Oviedo will open the season in Boston's bullpen, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.
The Red Sox are going with Connelly Early as their fifth starter, with Oviedo occupying a piggyback/long-relief role. Early is expected to receive at least a couple turns in the rotation before the club reassesses its options. Oviedo came into spring training as the favorite to round out Boston's rotation, but his Grapefruit League showing ended on a sour note Monday versus the Twins when he showed diminished velocity and yielded six runs over 3.1 frames.