Alex Bregman’s return is imminent, and Thursday afternoon Red Sox manager Alex Cora provided additional clarity on when exactly the All-Star third baseman could be activated.
Though Cora stopped short of announcing a specific return date, the manager said Bregman will play two of the team’s last three games before the All-Star break.
“He’ll play this weekend,” Cora said. “He’ll play two of the games.”
That timetable would suggest Bregman could be activated as soon as Friday or as late as Saturday. He will not need to go on a rehab assignment, as many players typically do to ease themselves back in after a lengthy injury, and Cora said he’s done a great job preparing himself over the past few weeks.
“My biggest concern is the defensive part of it, going into the dugout, going back and forth, the popup down the line, the bunts and all that, but he’s checked almost every box,” Cora said. “He feels like he’s in a great place and we’re going to trust the player.”
Prior to being placed on the 10-day injured list with a right quad strain on May 24, Bregman was off to one of the best starts of his career. He was batting .299 with 11 home runs, 35 RBI, a .938 OPS and 2.9 wins above replacement, numbers that still rank among the best in the AL among third basemen, helping earn him his third career All-Star nod despite missing the last 42 games entering Thursday.
Dobbins set to return
In addition to Bregman, Cora also said right-hander Hunter Dobbins (right elbow strain) will likely return this weekend, probably on Friday. The Red Sox do not currently have a starter announced for that day, making Dobbins the logical candidate.
Prior to being placed on the 15-day IL on June 22, Dobbins had gone 4-1 with a 4.10 ERA over his first 12 career outings.
Garrett Crochet and Brayan Bello are in line to start Boston’s last two games against the Rays before the All-Star break.
Houck enjoys strong outing
Tanner Houck (right flexor pronator strain) enjoyed his best rehab outing yet on Wednesday, allowing one run over 4.1 innings with three hits, two walks and six strikeouts.
Cora said he is recovering well and they’ll see how he feels on Friday before making any decisions on the next steps, but he also declined to commit to Houck returning to the rotation upon his activation.
“We have to make decisions,” Cora said.
