By Brandon Apter, Sports Talk Philly editor 
Former Phillies pitcher Kyle Kendrick isn't remembered for a whole lot during his time in Philadelphia, but he put together some strong starts during first few years, was a member of the 2008 World Championship team and was fake traded to Japan for their famous hot dog eater. So, there's that.
Now with the Red Sox, Kendrick was very good during Spring Training, posting a 2.18 ERA in eight games, seven of which were starts. He was sent down to Triple-A, where he's started four games and is sporting a 6.00 ERA, but because of Stephen Wright's injury, Kendrick is tabbed as the Red Sox starter for Thursday night's game against Baltimore. It will be his first Major League start in 19 months.
"This is something that we felt Kendrick was the most prepared (for) and ready to go," Red Sox manager John Farrell told Masslive.com.
Kendrick is coming off of his best start of the season in Triple-A, seven shutout innings against Ryan Howard and the Gwinnett Braves last Friday.
The Phillies parted ways with Kendrick after the 2014 season, after he appeared in 32 games, going 10-13 with a 4.61 ERA. In eight years with the Phillies, Kendrick went 74-68 with a 4.42 ERA, but posted respectable ERA's of 3.87 in 2007, 3.34 in 2009 and 3.22 in 2011.
Kyle landed with Colorado in 2015 and actually was named their Opening Day starter, but didn't have great luck at Coors Field, or with the Rockies in general. In 27 starts, he went 7-13 with a 6.32 ERA. His last start for the Rockies, and in the big leagues until tomorrow, was on October 2, a 9-3 win that was highlighted by five innings of one-run ball by Kendrick. He signed a minor league deal with the Angels in 2016, but injuries and mediocre minor league numbers kept him below the big league level all year.
