Roman Anthony is just days away from returning to the Boston Red Sox.
“I’m hopeful to get back up there as fast as I can, so as long as everything goes well and it’s recovering well, I think I’m going to do everything I can to get back as fast as I can,” Anthony said prior to his first rehab game on Aug. 18, per MassLive’s Christopher Smith.
“I think last week was more of just kind of feeling it out, getting back to just playing baseball and getting the body in shape,” Anthony said following his first
week back, per Alex Speier of The Boston Globe. “It’s to a point now where, week two, I’m looking forward to getting back into a big league game as soon as possible.” Anthony’s most likely return date appears to be Friday, when he could make the short drive down to meet his teammates in The Bronx for a three-game series against the New York Yankees — one in which they could leap ahead in the standings and grab hold of home field advantage in the first round of the postseason against that very same team. If that is the case, he’ll almost certainly become an every day contributor in short order — which means that the organization will need to clear room at either left field or designated hitter.
If that’s the plan, there remains only one spot in the lineup for Jarren Duran or Mickey Gasper…
… and about that!
Chad Tracy has already strongly hinted it that it will be Gasper who gets the short end of the stick, with Duran playing left field and Anthony as the DH against righties and more of a rotation against lefties. This plan essentially leaves Gasper without a job.
But Gasper, as you all know, has been absolutely fantastic since being recalled on Aug. 17. The Red Sox quite literally have ridden his hot stretch to a five-game winning streak and watched him become the hottest hitter (highest OPS and fWAR) in all of baseball.
Mickey Gasper
8 Games – 29 PA
.476/.621/1.333
5 HR
3 2B
12 RBI
393 wRC+
1.0 fWAR
Duran has also been much better since someone forecasted his turnaround last month, becoming not the worst hitter in the sport.
Jarren Duran
30 Games – 118 PA
.273/.316/.464
5 HR
4 2B, 1 3B
14 RBI
110 wRC+
3/4 SB
Who stays? Who goes? Who gets his ass stapled to the bench?
The Red Sox have plenty of difficult decisions to make over the coming weeks. Anthony’s arrival not only brings about questions as to who sticks in the lineup but who sticks on the roster — Anthony, Duran, Wilyer Abreu, and Ceddanne Rafaela are locks, but can you also keep Jahmai Jones and Eli White? Trevor Story and Isiah Kiner-Falefa are on their way back, and even though at least one is willing to wait until rosters expand you’ll need to send down one of Nick Sogard, Andruw Monasterio, or Anthony Seigler. Curtis Mead might even be ready by the time the postseason starts, which means another one of those guys is gonzo.
HOW DO YOU MAKE THOSE DECISIONS?
It’s a good thing we don’t have to, that responsibility falls on the shoulders of chief baseball officer Craig Breslow and interim manager Chad Tracy.
