Plus, Alex Bregman makes a strong first impression.
Pitching injuries are a fact of modern baseball, and that’s particularly true with respect to spring training and the first few weeks of the season. The Red Sox have dodged the Tommy John bullet so far, but it’s already looking like two pitchers may be on the shelf to start the season: Kutter Crawford, who re-injured a bad knee he played with for most of the 2024 season, and Brayan Bello, who tweaked his shoulder at the start of camp. (Julian McWilliams, Boston Globe)
Of course when I say that the Sox have dodged the Tommy John bullet, I should clarify that such a statement doesn’t apply to Patrick Sandoval who, like Liam Hendriks before him, was acquired while he was still in the recovery process from surgery. If all goes well we may see Sandoval in the second half of the season, and he sounds excited to be here. (Peter Abraham, Boston Globe)
Since the injuries are a fact of life, there’s really no point in dwelling on them too much. It’s better for your mental health to think about the ways the Sox may be much better this year, perhaps starting with infield defense. Alex Bregman and a healthy Trevor Story will provide a big boost in that area, and the Sox coaching staff has been doing a ton of infield work with Kristian Campbell. (Jen McCaffrey, The Athletic)
Bregman debuted at third base yesterday despite earlier statements from the Sox which indicated that he might end up at second. Rafael Devers is being eased into the field after last year’s nagging shoulder injury. (Conor Roche, Boston.com)
Anyway, it was Bregman’s bat, not his glove that was on display yesterday. And it sounds like his strong performance was the result of some mechanical work he’s been doing. (Christopher Smith, MassLive)
Of course Bregman was only one of two big names to make his spring debut with the Sox yesterday. The other was Garrett Crochet and he’s pleased with how things went. (Sean McAdam, MassLive)