Red Sox’s Alex Cora Explains Giving Alex Verdugo ‘Mental Break’

BOSTON — The Red Sox felt it was necessary to give outfielder Alex Verdugo a brief two-game break before getting the start Wednesday night against the Braves.

Verdugo, who was previously an arguable All-Star game snub, has since struggled heavily since Boston embarked on its second half. The 28-year-old has batted .077, going 2-for-26 following the break, recording just one RBI and prompting the Red Sox to give Verdugo a “mental break.”

“He’s been struggling for a while, so miss a few days and see how he reacts to it,” Red Sox skipper Alex Cora said. “Sometimes it’s better to watch the game from the dugout. When you get involved in other stuff and what’s going on and you forget how the game is going and hopefully that works. From my end, (it was) a mental break.”

The past seven games for Verdugo, albeit on a small sample size, have amounted to the complete opposite of what the first half was. Verdugo batted .290 — flirting with the team lead — with 95 base hits, seven home runs, 26 doubles and 38 RBIs, making him a crucial part of Boston’s lineup. It also helped his campaign in breaking out after his first three years with the Red Sox.

He’s also failed to drive in a run in his last five consecutive, striking out eight times in total since the break overall, notching a .115 slugging percentage. However, the recent slump has taken a toll on Verdugo which isn’t ideal at this stage in the season with the playoffs anything but given for Boston.

The Red Sox have gone 6-4 after entering the break winners of five straight, including eight in the last nine games of the pre-Midsummer Classic break. Now, with that momentum having faded away from Boston after losses to the Cubs, Athletics and Mets — sub-.500 teams — it’s time to get back on track with 58 games left plus the Aug. 1 trade deadline just around the corner.