Red Sox's Alex Cora Fears Star Player Could Have 'Lengthy Absence' Following Injury

Boston's lineup continues to get decimated by injuries

Scott Neville | Apr 21, 2024

Apr 5, 2024; Anaheim, California, USA; Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora (13) checks on Boston Red / Jason Parkhurst-USA TODAY Sports

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Boston Red Sox

The Boston Red Sox have cruised through a pair of wins against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park but continue to face adversity with core players going down left and right.

Boston entered the series without the face of their franchise, third baseman Rafael Devers and their most productive player in the early going, outfielder Tyler O'Neill.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora now will be without another top slugger and fears that the absence could be long-term. Triston Casas grabbed his abdomen after a swing on Saturday and was pulled from the action in the first inning of the eventual 4-2 victory. The update since is not encouraging.

"Casas is flying to Boston to see a specialist today," MassLive's Chris Cotillo wrote Sunday. "Is Cora concerned about a lengthy absence? 'Yes. I am.' (Pablo) Reyes and (Bobby) Dalbec at first base for now."

Casas is hitting .244 with nine extra-base hits including six home runs, 10 RBIs and a .857 OPS while appearing in all 22 games heading into Sunday's series finale.

Cora will look retool the roster on Monday's off day, as both Devers and O'Neill are expected to return to action for Boston's road trip to face off against the Cleveland Guardians.

More MLB: Ex-Blue Jays Slugger Makes Perfect Sense For Red Sox After Latest Injury

Published Apr 21, 2024

SCOTT NEVILLE

Scott Neville covers the Boston Red Sox for Sports Illustrated's new page "Inside The Red Sox." Before starting "Inside The Red Sox", Neville attended Merrimack College, where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Communication and Media with a minor in Marketing. Neville spent all four years with Merrimack's radio station WMCK, where he grew as a radio/podcast host and producer. His propensity for being in front of a microphone eventually expanded to film, where he produced multiple short films alongside his then-roommate and current co-worker Stephen Mottram. On a journey that began as a way to receive easy credits via film classes, he received a call from "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" star Charlie Day. Day advised him to make a feature-length film, which he completed his senior year. While writing the film, Neville completed an internship for United Way as part of their NFL Partnership Program. Neville ran the blog for a team of interns and hosted an internet show called "United Way's NFL Partnership Series" where he interviewed NFL alumni. After college Neville wrote for SB Nation's "Over The Monster," a Red Sox sister site of the flagship brand. His work would eventually lead him to a job as a content producer with NESN, where he would cover all sports. After developing as a writer with the top regional network in the world, he was given the opportunity to join the Sports Illustrated Media Group in his current endeavor as the publisher of "Inside The Red Sox." The successful launch and quick rise of "Inside The Red Sox" led to Neville joining the Baseball Essential ownership group, a national baseball site under SIMG. Follow him on Twitter: @ScottNeville46 Email: nevilles@merrimack.edu