Eduardo Rivera’s climb back to Boston just hit a detour. The Red Sox left-hander was placed on Triple-A Worcester’s seven-day injured list Thursday with lower back inflammation, according to MassLive beat reporter Chris Cotillo, a new complication for a pitcher working to rebuild his big league case after an impressive debut earlier this season that suddenly went south.
Cotillo’s report offered no word on the severity of the back issue, how it happened or any timeline for Rivera’s recovery beyond the week-long IL stay, leaving Worcester and the Red Sox to wait on updates about one of the organization’s most closely tracked left-handed arms.
Eduardo Rivera’s Path to Boston
Eduardo Yael Rivera was born June 13, 2003, in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and stands 6-foot-7, an imposing frame for a pitcher, and one who throws left-handed, according to Boston’s official player biography. Oakland selected him in the 11th round of the 2021 draft, but the Athletics released him, and he signed with the Red Sox as a minor league free agent in June 2024, according to the club’s announcement of his July recall.
The hard-throwing southpaw opened 2026 at Double-A Portland, earned a promotion to Worcester on April 21 and had his contract selected by Boston the next day. He debuted April 22 against the New York Yankees, tossing 3 1/3 scoreless innings of relief with three strikeouts. He represented Puerto Rico at this year’s World Baseball Classic, working two games, one of them a start, to a 4.05 ERA, according to The Athletic.
The results have not carried into his other big league outings. Rivera is 0-1 with a 6.30 ERA across four appearances, three of them starts, spanning 10 innings with 10 strikeouts. His last look came July 22 against Baltimore, when he lasted just two-thirds of an inning, allowing four earned runs on three hits and two walks in a doubleheader nightcap, according to a CBS Sports breakdown of the outing. Boston optioned him back to Worcester the same night.
Patrick Halligan Returns
In a corresponding move, right-hander Patrick Halligan was added back to Worcester’s roster, filling the organizational depth created by Rivera’s injured list stint and the recall of Greg Weissert to Boston, according to Red Sox roster trackers monitoring Thursday’s transactions. Halligan himself was not hurt. He simply shifts back into active duty after a stint pitching at Double-A Portland.
The 6-foot-6, 230-pound Halligan was a 13th-round pick of the Kansas City Royals in 2021 out of Pensacola State College before stints in the Braves and Astros systems. He signed a minor league deal with Boston in January, joining what has become a Red Sox pattern of collecting oversized power arms, according to Beyond the Monster‘s report on his signing. He has pitched almost exclusively out of the bullpen throughout his professional career.
For Rivera, the injury list stint is a pause, not necessarily a setback. Between Portland and Worcester this year, he carries a 7-2 record, a 2.44 ERA, a 1.15 WHIP and 62 strikeouts in 48 innings. Boston has already shown a willingness to summon him on short notice, and has done so twice this season. A clean bill of health and a strong finish at Worcester would put him back in that conversation quickly, though at 23, with a rotation crowded by returning arms like Ranger Suarez, Rivera’s clearest path back may again run through the bullpen.
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