The Boston Red Sox made one of the biggest signings of the offseason, bringing in much-needed right-handed power to their lineup with the addition of Alex Bregman.
With Opening Day less than three weeks away, however, there will likely be at least one member of Boston’s starting nine unavailable to take the field.
“Sounding more and more that (Wilyer) Abreu won’t be ready for the start of the season. (Alex) Cora noted he’s pretty behind and still only tracking pitches on (Trajekt) not yet swinging,” Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic posted on Bluesky on Friday morning.
“Wilyer Abreu still not cleared to face live pitching. So seems pretty evident he will not be on the Opening Day roster,” Peter Abraham of The Boston Globe added.
Abreu is coming off a big rookie season and is projected to be the Red Sox starting right fielder again in 2025. The 25-year-old has been battling a gastrointestinal virus during Spring Training and has yet to appear in any exhibition contests.
Nearly two weeks into Spring Training, Abreu was shut down from baseball activities after reporting to camp with the illness and received some “subsequent abnormal lab results,” per MassLive’s Chris Cotillo.
After being acquired by Boston in an August 2022 trade that sent catcher Christian Vazquez to the Houston Astros, Abreu debuted in MLB with a 28-game campaign during the 2023 season. The Venezuelan opened 2024 as a starter and finished the year with 15 home runs, 58 RBI, 33 doubles and a .253/.322/.459 slash line, good enough to come in sixth place in the AL Rookie of the Year vote.
Where he really separated himself was on defense though, recording nine outfield assists and 17 defensive runs saved (leading all MLB right fielders). Abreu became the first Red Sox rookie to win a Gold Glove Award since nine-time All-Star Fred Lynn in 1975, who not only won the defensive hardware that season, but the AL MVP and Rookie of the Year honor as well.
Abreu’s Situation Could Open Door For Top Prospect or Recently Signed Veteran
While Boston appears likely to be without Abreu for the start of the season, his absence could open the door for a few other outfielders.
Roman Anthony could now not only make the Opening Day roster but be summoned as the immediate starter in place of Abreu. The 20-year-old former second-round pick is widely considered to be the top prospect in the Red Sox minor league system and in some rankings, the top prospect in all of baseball.
He’s gone 4-for-13 with one double, four RBI and three runs scored, along with an impressive 4:1 walk to strikeout ratio over 18 plate appearances covering six games this spring.
If the team decides not to rush Anthony into a high-pressure situation, they could choose to start Rob Refsnyder in right. The 33-year-old’s spent the last three seasons with Boston, posting 18 home runs, 89 RBI and a .278/.367.427 slash line in 727 plate appearances over 239 contests. Refsnyder had career highs in almost every offensive category in 2024, including home runs (11), RBI (40) and hits (77) by playing in his most games as well (93).
Anthony or Refsnyder are frontrunners to get the Opening Day job assuming Abreu isn’t ready, but their ascension to the starting gig could also lead to veteran outfielder Trayce Thompson finding a roster spot on the bench. The 33-year-old younger brother of Dallas Mavericks star Klay Thompson was signed to the team’s Spring Training roster as a non-roster invitee in mid-February and has been hot during exhibition play thus far.
In 23 plate appearances covering eight Spring Training games, Thompson is 6-for-20 with three home runs, six RBI, two doubles and five runs scored.
Rafael Devers Faces Murky Future as Well
Aside from Abreu, the Red Sox are also dealing with uncertainty surrounding All-Star third baseman Rafael Devers.
On top of the Bregman-Devers saga and who will actually line up at the hot corner this season, the 28-year-old hasn’t even been able to take the field during Spring Training yet. Devers has been dealing with a shoulder injury, which manager Alex Cora updated reporters on Friday.
“Devers hasn’t gotten in a game yet. Cora now says either Tuesday or Wednesday are the target dates for him,” McCaffrey wrote on Bluesky.
For what it’s worth, with third base unoccupied by Devers this spring, Bregman has been taking most of the reps at the position, with 24-year-old Vaughn Grissom playing the most innings at second base.
“Defensive innings at 2B: Grissom 37, Campbell 20, Hamilton 20, Sogard 4, Bregman 0,” Abraham posted on Bluesky. “Defensive innings at 3B: Bregman 26, Toro 18, Sogard 16, Mayer 13.”
If Abreu is indeed out past Opening Day, and Devers is playing through injury, that much more pressure will be on Bregman to deliver in his first games in a Red Sox uniform.
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