RED SOX WERE JUST GIFTED AN EASY FLIER TO BIDE TIME UNTIL TRISTON CASAS RETURNS
Triston Casas hitting the IL in late April was a massive blow to the Boston Red Sox. Not only is the 24-year-old slugger arguably their most reliable power bat outside of Rafael Devers but the club was also left with no certain options at first base.
It was initially a familiar face in Bobby Dalbec who was called up from Triple-A to replace Casas but he was essentially being counted as an out before he ever stepped into the batter's box. That led to new general manager Craig Breslow adding a pair of veterans to platoon, Garrett Cooper and Dominic Smith.
Smith has been fine but nothing special with a .641 OPS but with some recent costly defensive errors. Cooper, however, was essentially just as bad as Dalbec with a .455 OPS, leading to Dalbec's return and the newcomer being DFA'd before subsequently being released. As of now, it looks like it'll be a Smith-Dalbec platoon of sorts until the Red Sox get Casas back, hopefully as soon as early July.
But until that time, an upgrade to that platoon -- or even as an everyday first baseman -- may have just fallen in the Red Sox's lap.
Red Sox should eye Jose Abreu until Trison Casas returns
On Friday, veteran first baseman Jose Abreu was outright released by the Houston Astros, who still owe him $30 million. Yes, that definitely means he's been awful this season, which the numbers clearly back up.
In 35 games this season with Houston, Abreu slashed an appallingly bad .124/.167/.195 with just two home runs and four total extra-base hits. This follows his 2023 season, his first with the Astros, in which his numbers took a tumble from his astoundingly consistent decade with the Chicago White Sox. In 2023, Abreu slashed .237/.296/.383 with 18 home runs and 23 doubles. At least the power was still there.
Given his recent performance, there is obviously a chance the Red Sox would be taking on the 37-year-old. There is a chance that his talents have simply fallen off a cliff and that he's unable to ever return to anything close to the player who was constantly flirting with hitting .300 with 25-to-35 home runs.
At the same time, this is a player who put up those types of numbers for 10 years. And even if the Red Sox could get him back to his letdown 2023 form, that would still be an upgrade from what they're currently getting from Dalbec and Smith.
First base has been a hole in the Boston lineup since Casas was injured. And even if they were to sign Abreu, it probably still would be. But given everything they've already thrown at the problem, the veteran should be cost-effective and offers at least a potential to help more than the Red Sox's other options that they've trotted to this point. That potential makes it, at the very least, worth consideration.
This article was originally published on fansided.com as Red Sox were just gifted an easy flier to bide time until Triston Casas returns.
2024-06-15T22:42:19Z dg43tfdfdgfd