Xander Bogaerts is in the midst of what looks like the best season of his career. The last thing the Boston Red Sox want is to lose the shortstop for an extended period of time.
So it should come as no surprise that manager Alex Cora hopes to help rid Bogaerts of one of his most dangerous habits: sliding into first base.
As The Boston Globe pointed out, Bogaerts has slid into first base three times this season. He did so again Saturday, and it’s something the Red Sox want to nip in the bud.
“I talked to him a little bit (Saturday),” Cora said before Sunday’s game with the Seattle Mariners, per the Globe. “I don’t know. We’ll keep talking about it and hopefully, it will stop.”
Sliding headfirst into first base isn’t the smartest idea. It’s rarely necessary (other than on plays where the throw is off target, and a slide is used to avoid a tag), and it’s widely believed sliding slows down a runner. But Cora and the Red Sox simply have Bogaerts’ health in mind when it comes to this edict.
“I think it’s more about (staying) healthy, forget about being safe at first,” Cora continued. “It’s just about health. We’ll see if we can make him stop. It’s like an everyday thing.”
Bogaerts, meanwhile, doesn’t sound ready to stop: “If I feel like diving, I’ll do it,” he told reporters, according to the Globe.
That’s ultimately his prerogative, and short of disciplining the shortstop, there’s not much the club can get him to do to stop.
That being said, it really would benefit the club for Bogaerts to kick the habit. He’s been one of their best players this season, hitting .279 with 12 home runs (he hit another one Sunday) and 41 RBIs in just 56 games.
Furthermore, Bogaerts knows better than anyone the kind of impact a hand or finger injury can have on a hitter. After taking a pitch to the hand midway through last season, Bogaerts was never the same hitter, finishing the season with only 10 home runs and settling largely for poor contact.
So it should come as no surprise the Red Sox prefer to avoid a repeat of that this season on the base paths.
