Red Sox’s Xander Bogaerts Expects To Be Ready For Opening Day

Bogaerts has been dealing with soreness in his shoulder

It appears Xander Bogaerts’ shoulder issue won’t keep him from the Opening Day lineup.

The Boston Red Sox shortstop was shut down March 1 with soreness in his shoulder but began throwing just a few days later.

With the regular season less than a month away, it’s fair to wonder just what Bogaerts’ status will be come April 1. And he seemed pretty confident that he’ll be ready.

“Yeah, I think I will be ready by Opening Day, barring any other weird injuries that might come up or something,” Bogaerts said Tuesday on WEEI’s “Ordway, Merloni & Fauria.” “You never know. But as of now, yeah, I’ll be ready for Opening Day. My shoulder feels, I think, pretty close to 100 percent.

“It’s just trying to get that strength back in it — just strength, mobility, and making sure this doesn’t happen again,” he added. “It’s been a great rehab so far. The training staff, they’ve been getting me back in good shape.”

Bogaerts was a bright spot during a down 2020 Red Sox season. The 28-year-old batted .300 with 11 home runs and 28 RBIs.

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