Kevin Millwood, who the Boston Red Sox reportedly signed to a minor league contract on Thursday night, was most likely brought on board by Theo Epstein to help with Boston's multiple injuries to the pitching staff (namely John Lackey and Daisuke Matsuzaka).
Yet is Millwood the right man to fill the void? He's won 159 games and has a career ERA of 4.11 with 1,940 strikeouts in 14 seasons, but is coming off of a dismal 2010 campaign with the Baltimore Orioles in which he posted a record of 4-16 with a 5.10 ERA and 132 strikeouts. Over The Monster analyzes the move...
Looking past his nine bad innings in Triple-A this year, the last impression we have of Kevin Millwood is one of a pretty average major league pitcher. His xFIP has bounced around 4.50 for the last four-or-so years, which makes him about all you can ask for when it comes to a fifth starter. And if he can provide that for the Sox while they're waiting for Daisuke or Lackey, then he might make sense for the Sox.
Millwood signed with the New York Yankees prior to this season, but opted out of his contract after he was not called up to the major league roster.