Triston Casas recently left a Boston Red Sox's game with an apparent injury. The Red Sox slugger received a discouraging result on Tuesday, as it was revealed that he will be “out for a while” with a right rib fracture, per Chris Cotillo of Mass Live.
Multiple reports state that Casas will miss a significant amount of time, but an exact timeline has yet to be revealed. Boston fans are obviously hopeful that Casas can return as soon as possible. For now, there is not much certainty in reference to a potential return date for the first baseman.
So who will replace Casas at first base?
“We’ve got Bobby (Dalbec) now. He's my first baseman. He’ll play,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said, via Ian Browne of MLB.com.
Dalbec features immense power potential, but he has not been unable to record consistent results at the big league level. Through 14 games in 2024, Dalbec is slashing a miserable .033/.121/.067/.188. In other words, he has just one hit across 33 plate appearances.
Perhaps Dalbec can figure things out this time around. After all, this is a player who posted a .792 OPS and 25 home runs in 133 games back in 2021. He clearly has the potential to play a big role for a big league ball club.
Nevertheless, Triston Casas is going to be missed while he is out.
Casas “out for a while”
Speaking of power potential, Casas certainly plays the role of a slugging first baseman well. He crushed 24 home runs across 132 games during the 2023 campaign. Casas also slashed .263/.367/.490/.856 en route to finishing third in American League Rookie of the Year voting.
Casas appeared to be poised for an even better season in 2024. He had already hit six home runs and recorded an .857 OPS in 22 games for the Red Sox before suffering the injury.
Boston has performed well for the most part in 2024. They are 13-10 up to this point. The Red Sox's pitching rotation has led the way thus far, as the offense has endured struggles amid various injury concerns.
If Casas ends up missing an extended period of time, which seems to be expected, and Dalbec continues to struggle, one has to wonder if Boston will consider making a trade for a first baseman. Much of this will depend on whether or not they continue to remain in contention, however.
If June rolls around and Casas is not close to returning and Dalbec has not broke out of his slump, then acquiring a first baseman could be an option.
Red Sox's 2024 outlook
This Red Sox ball club still has a lot of question marks. There is certainly no guarantee that they will compete.
Starting pitchers Lucas Giolito, Nick Pivetta, and Garrett Whitlock are all battling injuries. As far as position players are concerned, Casas joins Trevor Story, Vaughn Grissom and others on the injured list.
Boston may be able to tread water but it will not be easy. They would already have a difficult time competing in the talented AL East if everyone was healthy. The injuries, though, only add more uncertainty to their 2024 outlook.
All the Red Sox can do at the moment is take it one game at a time and let the results speak for themselves. There is a chance that Boston could end up surprising the MLB world and making a competitive playoff run.
Follow Us
Subscribe