Alex Cora Shares Discouraging Update On Red Sox’s Tyler O’Neill

The Red Sox on Wednesday are eligible to active Tyler O’Neill, who landed on the injured list last week.

It doesn’t sound like Boston will go through with that move, though.

O’Neill’s hiatus started with an illness in Texas earlier this month, but things took a turn for the worst when the veteran slugger landed on the IL due to a calf infection. O’Neill isn’t expected to be sidelined for the long haul like teammate James Paxton, but the outfielder hasn’t made much progress in his recovery.

“It’s been taking a while and I can tell you he’s frustrated,” Alex Cora told reporters before Tuesday’s win over the Rangers, per The Boston Globe. “This came out of nowhere and it’s been taking a long time. We’ve got to get him going baseball-wise, but nothing yet.”

Boston obviously prefers to have O’Neill in the lineup, but the club has fared mostly fine in his absence. This is partly due to the elevated play of Rob Refsnyder, who’s hit .292 with two home runs and six RBIs since O’Neill was forced out of action Aug. 3.

O’Neill is expected to be in the Red Sox dugout as a spectator Wednesday when Boston tries to complete a sweep of Texas at Fenway Park. NESN’s complete coverage of the finale begins at 5 p.m. ET.