Red Sox first baseman Triston Casas is working his way back from last year’s knee injury but his path may be delayed. Tim Healey of The Boston Globe was among those to relay today that Casas has a strained left intercostal muscle. He’ll be shut down from hitting for a few days as the Sox see how he progresses.
It’s been a frustrating few years for Casas on the health front. Torn cartilage in his ribcage limited him to 63 games in 2024. He only got into 29 games last year before rupturing the patellar tendon in his left knee, an injury that he’s still working back from. At this point, there’s nothing to suggest this latest injury is serious, but it’s not as though Casas needs another bump in the road.
Given all his injury troubles, the Sox decided not to rely on him for 2026. They acquired Willson Contreras to cover first base. That means there’s no strict rush to get Casas back but he would ideally be on the field as soon as possible to get some reps and get back in game shape. He slashed .253/.365/.477 for a 129 wRC+ over the 2022 and 2023 seasons.
It’s unclear how the Sox will proceed once Casas is back. In addition to having Contreras at first, they have a crowded designated hitter spot as they try to spread playing time around to outfielders Jarren Duran, Roman Anthony, Wilyer Abreu, Ceddanne Rafaela and Masataka Yoshida. Casas could be optioned to the minors to serve as depth or perhaps put on the trade block if there’s no room for him in the big leagues. Decision day will come at some point but this latest injury provides another delay.
Turning to the rotation, left-hander Patrick Sandoval will begin a rehab assignment on Sunday, per Healey. Sandoval hasn’t pitched in a big league game since June of 2024, almost two years ago. He required surgery on his ulnar collateral ligament that year and then was non-tendered by the Angels. The Red Sox gave him a two-year, $18.25MM deal but didn’t get him back on the mound last year and he’s still recovering.
Rehab assignments for pitchers are normally capped at 30 days. However, when a pitcher is recovering from UCL surgery, a ten-day extension can be given a maximum of three times. That effectively means Sandoval could potentially be rehabbing for 60 days.
Time will tell how much rotation space the Sox have for Sandoval when he’s ready to return. They currently have a rotation consisting of Garrett Crochet, Sonny Gray, Ranger Suárez, Brayan Bello and Connelly Early, with Johan Oviedo having pitched in long relief a couple of days ago. Payton Tolle is on optional assignment and could earn a spot in that mix.
Speaking of Oviedo, he allowed four earned runs in 3 2/3 innings in his one outing so far this year, with diminished velocity. Manager Alex Cora downplayed any possibility of Oviedo being injured, per Christopher Smith of MassLive. “We had a conversation with him today and there’s a few things that the pitching department has noticed,” Cora said. “And just gotta keep working. That’s the most important thing. Obviously with his injuries in the past, something that we have to be very careful in this new role. But I think he’s gonna be OK.”
As Smith points out, Oviedo does have an option remaining and could be sent to the minors if the Sox so choose. That might be a bit of an awkward conversation, as Oviedo was a key offseason pick-up for them. The Sox acquired him from the Pirates with Jhostynxon García being the main piece going the other way, though that was before Suárez was signed.
Turning back to the position player mix, Healey relays that infielder Andruw Monasterio has been doing some outfield work lately to see if can be a viable option out there. His outfield track record currently consists of just four innings in left field. The Sox don’t really need outfield help with their aforementioned crowded group but extra versatility could always come in handy in the event of an injury or a late-game substitution.
Photo courtesy of Brian Fluharty, Imagn Images
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