BOSTON — A Red Sox bullpen that has been hit hard while being undermanned since the All-Star break added a piece on Tuesday, as chief baseball officer Craig Breslow acquired righty Lucas Sims from the Reds in exchange for Minor League righty Ovis Portes.

The 30-year-old will give manager Alex Cora another option in the mid-to-late innings. An eight-year veteran, Sims is having a solid season, notching a 3.57 ERA in 43 appearances for the Reds, including 40 strikeouts in 35 1/3 innings.

TRADE DETAILS
Red Sox receive: RHP Lucas Sims
Reds receive: Single-A RHP Ovis Portes

Of late, Sims has been rolling, holding the opposition scoreless in 12 of his past 14 appearances during which he’s allowed a total of three runs — and no homers — since June 22.

Sims will be part of the bridge to closer Kenley Jansen, who has converted 20 of 23 saves this season, with two of the blown saves coming since the All-Star break.

The Red Sox like the under-the-hood numbers Sims has produced, as he’s in MLB’s 95th percentile in average exit velocity (86.1 MPH), as well as the 74th percentile in strikeout rate (26.0%).

Since the start of the 2019 season, Sims has held opponents to a .190 batting average, the Majors’ seventh-lowest mark among pitchers with at least 200 innings in that span.

The Sox have an MLB-worst 8.51 ERA in the bullpen in their first 10 games after the All-Star break. During that span, the bullpen also ranks last in WHIP (2.16) while allowing 55 hits and 25 walks in 37 innings. The .331 batting average against Boston’s bullpen since the break is last in MLB.

Overall, Boston’s pitching staff has an MLB-worst 6.75 ERA since the All-Star break.

The Red Sox started strong in the bullpen this season but have had a hard time weathering two key setup men — Chris Martin and Justin Slaten — being on the injured list at the same time with right elbow woes.

Martin is expected to start throwing off a mound on Wednesday, which means his return might not be too far off. Slaten, the Rule 5 rookie who sparkled before he was placed on the IL just before the All-Star break, is still limited to flat ground.

The Sox also hope to get Liam Hendriks back at some point. The former All-Star closer is recovering from Tommy John reconstruction surgery that he underwent almost a year ago. Hendriks will visit with his surgeon, Dr. Keith Meister, when the Red Sox travel to Texas this weekend. At that point, he hopes to get the all-clear to advance beyond bullpen sessions and throw live BP before going on a Minor League rehab assignment.

Portes, who’s 19 and signed with the Red Sox as an international free agent in 2022, is 2-1 this season with two saves and a 2.12 ERA in 11 appearances (five starts) between Rookie ball and Single-A, with 41 strikeouts in 34 innings.

To make room for Sims on the 40-man roster, the Red Sox designated lefty Brandon Walter for assignment.

While the addition of Sims was the first move Breslow made on Trade Deadline day, Boston’s first-year leader of the front office has been busy in the days leading up to Tuesday.

On Friday, the Sox acquired lefty starter James Paxton from the Dodgers for Minor League infielder Moises Bolivar. Paxton, who pitched for the Sox in ’23, will mark his return to Boston by starting Tuesday night’s game against the Mariners.

The Sox got a right-handed bat in Danny Jansen on Saturday, packaging three Minor Leaguers (Cutter Coffey, Eddinson Paulino and Gilberto Batista) to acquire the veteran catcher from the Blue Jays.

Breslow acquired promising 23-year-old righty Quinn Priester from the Pirates for infielder/outfielder Nick Yorke, who was Boston’s No. 6 prospect at the time of the trade. Priester was assigned to Triple-A Worcester upon completion of the trade but could factor into Boston’s rotation or bullpen at some point this season.