The Red Sox could soon have a very good problem on their hands.
Boston was dealt a pretty significant blow when Adam Duval went down with a distal-radiant fracture in his left wrist on April 9. Not only did the Red Sox lose their centerfielder that day, but they lost a player who was slashing .455/.514/.1.030 with four home runs, five doubles and 14 RBIs through just eight games. Though initial reports did come out fairly positively for the 34-year-old, things are progressing even better than initially anticipated.
Duvall did not need surgery on the injury, meaning the bulk of his missed time would come as the fracture healed in a cast. Just four weeks out from the injury, the cast is off.
Duvall underwent an X-ray on Monday, according to Mac Cerullo of The Boston Herald, with the news coming back well enough to pull the outfielder out of a cast and put him into a removable splint. That came just two days after Duvall was seen at Fenway Park getting his timing right against live pitching.
So, where does the problem lie? Well, it appears that anyone manning centerfield for the Red Sox this season is bound to make the All-Star team. Kiké Hernández was fine in his short stint following the Duvall injury, but Jarren Duran eventually took over and is on an unbelievable pace for Boston.
Through 14 games with the big-league club, Duran is slashing .404/.421/.692 with two home runs, nine doubles, 11 RBIs and two stolen bases.
Pretty good.
The inevitable return of Duvall, which should come around mid-to-late May if initial reports are to be believed, will give the Red Sox six outfielders on the 26-man roster. Masataka Yoshida and Alex Verdugo aren't going anywhere given their starts to the season, which would leave manager Alex Cora in a spot to have to do some maneuvering. The likeliest option would be having Duvall serve as a rotational designated hitter alongside Justin Turner and Triston Casas, who are also splitting time at first base.
Boston would likely drop one of Rob Refsnyder or Raimel Tapia down to the minor leagues to open up the roster spot, unless they feel six outfielders is a rotation that they can viably roll with.
Refsnyder will get another crack at proving himself Tuesday when the Red Sox take on the Toronto Blue Jays at Fenway Park. First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. ET, following an hour of pregame coverage on NESN.
