BALTIMORE -- The news was somewhat surprising in a vacuum that the Red Sox optioned starting pitcher Brayan Bello, their ultra-talented young righty, to Triple-A Worcester on Monday.

But skipper Alex Cora doesn’t manage out of a vacuum. He deals with the reality of the Major Leagues, in which sometimes you have to make moves for the survival of your pitching staff.

And Cora made it clear that the recent workload required by his bullpen to cover for a starting rotation that entered the day with a 6.61 ERA (29th in the Majors) and 109 innings (20th) through 23 games was the impetus for Bello, who was replaced on the roster by lefty reliever Brennan Bernardino.

“This is about now,” said Cora. “This is not about his future. We know he can pitch in the big leagues. But where we’re at roster-wise, we’ve got three big league games coming up [in Baltimore]. And if we didn't make this move, we were going to be in trouble. So that’s the only reason. It’s not about development.”

Bello took the news in stride.

“I wasn't too surprised. I think when things are not going your way, sometimes that’s probably going to happen,” Bello said through an interpreter. “Of course it’s disappointing for me. I’m just probably going to have to go down there and have a couple of starts and get everything back on track.”

The 23-year-old Bello was slowed the first week of Spring Training with tightness in his right forearm, but his rehab was smooth and he was activated for his first start of the season on April 17.

Bello wasn’t sharp in his debut, giving up five runs on eight hits and one walk over 2 2/3 innings in a loss to the Angels on April 17. He was slightly better on Sunday, giving up three runs on five hits and two walks in 4 2/3 innings in a no-decision.

“I think getting a little bit more confidence and trying to fill up the zone, trying to throw a lot of strikes [is key],” said Bello. “I think I did a very good job yesterday compared to my first start, but I think that's something that I need to work on and just go down there and try to fill up the zone and get my confidence back.”

When Bello was activated, Cora went with a six-man rotation during Boston’s stretch of 19 straight days of action, which ends on Thursday. That left the bullpen a pitcher short.

Josh Winckowski and Kutter Crawford have both been pitching well for Cora in bulk relief, but they both need roughly two days of rest each time they pitch.

“I think where we’re at right now, I think we realize Wink is a big part of this and Kutter is a big part of this and we have to protect them,” said Cora. “This is a role, this is new for them. The two innings, two days off, maybe works. Sometimes it takes three days for them to recover. I’m all in for that. I think both of them, they deserve to be here. They’ve been amazing. Stuff-wise, it makes us better late in games. As you see, we’re not afraid to use them."

At a time righty Chris Martin and lefty Joely Rodríguez are both on the injured list, Cora has been threading the needle with the bullpen.

For now, the subtraction of Bello relieves Cora of cutting down his rotation in the coming days. Tanner Houck, perhaps Boston’s best starter early this season, can keep starting. The Sox need starters Corey Kluber and Garrett Whitlock to be more consistent in their upcoming outings. Martin could be back this weekend, which will help the bullpen.

As for Bello, what can he work on during his temporary stint at Triple-A?

“We always talk about at this level, the lefties, he’s got to face a lot of them,” said Cora. He can elevate. He can get back to elevating the four-seamer. I think it’s going to play. Yesterday, he made some good pitches. He wasn’t able to get the swing and miss we wanted to with [Willy] Adames. He went up, but it wasn’t up enough. However many starts he makes down there, use that [time], make adjustments and be ready for whenever we need him.”