Red Sox Journal: Porcello says he ready to go

BOSTON — Do you have faith in Rick Porcello in the postseason? Red Sox manager Alex Cora insists that he does.

Porcello will start in the regular-season finale at 3:05 p.m. Sunday at Fenway Park against the Yankees. He could face New York again in his next start in the ALDS.

Porcello, 29, continued the pattern he’s followed since the Sox acquired him from the Tigers prior to the 2015 season and signed him to a four-year, $82.5- [...]

BOSTON — Do you have faith in Rick Porcello in the postseason? Red Sox manager Alex Cora insists that he does.

Porcello will start in the regular-season finale at 3:05 p.m. Sunday at Fenway Park against the Yankees. He could face New York again in his next start in the ALDS.

Porcello, 29, continued the pattern he’s followed since the Sox acquired him from the Tigers prior to the 2015 season and signed him to a four-year, $82.5-million contract extension through the 2019 season. He’s rotated bad and good seasons, going 9-15, 22-4, 11-17 and this season 17-7.

Cora plans to pitch Porcello only two or three innings on Sunday so he’ll finish with 17 victories, but he’ll still lead the team in that category by one over David Price. He’ll also lead the staff in innings pitched, starts and unfortunately home runs allowed. He’ll also post by far the highest earned run average of any of the top five Sox starting pitchers. His ERA is 4.33 entering Sunday and Eduardo Rodriguez has the next highest at 3.85.

Porcello has pitched well against the Yankees this season, going 2-0 with a 2.53 earned run average in three starts, fanning 18, walking three and allowing just one home run in 21-1/3 innings.

“The good thing about Rick,” Cora said, “is he adjusts throughout the outing. If his sinker is not working, he’ll go to the cutter. If that’s not working, he’ll go to the four-seamer. So he has weapons.”

Since he pitched seven innings against Cleveland on Aug. 20, Porcello hasn’t thrown more than 5-2/3 innings in any of his last six starts. The Sox have tried to protect him for the postseason.

“He might not agree,” Cora said of limiting his innings. “If it’s up to him, he’ll pitch whenever he has to pitch on regular rest, but I think it’s going to pay off in time.”

Cora said some of Porcello’s stats are better now than earlier in the season, but he’s been hurt by the home run. Of course, that’s been a consistent problem for Porcello, who last season surrendered 38 home runs to lead the majors.

“Missed location and they’re hitting the ball out of the ballpark,” Cora said, “but we’re very happy with the way he’s throwing the ball. He’s consistent throughout the season. I know ERA and all that, it doesn’t look great, but he’s a guy we rely (on). We know what we can ask from him.”

Fixing Sale

Cora said the Sox noticed a problem with Chris Sale’s mechanics by comparing the video of his recent starts to earlier in the season.

“I’m pretty sure we can fix this and he’ll be OK for Friday,” Cora said.

The Sox open the ALDS on Friday against the Yankees or Athletics. (The teams will play in New York on Wednesday.)

Sale will work on his mechanics during a bullpen session Sunday or Monday.

“It’s not like a big adjustment,” Cora said. “Working this week and knowing what it is, he’ll be fine.”

Cora believes pitchers can reach a higher level of intensity in the playoffs because he saw it firsthand with Josh Beckett, who pitched the Sox to the World Series championship in 2007.

“I’ve never seen anything like that,” he said. “Him going through the Angels and the Indians and the Rockies the way he did and mentally he was somewhere else. That was impressive. There’s guys, they get locked in and they get locked in for a while in October. It’s mental. They act differently, they see things that they probably don’t see during the regular season and they execute better than during the regular season.”

Up in the air

Cora said he would decide the final pitching spot for the postseason roster on Thursday after the Yankees play Oakland the day before in the wild card game. The decision will be based on which team the Sox will face.

Cora declined to say how he’d use his three catchers, Sandy Leon, Christian Vazquez and Blake Swihart, in the postseason.

“That’s top secret,” Cora said.

Swihart started behind the plate on Friday, Vazquez started on Saturday and Leon will start on Sunday. Swihart started in right on Saturday. Leon is hitting only .180 and Cora said he may use him to bunt and hit and run.