The Boston Red Sox made an important decision involving Willson Contreras before Sunday’s series finale against the Los Angeles Dodgers, answering one of the club’s biggest pregame questions.
What the move means in the long-term plan for managing Contreras’ injury will become much clearer as Boston closes out its series against one of baseball’s top contenders.
Contreras has been cleared to play, listed at first base and batting fourth after passing concussion protocol. The All-Star was hit by a 95 mph fastball in the third inning of Friday’s Red Sox victory over the defending World Series champions. Interim manager Chad Tracy indicated the decision came after preliminary tests cleared and a morning evaluation confirmed readiness. The Red Sox are looking for a sweep Sunday, after taking the first two against Los Angeles.
| BOSTON RED SOX STARTING LINEUP | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP: Bennett (LHP, #64) • 6-4, 2.74 ERA, 46 K | ||||||||
| August 2, 2026 • UNIQLO Field at Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, CA • 7:20 PM EDT • Red Sox 59-51 (3rd AL East) | ||||||||
| # | Player | Pos | B | HR | RBI | SB | AVG | OPS |
| 1 | Nick Sogard | 2B | S | 0 | 3 | 0 | .261 | .718 |
| 2 | Ceddanne Rafaela | CF | R | 14 | 56 | 15 | .288 | .798 |
| 3 | Wilyer Abreu | RF | L | 16 | 53 | 6 | .246 | .747 |
| 4 | Willson Contreras | 1B | R | 23 | 67 | 3 | .288 | .943 |
| 5 | Masataka Yoshida | DH | L | 4 | 20 | 2 | .260 | .708 |
| 6 | Caleb Durbin | 3B | R | 10 | 44 | 12 | .243 | .705 |
| 7 | Andruw Monasterio | SS | R | 6 | 23 | 2 | .259 | .773 |
| 8 | Jarren Duran | LF | L | 13 | 56 | 15 | .199 | .595 |
| 9 | Carlos Narváez | C | R | 3 | 10 | 1 | .189 | .537 |
| Lineups subject to change. | ||||||||
How Contreras Hit the Ground
In the top of the third inning Friday, Dodgers reliever Will Klein left a fastball up and in at 95 miles per hour. The pitch caught Contreras in the side of his helmet, in the ear flap protector area, sending him to the dirt. He stayed in to run the bases after the at-bat, but was removed for precautionary reasons when the Red Sox took the field for the bottom of the third.
The hit by pitch was the 19th time this season Contreras has been struck, per The Boston Globe, tying him for most in the American League with Sam Antonacci of the White Sox. The nature of this oneâto the headâwarranted immediate evaluation and entry into concussion protocol.
“He got hit in the ear flap, so I think his ear was ringing a little bit,” Tracy said, as quoted by The Boston Globe. “It’s a hard thrower … right in the ear. So between that and everything that happened, just felt like [being] precautionary.”
| LOS ANGELES DODGERS STARTING LINEUP | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP: Sheehan (RHP, #80) • 4-7, 4.95 ERA, 104 K | ||||||||
| August 2, 2026 • UNIQLO Field at Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, CA • 7:20 PM EDT • Dodgers 69-42 (1st NL West) | ||||||||
| # | Player | Pos | B | HR | RBI | SB | AVG | OPS |
| 1 | Shohei Ohtani | DH | L | 24 | 67 | 6 | .291 | .939 |
| 2 | Andy Pages | CF | R | 18 | 71 | 10 | .269 | .793 |
| 3 | Tommy Edman | 2B | S | 2 | 18 | 3 | .313 | .849 |
| 4 | Freddie Freeman | 1B | L | 15 | 54 | 5 | .310 | .875 |
| 5 | Mookie Betts | SS | R | 13 | 36 | 1 | .232 | .695 |
| 6 | Kyle Tucker | RF | L | 9 | 51 | 7 | .235 | .701 |
| 7 | Teoscar Hernández | LF | R | 10 | 40 | 2 | .256 | .736 |
| 8 | Max Muncy | 3B | L | 21 | 49 | 2 | .252 | .840 |
| 9 | Dalton Rushing | C | L | 12 | 36 | 0 | .253 | .810 |
| Lineups subject to change. | ||||||||
Boston’s Dominance Against Los Angeles
The Red Sox won Game 1, 9-4, with Nick Sogard sliding over from second to first base to spell Contreras. Ceddanne Rafaela drove in two runs with a homer in a five-run seventh inning, according to Yahoo Sports, as Boston seized control late. Shohei Ohtani’s two-run shot kept the Dodgers within reach, but it wasn’t enough. Boston’s surge in the seventh broke open a tight contest and proved the Red Sox could outhit and outpace a roster that has won back-to-back championships.
Saturday night, Rafaela went deep twice off Yoshinobu Yamamoto, with solo shots in the first and third innings. Each came off a splitter that hung in the strike zone. Payton Tolle gutted through six innings of work, scattering nine hits and two runs while limiting Los Angeles to 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position. Teoscar Hernández answered Rafaela’s early fireworks with a two-run homer for the Dodgers in the second.
Aroldis Chapman closed out a 3-2 victory with a perfect ninth, leaving Ohtani stranded in the on-deck circle. The Red Sox improved to 59-51 with the win, winning eight consecutive series for the first time since 2013.
Boston’s 21-4 record in July represents its best month by winning percentage in franchise history, including a franchise-record-tying 15-game winning streak. The Dodgers have lost two consecutive games but hold a 69-42 record and first-place standing in the NL West. Contreras entered the series batting .288 with 23 home runs and 67 RBIs.
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