Brayan Bello's Sunday start for the Boston Red Sox felt like a sliding doors moment.
Each of Bello's last two outings were successful experiments in following an opener. The Red Sox, somewhat inexplicably, moved him back to the first inning for Sunday's series finale with the Atlanta Braves, and he immediately allowed a three-run home run in the first inning, en route to seven earned runs allowed in five innings. His ERA ballooned to 7.16 as he took his team-leading fifth loss of the season.
All in all, not the best way for Bello to spend his 25th birthday.
Were it not for previous injuries to Sonny Gray and Garrett Crochet, Bello might well have lost his spot in the rotation by now. Gray has been back for a week and Crochet now looks close to a return, which means Bello's opportunities might well be running out.
In fact, it seemed like Bello knew that to be the case. After the game, he was noticeably downtrodden. And catcher Carlos Narváez may have put things best in his postgame interview: Bello's struggles are having a compounding effect.
“It’s a little bit emotional,” Narváez said, per Chris Cotillo of MassLive. “He wanted to succeed and probably felt a little bit like, ‘Here we go again.’”
There's hardly any debate about whether Bello deserves the spot at this point. Crochet, Gray, and Ranger Suárez aren't going anywhere, while rookie left-handers Payton Tolle and Connelly Early have both pitched like rotation mainstays in their early twenties.
Bello still has three years left after this one on the six-year, $55 million extension that seemed like a bargain at the time it was signed. Even if he has more opportunities to come in future seasons, his career with the Red Sox feels like it's at an inflection point right now.