Tanner Houck’s career year was a lifetime in the making, but it was also the result of a behind-the-scenes comeback, which he quietly labored through for the better part of the last two years.

That’s how long it took for the Red Sox right-hander to feel like himself again after a back injury and subsequent surgery ended his ‘22 season in early August.

“You’ve got to realize that this is a marathon and not a sprint. An entire career in the big leagues is definitely more of a marathon than probably anything else that I’ve experienced in life so far,” Houck told the Herald at the end of the 2024 regular-season. “I finally feel like I got healthy again, and my body feels where it was before the surgery.”

But wait, didn’t Houck pitch last year? Indeed, he was on the ‘23 Opening Day roster, made a then-career high 21 starts, and missed over two months thanks to a terrifying Tony Conigliaro-esque moment in mid-June, suffering a facial fracture on a line-drive comebacker from a Yankees batter. And his back was a work-in-progress the entire time.

Being patient was difficult. He knew how his body should feel, and he just wasn’t all the way there.

“Being a long-limbed, flexible guy, I need my strength, I need everything synced up well, and before I just wasn’t getting it the same way,” Houck said. “It’s a hard thing to swallow. As an athlete, typically I want things done right then and there, and instant gratification, but ultimately, it’s not like that. It’s about showing up each and every day and doing such small, detail-oriented stuff that kind of drives yourself crazy. That is the recipe of success.”

Last winter, he finally felt himself turning a corner.

“With nerve stuff, it’s always a little bit different; it takes a good chunk of time to kind of get that same kind of firing where you’re at beforehand,” Houck explained. “I feel like the offseason was the first time where I was like, OK I feel this all clicking, I feel this all getting back to where I needed to be to compete at this highest level. Coming into spring training was the first time I was like, I feel back to as close to 100% as I could.”

Houck’s first truly healthy offseason in years laid the groundwork for a spectacular campaign: career-highs of 30 starts, 178 ⅔ innings, and 154 strikeouts. He posted a 3.12 ERA – the best by a Red Sox pitcher with at least 30 starts since his mentor, Chris Sale, in 2018 – and an American League-best 0.6 HR/9 innings. There was a complete-game shutout ‘Maddux’ performance in April, and his first All-Star Game in July. After needing some extra rest between starts in early September, Houck finished on a high note, going five scoreless innings in Start No. 30, yielding just one hit and one walk in Toronto.

“As the season kept going, I feel like I’ve only gotten stronger, I’ve only gotten more explosive,” he said.

With Sale traded to Atlanta last December, Houck, who made his Major League debut on Sept. 17, 2020, became the longest-tenured member of the Red Sox pitching staff. Yet even after five years in the Majors, three of which have been last-place finishes for Boston, Houck’s fandom hasn’t diminished.

“Every time I get to hear Pedro (Martinez) talk about it, I’m like a kid in the candy store. I still get starstruck with Tek,” he said of Red Sox captain-turned-coach Jason Varitek. “Growing up, I loved watching Sale and being teammates with him, you’re like, ‘Dang this is so cool.’ I feel so privileged to be playing with these guys that I looked up to and now I get the privilege of picking their minds and listening to their philosophy.”

Houck and Sale remain close. He hopes this will finally be the year the veteran southpaw takes home his first Cy Young Award.

“I’m just so pumped to see him out there, as a fan of the game, I mean, it’s truly a joy,” Houck said. “It takes me back to 2018, my first full season in pro-ball. I remember I was sitting at my desk, leaning back in my chair, watching every World Series game on the TV above my head, watching him and thinking about like, ‘Oh, the day I finally get to play with him.’ And I got to live that dream out. And then we got to be All-Stars together this year. Such a special guy. I feel so privileged to have called him a teammate and someone that I could look up to.”

Long before Houck found a role model in Sale, he’d discovered a unique way to motivate himself. “I like to get big moments on me,” he said, pushing up his sleeves to show off the matching tattoos on the insides of his wrists. There’s “RD12/PK354/BLUEJAYS’14” on the left, because Toronto selected him in the 12th round (354th overall) in 2014. Dissatisfied, Houck opted to improve in college, and reenter the draft. His right wrist bears the result: “RD1/PK24/REDSOX’17.”

But his favorite is the five words inked from his elbow to his wrist on the outside of his pitching arm: “For love of the game.”

“This is all I’ve ever wanted to do since I was like, two years old. I still remember throwing a tennis ball against our garage door, denting it up, and telling everyone I was gonna pitch in the big leagues one day,” Houck said. “It feels like nowadays, not enough people chase their dreams as crazily and blindly as I feel like I did.”

His dream is still to play baseball in Boston, which has become a “second home” for the Houcks.

“I’m always open to (extension) conversations. I love Boston. And in the fall, leaves changing, this is what I want. This is right up my alley,” he said with a soft smile. “If it happens, great, if it doesn’t happen, no hard feelings by any means. Ultimately, teams got to do what’s best for them and what they feel is best. If I’m part of the plan, great. If not, while I have time here, I will continue to give everything I have for the city, in blood, sweat, and tears.”