Arizona Diamondbacks at Boston Red Sox

For a while, there’s been a debate surrounding Brayan Bello. The righty has been so effective since moving to the role of bulk reliever, it’s created the following question: Should he be given a chance to start again? While it’s all but certain there will be starts in Bello’s future (he is signed through 2029), his usage for the remainder of this 2026 postseason chase seems fairly obvious. Keep him where he is, because it is working brilliantly. Once again following an opener, Bello came up big for the Red Sox, allowing three hits and one run over 4 2/3 innings in which he walked one and struck out three. Of Bello’s 76 pitches, 50 were for strikes. Behind Bello and a rejuvenated offense, the Red Sox shook off a 2-7 stretch with an 11-1 romp over the D-backs. While Bello is still a starter at heart, this question was posed to him after his latest strong effort out of the bullpen: “Do you like it?” “It’s working,” said Bello. It was a perfectly appropriate answer. For teams aiming to get into the postseason -- which the Red Sox (67-58) are currently in a strong position to do -- this is the time of year when players look beyond their own preferences. Bello is buying in, and the Red Sox are reaping the rewards. “It's been great,” said Red Sox interim manager Chad Tracy. “I think obviously it was well documented how the beginning of the year went for him, the frustrations and that he believes he's a starter. We still think that. But he's in a really good place as far as accepting the role and knowing that he's not only accepting the role, but he's going out there and helping us win in that role, and that's a good place for him to be.” In Bello’s 11 relief appearances this season, he is 4-0 with a 0.85 ERA and one save. While Bello’s first four relief outings were when the Red Sox were going back and forth with him from the rotation, things have changed since he returned from a somewhat stunning five-week demotion to Triple-A Worcester. Called back up on the final Sunday before the All-Star break, Bello bought his team time for a stirring comeback at Citi Field by giving his team 4 1/3 strong frames in relief.