It was around the end of June that the Red Sox offense began to change, that the tumult created by the trade of slugger Rafael Devers and the promotion of No. 1 overall prospect Roman Anthony began to settle down and leave Boston with a remade lineup that was among the best in baseball.
The Red Sox scored a 13-6 win over the Reds on June 30, and in 55 games that followed, Boston was a dangerous team at the plate. They scored 5.4 runs per game in that stretch. They hit .265 (third in MLB) as a team, with a .332 on-base percentage and a .446 slugging mark. That gave them an OPS of .778 (seventh in baseball in that stretch).
They also stole 48 bases, which ranked fifth. The team went 37-18.
But then, on September 2, as the Red Sox were putting up 11 runs against the Guardians, there was a fateful swing. Anthony grabbed his back during a strikeout and immediately headed to the locker room when his at-bat was over. He had an oblique muscle injury, and has not played since.
How Has the Red Sox Offense Been Hurt by the Injury?
The offense has sunk in his absence. In 10 games without Anthony, the Red Sox are batting .244 with a .296 OBP and a .384 slugging percentage. They’re scoring 4.1 runs per game, well off their previous pace from the two months prior.
Being without Anthony has been compounded by the fact that Wilyer Abreu has not been in the mix, either. He is dealing with a stubborn calf injury and should return this week.
“We have to be better offensively,” Cora said on Saturday. “Obviously no Willy, no Roman, it’s a different group, it’s a different lineup. But guys that are able to execute. They’ve been here the whole season, they’ve been part of it, so I think they’re capable of putting better at-bats and get the line moving.”
Roman Anthony ‘Set the Tone’ as Leadoff Man
Missing Anthony is not the only reason the Red Sox are struggling. Getting Abreu back will help, but the team is fighting through September slumps for stars like Ceddanne Rafaela (.105 in the month), Alex Bregman (.216 this month) and Jarren Duran (.227).
After a strong initial start, first baseman Nathaniel Lowe is hitting .200 in September.
But not having Anthony’s ability to get on base and create havoc at the top of the order (he has a .396 OBP with 27 extra-base hits) has obviously affected the rest of the lineup.
As Alex Speier of the Boston Globe wrote, Anthony’s biggest impact was as a leadoff man: “ In 27 games in that role, Anthony hit .340/.437/.566 with six home runs and 11 extra-base hits. The Sox had a player whose production was among the best in the game setting the tone and batting four or five times a night.”
When Can the Red Sox Get Roman Anthony Back?
When Anthony suffered the injury, there was no definite timetable given on his return, but Cora did say that the typical recovery time for such an injury is 4-to-6 weeks. On the early side, then, Anthony could play again in early October. The regular season ends on Sunday, September 28.
If we see Anthony again, then, it will be in the postseason, though not likely in the wild-card round, assuming that is where the Red Sox will play—if they survive this month.
MLB typically starts the postseason’s first round on the Tuesday after the final weekend, which means Boston could open on September 30. That initial series figures to end by Friday, October 3, which means that the earliest the Red Sox could have Anthony back would be in the Division Series.
Again, if they survive that far.
Red Sox Offense Slumping Since Roman Anthony Injury