The Boston Red Sox’s bullpen looks different now than it did a week ago, but there’s no question it’s been wearing down of late.

Closer Aroldis Chapman and setup man Garrett Whitlock have been nails when called upon of late. But it’s hard to say who the other dependable high-leverage relievers would be on the current staff, and reinforcements couldn’t be coming at a better time.

Setup man Justin Slaten hasn’t pitched since May, dealing with a shoulder injury that was discovered to be mostly a neck issue. He’s been on the mend for a few weeks now, and on Tuesday, Friday, and Sunday, he made successful rehab appearances with Triple-A Worcester.

Now, with a critical four-game set looming against the Baltimore Orioles, who took both games from the Red Sox at Fenway Park last week, Slaten appears right on the cusp of making his next appearance in the big leagues.

On Sunday, manager Alex Cora expressed that it’s possible Slaten could pitch in the series against Baltimore, according to MassLive’s Chris Cotillo.

“It depends on how he feels tomorrow (Monday). Tomorrow is a big day. Then we’ll decide what we’re doing,” Cora said, per Cotillo.

“We’re not rushing him. He’s too important for us. Where we’re at right now, it doesn’t make any sense to do that. Yesterday, I texted with him. He’s feeling great and feels like he’s ready.”

Monday is certainly a recovery day, and with travel involved after a potential decision, one might assume Tuesday is somewhat unlikely for Slaten to pitch in the majors as well. Wednesday seems like the day, if the rehab stint is indeed finished, that the righty would make his return.

In 23 1/3 innings early in the season, Slaten put up a 3.47 ERA but a dominant 0.90 WHIP. He struggled somewhat with strikeouts (only 16), so it was encouraging to see him punch out five batters in his three innings on rehab, allowing just one unearned run.

Slaten has some of the nastiest pure stuff of any reliever in the majors, and the Red Sox are going to need all they can get from him if they want to not only hold onto their playoff spot, but set themselves up to host a series in October.

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