FORT MYERS, Fla. — It’s getting down to preseason crunch time for Boston’s starting rotation. The regular season begins in less than two weeks, and each starter has just a couple chances to show he is ready to take the ball for real.

There are real concerns after ace David Price when it comes to the rotation. Rick Porcello has struggled throughout the spring, and Clay Buchholz is still looking for consistency. Eduardo Rodriguez will begin the season on the disabled list, a setback for the young man who posted a 3.85 ERA as a rookie in 2015.

It’s no longer time for pitchers to talk about “getting in work.” It’s time for results. Manager John Farrell wants to see his starting pitchers bear down now. Farrell spent the weekend telling them to start showing some command on the mound.

“It’s time to hone things up,” said Farrell.

At this point, Farrell is not concerned about Joe Kelly. Kelly, told he was battling to hold onto the fifth spot in the rotation at the start of camp, has emerged as the most effective Grapefruit League pitcher for Boston not named Price. On Saturday he struck out five Cardinals in 42/3 innings, and has allowed just two earned runs in 13 innings this spring.

Equally important is the fact that Kelly showed command of his off-speed and breaking pitches in the outing. He has always shown great velocity, touching 100 mph on the radar gun over the course of his career. But at the big-league level, velocity alone isn’t enough.

“Even though he’s got a fastball that can touch triple digits, he realizes that he’s that much more effective when he’s changing speeds,” said Farrell. “We’re seeing a guy evolve into the pitcher he’s now becoming. We’re watching a pitcher who has a better understanding of how to use his stuff.”

Kelly has teased Red Sox fans with his ability since coming over from St. Louis in the John Lackey deal of July, 2014. Last season he struggled early in the year and was demoted to Pawtucket in late June. There were rumors he was destined for the bullpen. Given a second chance in August, Kelly returned and won eight straight starts. No pitcher had done that since Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez in 1999.

“It’s a give and take,” Kelly told reporters after his start Saturday. “(You) try to find that happy medium of when the right time is to sacrifice a little velocity for location, which I want to do the entire game. Obviously I want to locate, but I pick and choose my times of when I could maybe get a little more giddy-up or make a more quality pitch and try to spot it as best I can.”

With Rodriguez on the shelf at the start of the season, and Porcello and Buchholz still searching for consistency, the Sox are suddenly depending on Kelly to hit the mound running this spring. It’s a long way from where they were in February when Farrell said Kelly had the inside track on the last starting spot.

It was a late start to spring training for Kelly, who was allowed to arrive after the reporting date when his wife gave birth to their first child, Knox. Now a father, Kelly is looking like a mature pitcher ready to claim his spot near the top of the Sox rotation.

If he can answer the call, it will take a little worry out of the other question marks that linger in the Red Sox pitching staff.

Tom Caron is a studio host for the Red Sox broadcast on NESN. His column appears in the Portland Press Herald on Tuesdays.

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