Newcomb is having his best season in at least six years. A former first-round pick, Newcomb had a rotation spot with the Braves from 2017-18. In 2019, he moved primarily to the bullpen. He pitched well that year, but struggled with both injuries and a lack of control in the coming seasons. He combined for 98 2/3 MLB innings between 2020 and 2024 and signed a minor league contract with Boston last winter.
The Massachusetts native surprisingly picked up the fifth starting spot out of camp. He completed five innings just once and allowed four-plus runs in three of five appearances. The Sox then moved him to a long relief role Luke Giolito returned from a hamstring injury at the end of April. Newcomb came out of the bullpen solidly, but was nevertheless pushed off the roster. The Sox traded him to the Athletics, for whom he had spent some time as a depth reliever in 2023-24.
Newcomb became an unexpectedly important bullpen piece for Mark Kotsay. He fired 51 1/3 frames of 1.75 ERA ball while working 1-2 innings at a time. Newcomb shut down a quarter of opponents at a career walk rate of 7%. He worked in the 93-94 MPH range with both his four-seam fastball and his sinker, while using an upper 80s curveball as his best secondary pitch. Newcomb played with a cutter and switched against right-handed hitters, but the fastball/curve combination was where he found the most success.
The 6’5″ left-hander pitched extremely well down the stretch, posting a 0.96 ERA over 28 innings after the All-Star Break. His season ended a few weeks early due to elbow inflammation, but there are no indications that will be an issue next season. Durability was generally a concern, albeit mainly with injuries to the lower half. Newcomb missed time with a sprained ankle in 2022 and struggled with knee issues the next two seasons.
Newcomb’s strong year this time was enough to land a Major League contract. A one-year contract seems likely, but it is not out of the question that he offers a modest two-year guarantee. Sixth starters and swing types like it Canning griffin, Joe Ross, Jacob Junis, Colin Rea And Michael Lorenzen won contracts between $4 and 7 million last winter. Newcomb’s former teammate Michael Soroka got a $9 million deal from the Nationals at the high end of that range, even though he is five years younger and had shown more strikeout potential in the bullpen.
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