The Red Sox got some good news regarding the status of first baseman Triston Casas yesterday. As he told Julian McWilliams of the Boston Globe, Casas has begun taking dry swings as he works his way back from torn cartilage in his midsection. Casas indicated that if he continues feeling good after a few days of dry swings, he’ll begin making contact with a ball. McWilliams added that Casas hopes to be back in the Red Sox lineup in time for a series against the Marlins that begins on July 2.
If Casas is truly just two weeks away from a return to the majors, that would be a huge relief for a Red Sox lineup that has sorely missed his presence. While the club’s overall production since he last played on April 20 is still strong, with a 107 wRC+ that ranks eighth in the majors over that time, their wRC+ at first base has sat at just 98, below average overall and well below the production of an average first baseman. Of course, Casas is a great deal better than the average first baseman; the 24-year-old’s 160 wRC+ since the All Star break last year is the 11th-best figure in the majors over that timeframe and second only to Freddie Freeman among first basemen.
As noted by McWilliams, it’s far from guaranteed that Casas will be able to reach his target date for a return, even as he’s begun swinging a bat and running the bases. McWilliams relays that manager Alex Cora was more cautious in his comments regarding Casas’s timeline, noting that while “hopefully” Casas is back during the Miami series, the club also intends to be “smart” regarding his rehab and not rush him back before he’s ready. In the meantime, the Red Sox figure to rely on a combination of Dominic Smith and Bobby Dalbec at first base.
More from around the AL East…
- Yankees ace Gerrit Cole made his third rehab start on Friday, striking out ten batters in 4 1/3 innings at the Triple-A level. While neither Cole nor manager Aaron Boone would commit to Cole’s next start for the club coming in the majors in conversation with reporters yesterday, Jon Heyman of the New York Post noted that he felt good both immediately after the outing and the next day and that his return to the big leagues will come “soon.” A quick return to the mound for Cole would be fantastic news for the Yankees, as the 2023 AL Cy Young award winner would surely bolster an already-excellent rotation that sports the league’s best ERA entering play today.
- Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette has been out of the lineup for the past two games due to what manager John Schneider described to reporters (including MLB.com’s Keegan Matheson) as soreness in his right calf. It’s been a tough season at the plate for Bichette, who is hitting an uncharacteristically poor .237/.286/.342 in 276 trips to the plate with Toronto this year. Isiah Kiner-Falefa has handled shortstop in Bichette’s absence, and both Ernie Clement and Addison Barger have past experience at the position if further depth options are needed. Infielders Orelvis Martinez and Leo Jimenez are both on the 40-man roster and could step into the big leagues in the event that Bichette eventually requires a trip to the injured list.
When Casas starts taking WET swings, that’s when we know he’s back in business
SODOM – It could be a while before we see any possible longterm effect on his swing. Most likely it will be different, the question is whether he can still generate enough power to hit homeruns as often as he did.
Sodomojo threw very high pitch — well over Fever Pitch’s head….
lester – Actually I was gonna post the same thing, but he beat me to it ;O)
Nah, Fever and I just like to bs.
Like Ricky Vaughn style over-the-head.
Happy Father’s Day! Good news for Yankees and Red Sox fans! Guess IKF playing well is also good for Jays fans.
YBC – Happy Father’s Day to you as well, and I agree their return is good for the game.
I know Devers wishes Cole pitched in Boston this weekend ;O)
I felt bad for some of the negative feedback that IKF got in his first year in the Bronx. He never took plays off and did whatever what was asked of him wether it was starting at different positions in the field or coming off the bench as a pinch runner/defensive replacement.
Would you rather Bo bichette’s hair with no facial hair growing ability, or Paul goldshmid’s hair with the beardabiliy of Kevin kiermaier?
Who is Paul goldshmid?
So spelling is boring, too?
His name won’t populate in autocorrect, to lazy to look it up. Just relax my username is such an obvious troll job why even respond to it…. lol
boring – You shoulda gone with Goldsmidge, which is how he’s performed this year ;O)
“Goldschmid” works pretty well considering he’s been pretty mid this season
This is an awesome comment I would personally take goldy and Kevin’s because bichettes hair reminds me of when I was in 4th grade or so trying to grow out my hair
sad – They should have a contest for saddest looking beards.
Now that Verdugo is clean shaven, I would go with two Red Sox pitchers as top contenders …. Slaten and Kelly.
One thing Nick didn’t mention in his article, Casas probably is targeting the Miami series because he grew up in the Miami area and is looking forward to the homecoming.
Hopefully Cora isn’t lying again by insisting the team will be smart about when they activate him.
I was going to go look to see if there was a Miami connection. Seems way too aggressive considering he’s not even swinging a bat yet against pitching.
Lord – I have a keen eye for spotting players who are native Floridians ;O)
When Casas returns, the Sox should try to peddle Dalbec to whatever team will take him and at whatever return they can get. He’s at the point of being hopeless now. A .133 batting average, one homer and 40 whiffs in 85 plate appearances is not major league quality. It isn’t even AA quality.
let – I totally agree, but unfortunately they will probably need to keep Dalbec until Romy returns. They really don’t have anyone else to back up Devers at 3B.
Chase Mierdroth?
Dalbec needs to change his approach…. he is 0-2 in basically every at bat. I honestly do not think anyone on the team gets more pitches out of the strike zone called strikes than Dalbec. Watch his at bats closely. He needs to hunt the 1st pitch. The Red Sox and Cora specifically created this mess with his approach similarly what they did to Benintendi the last two years he was in Boston… they made him too selective which has him in the constant state of being “in between” and in his head. Yes, Dalbec is going to strike out but just let him be more aggressive and don’t worry about the K’s.
Coop – Seems like Dalbec rotates between wearing glasses and not wearing glasses. If it’s his vision that is the issue, not much hope for him. That’s what ended Rice’s career.
Too late for him in Boston.
Bloom should have traded him after 2021, but per usual, Bloom had poor judgement. I really thought he would be traded, decent value then, not now. Bobby needs to play on a different team, perhaps he could have a better career. Is Bobby outta options yet?
spit – What purpose would it have served to trade him after 2021? It’s not like there was a logjam at first base. The top goal back then, per Henry’s payroll reduction edict, was to stockpile young cheap talent. He had a career .819 OPS at that point with 6 years of team control remaining.
Dude will be 29 in a few days and has steadily declined for 4 straight years, he’s probably toast.
A wRC+ of 98 from Sox first basemen since the Casas injury, is significantly higher than I would have guessed. Cooper and Dalbec doing very little; Smith okayish.
I never understood comparing a player or position to the league average. It would be more important to compare a player to his position and why settle for average? Catchers for example are known for defense first so if you have one who is above average offense AND defense when compared to other catchers, you likely have a player who’s having a special season.
Bo taking 10 days wouldn’t be a bad thing. Let him see Dante and work with him for a couple days. Bo looks to go right centre most at bats and have to wonder if that is too obvious to opposing teams and how they pitch to him.
That would be good for Bo . Guillermo ( should’ve been fired last year) Hernandez has him totally messed up…….
100% accurate.
What’s Guillermo Martínez for then? (rhetorical)
I stand Corrected….”Martinez” …I meant 🙂
I guess it was almost 100% accurate
I had to look up his spray charts. He has gotten pretty heavy towards RC last 2 seasons. That’s tough to maintain for RH hitters as you need to wait on outside pitches to make solid contact in that direction.
Tigers it began when he got hot the last two months of 2022 and continued through 2023. Pitchers are busting him in. When Bo does pull a ball it’s offspeed (hanging curve/slider). He’s an open book right now, in my opinion.
That WRC+ statistic comparing Casas to Freeman is so disingenuous. It ignores how small that sample is – essentially just 2.5 months. And it ignores that Casas sucked at first, and struggled for longer than he’s been good.
It’s a number, with context certainly needed, but it’s an accurate reflection of how each has done in that time frame. And it’s not supposed to include defense.
gbs – There are many who have issues with WRC+
For one, it’s almost identical to OPS+
For two, it doesn’t take into account baserunning skills.
Personally I have no more an issue with it as any other newer advanced stat, they have some value but are imperfect just as most stats are.
And it ignores that Casas sucked at first, and struggled for longer than he’s been good.
===========================
Casas has never struggled. He hit into some incredibly bad luck his first few weeks, but if you normalized his BABIP, his numbers would’ve been roughly what they are now, probably better.
The BlueJays season is over. It was over at spring training and called so because of the lack of quality depth. It is time to punt on the season. In addition to Barger and Horwitz, Martinez needs to be called up.
It is time to start working the phones to trade to prep for the deadline. Anyone is available for trade except Martinez, Vladdy Jr, and Berrios.
Everyone should be on the table. Including Vlad and Berrios. Trade at peak value.
Skenes – Jays ownership has the financial power to buy their way into contention next year, if they so please. What they do this year with Bo & Vlad will be a good indication of what their longterm intentions are.
I think the far bigger issue they have is Springer, who still has $60M left on his contract. Dude’s brief success seems to be purely a product of the cheating in Houston from 2017-2019, he’s steadily declined ever since. Jays should have known better.
Fever you’re right about Springer, but a few things were in-play after 2020; Jays needed an OF (CF particularly), they had money to burn back then, and they needed a splash.
Problem with point 1 was Springer really was better suited on the corner. Point 2 is money runs out if you do not make savvy trades, draft well or develop players in the farm. Point 3, Jays made the splash and left holes in the bullpen, 3B and arguably SP as nobody expected Robbie Ray to be as dominant as he was. Or Stripling to be as effective as he was. Jays love to leave missing pieces on the table.
Keep just Berrios….Vladdy’s value has dropped off drastically the past few seasons. Vladdy is fat and reminds me of Prince Fielder who had an early peak. Pitching especially quality starting pitching from an innings eater is way tougher to replace.
The Yankees should give Cole another rehab start. He’s yet to complete five innings. He’s in late Spring Training mode but will immediately be facing MLB hitters in mid-season form. They’re doing fine without him so no need to rush. Build him up so he’s ready for the second half and October baseball.
@lordd99
Can come even make another rehab start without having a “set back”? iirc you can only spend 20 days on a rehab assignment then back to the mlb and he should be close to that
In the meantime, the Red Sox figure to rely on a combination of Dominic Smith and Bobby Dalbec at first base.
Rely is generous.
smith is ok. He’s what he is, a borderline ML player who is filling in because of an injury.
Dalbec on the other hand, is an unmitigated disaster. Over his last two seasons he has 20 hits in 124 at bats with 2 home runs.
Exactly right. But Dom is a lefty, which doesn’t provide any value when Casas returns, And we need a 3B backup. Like him or not, I think Dalbec stays.
hayzee – Smith’s days have to be numbered, I’m certain he’s the first man gone when Casas returns. Did you see he made another inexcusable error last night.
Dude has 5 errors in just 29 games this year, unheard of for a first baseman. He makes Casas look like Keith Hernandez.
Wonder if the Bichette family drama has been weighing on Bo
Allegations of child abuse leveled at Sr from Jr.
So let me understand this… they split 4 with worse team in baseball… then lose opening games in next two series to best in NL and best in all of baseball… only to win next two in each series and finish 4-2… to quote Harry Hoo… AMAZING!!!!
olm – To quote FPG, that’s why they play the games!!
Cora is finally letting his speed demons run wild, I applaud the decision …. a team record 8 stolen bases last night!
Rafaela is FINALLY showing patience and discipline at the plate, and it’s been paying off.
Kelly was brilliant in pitching out of a bases loaded nobody out jam without giving up a run..
And did you see the Casas interview? That guy is so entertaining that Spaceman would appear boring next to him.
Some on the broadcast were giving tributes to their dad with touching stories …. and what was Tristan’s story about his father? The time his dad drop-kicked him in front of a crowd at his little league game.
“He actually grabbed me by my shirt, dragged me to the line and Looney Tune-style kicked me out onto the field.”
And Tristan’s best friend’s Mom called the cops and had his dad arrested. Great memory to share for father’s day!!!
FPG… not going to lie… was going back and forth in game.. checking game day as we watched bio on Gene Wilder. Mrs said why don’t you just watch the game?? It’s the Yankees !!… they’re winning ( this was right about bags loaded no outs time) to my response… WRONG!!! They’ll lose!!! They get nothing!! Good day SIR!! Kelly unbelievable.. I know they gave some stat.. it made my new 78 style hat fam got me my new lucky charm!!! Daughter even said… Its what the players wear…..( yup we’ve seen movie only about 40 times!! lol)
olm – Was Gene and Gilda the funniest couple ever?
I’d have to believe so!
No doubt… Gene’s delivery of lines in his movies are priceless!! And Gilda so underrated in snl… man what a game.. hopefully they take it up north then to Cincinnati… I’ll be there Saturday!! I still think Cora should let me pinch run for Duran!!!
olm – Duran is only 73 years old now, you really think you’re faster than him? No mas!!!
Nicely done!!! I have feet of stone!!!
olm – Since you started this 6-2 hot streak by supervising them in person back in ChiTown, what happens when you do the same this coming weekend? Maybe you should wear the same gear (Brasier jersey) and drink the same beer (Sam Adams) so as not to undo the positiveness you did earlier?
As much as Casas is need back in the Sox lineup, i hope they don’t rush him. I also hope Casas is truthful if he is indeed not in pain. No sense in rushing back until he’s completely healed
The Sox have more wins to this point than I thought they would going into the season. Question is , if they stay around 500 is are they sellers? ( Jansen, Martin , Nick P, O’Neil) . Or are they staying stagnant ? They sure as hell are not buying .
They should definitely, 100%, be buyers, assuming we have no setbacks. We have 8 kids on offense with at least some talent and years of control, plus another 4 SPs and a few RPs.
Even if it is just a nominal pickup, we need to send the message to the kids that this team can win.
They should be buying…… Yorke, Lugo, Winkowski & Romero for Garrett Crochet. Also, they should be offering the Dodgers Yoshida (to hang out with his buddies) for SP Landon Knack. Take advantage of them needing another bat in the lineup to help cover Mookies loss.
If we got Crochet for that package (which is not insignificant), I’ll drive Crochet myself.
Like i said, not a bad package, but I am thinking that another team would step forward with a top 25-50 prospect ++.