BOSTON — While there’s still a level of uncertainty surrounding Hanley Ramirez’s injury, it’s sounding more and more like the Red Sox have avoided a potentially disastrous fate.
Ramirez, who exited Monday’s game with a left shoulder sprain after a violent collision with the left field wall, gave the Red Sox more reason for optimism Wednesday upon arriving at Fenway Park for Boston’s series finale against the Tampa Bay Rays.
“He continues to improve with range of motion,” Red Sox manager John Farrell said. “(Thursday) is not an unrealistic possibly to begin to swing a bat with some dry swings. We’re not clear yet on when a potential return to full baseball activity level of a game just yet. Improvement, but still day to day.”
The Red Sox obviously aren’t in the clear, especially with Ramirez already being held out of Boston’s starting lineup for two consecutive games. But given Ramirez’s reaction to slamming into the wall in foul territory along the left field line, it initially looked like the Red Sox might be without their most productive hitter for a significant chunk of time. Now, he might avoid the disabled list entirely.
In situations where a disabled list stint isn’t a forgone conclusion, the Red Sox typically wait until around the midway point of the 15-day mark before deciding whether to go ahead and place the player on the DL. The Red Sox appear to be taking that approach with Ramirez, who, according to Farrell, will travel with the team to Toronto after Boston wraps up its current homestand Wednesday night.
Ramirez, who signed a four-year, $88 million contract with Boston over the offseason, is hitting .283 this season. The 31-year-old outfielder leads the team with 10 homers and 22 RBIs.
Thumbnail photo via Kim Klement/USA TODAY Sports Images
