The injury bug has hit the Boston Red Sox hard this season at nearly every position. This week, it made its way to first base.
Red Sox first baseman Eric Hosmer was placed on the injured list Tuesday, opening up a spot for Boston to add a player who can rotate with Bobby Dalbec while Hosmer recovers from a back injury. They chose Franchy Cordero, who hit a home run in his most recent appearance with the big-league club, but has underwhelmed when platooning with Dalbec in the past.
The move caused some curiosity for a number of Red Sox fans, who wondered why Boston didn’t make the move to call-up one of its highest rated prospects — first baseman Triston Casas. Alex Cora helped explain the reason to reporters prior to Tuesday’s series opener against the Toronto Blue Jays.
“He hasn’t played this year. He didn’t play last year. That’s the way I see it. He’s still developing. That’s my opinion,” Cora said, per Alex Speier of The Boston Globe. “He needs to get his reps, keep getting his reps and keep getting better. He was off for three months. So I think that’s part of the equation. We haven’t talked about (calling him up) recently. It just felt like, Franchy has been swinging the bat well, just see how it goes this week. Hopefully we can get (Hosmer back) as soon as possible.”
Casas is the Red Sox’s No. 2 prospect, according to SoxProspects and MLB.com. Since returning from injury last month, Casas has been on a tear for Triple-A Worcester, but his major league debut will have to wait.
The Red Sox will open a three-game series against the Blue Jays on Tuesday at Fenway Park. You can watch the game with NESN 360 as first pitch is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. ET following an hour of pregame coverage.
