Roman Anthony: Everything you need to know

Anthony is absent from the lineup for Friday's game in St. Louis. Anthony is slashing only .217/.308/.348 in the early going and has also had throwing issues on days he's played the outfield. He'll begin Friday's contest on the bench while Jarren Duran handles left field and Masataka Yoshida occupies the designated hitter slot.

Anthony had three instances of poor throws from left field early in the regular season that has been a topic of discussion, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports. Anthony had two throws to home plate during the team's season-opening road trip which were not close, including one that arrived on multiple bounces. He followed up with an offline throw to third base Monday that led to two runs in an 8-6 loss. Both manager Alex Cora and third base coach Kyle Hudson, who was an outfielder during his tenure as a player in the majors and minors, believe the issue revolves around Anthony's lower-half mechanics. Hudson indicated the arm strength is there, but improper mechanics puts him in a tough position to maximize the strength. Anthony served as the DH on Tuesday, and his throwing issues aren't going to cost him plate appearances; however, as Cora manages playing time for five worthy outfielders, limiting Anthony to DH reduces roster flexibility. It's unclear when he'll return to the outfield, but when he does, teams are expected to challenge Anthony's arm.

Anthony went 2-for-4 with a triple in Saturday's 3-2 loss to the Padres. After being stuck in a 1-for-17 slump earlier this week, Anthony is 4-for-9 with a solo home run, triple and one run scored over his last three appearances. Boston's offense as a whole continues to struggle, as the Red Sox have scored two runs or fewer in four of their last six games. Through eight games, Anthony is slashing .267/.333/.433 across 33 plate appearances.