Red Sox pitcher Rick Porcello has come a long way from his first year with Boston.

Acquired in December 2014, from a deal with the Detroit Tigers, in which the Red Sox would give up Yoenis Cespedes and eventually sign him to a 4-year, $82.5 million extension in 2015 before the season even began. The move looked pretty bleak for the organization, after he went 9-15, with a 4.92 ERA, 1.360 WHIP, and 10.3 H/9.

Before he went on the DL last season from a torn tricep last July, he went 5-11 with an ERA of 5.81. However, when he returned to the rotation on August 26, 2015, he has been noticeably a different pitcher than the one the Red Sox first saw. He finished last season going 4-4 with an ERA of 3.57. Porcello has continued to show continuous consistency.

Since his return from the DL last year he has gone 19-7. In 2016, he is currently 15-3, with a 3.40 ERA, 1.079 WHIP, 8.2 H/9, 1.5 BB/9, and a K/9 of 7.5.

He has been a staple of the rotation and has provided the team a chance to win in virtually every start since he came off the disabled list last year. He has only allowed more than three earned runs six times, What, at one point, seemed like a bust of an acquisition has slowly, but surely looked like one that could help the Red Sox for quite some time.

Was it just an adjustment period for the pitcher to get comfortable pitching for such an intense baseball organization? Who knows? But, it is safe to say that he is feeling quite comfortable now. Porcello has not lost a game at home this year. He is 11-0 at home, with a 3.14 ERA and has a chance to break a record set by Boo Ferriss in 1946 of winning each of his first 13 home starts of the season.

Rick Porcello has stepped up in a big way. He is not supposed to be the ace, he wasn’t even an All-Star, but he has been carrying this team with consistency and dependability. You can’t ask for much more