was Jefferson Rojas, the No. 76 prospect in MLB and a newly ac