The Boston Red Sox lost to the Baltimore Orioles 5-1 on Thursday. Boston and Baltimore will play again on Friday, and the Red Sox are reportedly set to receive an important Triston Casas boost, per Chris Cotillo of masslive.com.
“Sources: Barring something unforeseen before first pitch, Triston Casas is expected to be activated for the Red Sox in Baltimore tonight. The wait is over,” Cotillo wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
The Red Sox have endured some struggles in recent action. Casas' return from injury will help the team. He has only played in 22 games during the 2024 season because of a rib injury. When healthy, Casas features immense potential as a left-handed slugger.
Casas has been trending in a promising direction over the past few weeks. Still, it was previously uncertain as to when he may return. The uncertainty now seems to be over with the first baseman expected to return on Friday night.
Red Sox's standings placement
Boston currently has a 63-57 record. It has been a fairly successful season for a team that entered the '24 campaign with question marks. Casas' early season injury did not help matters by any means.
Yet, Boston has remained afloat in the postseason conversation. The Red Sox are eight games back in the American League East, trailing both the New York Yankees and Baltimore Orioles as of this story's writing. They are only 2.5 games behind the Kansas City Royals for the third and final AL Wild Card spot, however.
Boston projects to have a legitimate opportunity to make a postseason push down the stretch. If Casas can return and play at a high level, Boston will take a big step forward. He offers game-changing power and a respectable ability to get on base at a consistent rate. Triston Casas' return could change the entire dynamic of the Red Sox's lineup.