Praise! Praise the healing waters of the Gulf Coast! After months of seemingly no one having any idea what was even happening, we finally have some good news on the Roman Anthony injury front: the superstar-in-waiting is finally swinging a baseball bat again. “There’s no clear next steps yet. He just started doing it,” Chad Tracy said, with “it” meaning hitting soft-toss and off of a tee. “It’s probably going to remain that way for a little while and see how he’s feeling, and then if that continues
to go well, then we’ll start talking about building out a progression into more stuff. But he at least has a bat in his hand. He’s swinging.” (Tim Healey, Boston Globe)
And boy could the Sox use Roman Anthony right now because, uh, they kind of need a new left fielder. Not only in Jarren Duran one of the worst hitters in all of baseball, but he is now flipping in the middle of the game at coaches and players for… not making dumb, suicidal dashes to home plate on shallow fly balls? Though, for now, the team is trying it’s best to downplay the bizarre incident. “I’ll find the best moment to talk to him,” Willson Contreras said. “I know that it could be a mental thing, like it could be something that baseball is taking away from him. But like I said, it’s nothing personal. We are a team. We are here, and I’m pretty sure that the manager talked to him already. But I love Jarren. He’s the best.” (Tim Healey, Boston Globe)
If and when Anthony does return, I’m sure we’ll hear plenty of variations on the old “he’s the best trade deadline acquisition we could have hoped for.” But who are the actual best trade deadline acquisitions in Red Sox history? Here’s a comprehensive look, including names like Nat Eovaldi and Jason Varitek. (Matt Vautour, MassLive)
Suffice it to say, Curtis Mead won’t end up on that list. But, in the wake of his wrist injury, the Sox could acquire another infielder who might find his way on there some day. Here are some targets to consider. (Jen McCaffrey, The Athletic)
One infielder who hasn’t been mentioned yet, but who is tangentially already linked to the Sox through some front office personnel, is Marlins infielder Xavier Edwards. (Ken Rosenthal, Will Sammon, The Athletic)
