Roman Anthony experiences 'soreness and discomfort' swinging, delaying return to Red Sox lineup

The Red Sox are going to shut down Roman Anthony from baseball activities until at least Thursday after he experienced renewed soreness while taking swings Monday afternoon in Kansas City.

Anthony has been on the injured list since May 7 after suffering a sprained ligament beneath his right ring finger while fouling off a pitch during Boston’s series in Detroit on May 4.

The outfielder had traveled with the club in hopes of returning during either the Braves or Royals series, but the latest setback will now delay his progression further.

Boston had been optimistic Anthony could begin ramping up baseball activities again this week, but the renewed discomfort appears to have forced the organization to take a more cautious approach with one of its most important young players.

“For the time being, we’re probably going to back off until we get through the off day (Thursday),” interim manager Chad Tracy said before the Sox series opener with the Royals at Kauffman Stadium. “Obviously we’re not going to have him swinging through soreness and discomfort. So not as good of news today. But we will back off and see what happens after the off day with a few more days of rest.”

Anthony received a cortisone shot within the last two weeks in hopes that it would help alleviate the discomfort he has experienced while gripping the bat.

One of the biggest hurdles remaining in his recovery is simply being able to swing pain-free.

The Red Sox outfielder recently had the splint removed from his wrist, largely because of the cortisone injection and the progress the organization hoped it would provide.

Boston still has not committed to any concrete timeline for Anthony’s return, but once he's finally able to grip and swing the bat comfortably, the club will have a much clearer idea of the next steps in his recovery process.

Tracy initially did not completely rule out the possibility of Anthony returning during the Royals series. But after the latest setback, it is fair to wonder whether this injured list stint could now stretch into June, especially if Anthony ultimately requires a rehab assignment before rejoining Boston’s lineup.

Before landing on the injured list, Anthony was hitting .229 with a .675 OPS, though he had started showing signs of heating up in May with five hits in his first 13 at-bats of the month.

The Red Sox badly need a healthy Anthony back in the lineup. And once he does return, Boston could consider moving him back into the leadoff spot given Jarren Duran’s ongoing offensive struggles.

Since Tracy took over as interim manager, Duran has hit leadoff in 18 of 19 games but has provided very little offensive production during that stretch.

“I think you look at it, right? He has gone through it,” Tracy said while the club was in Atlanta. “He took some better swings last night. When you get Roman (back), it’s worth more of a conversation but I do believe in Jarren. I know it can get frustrating and believe me, there’s probably nobody more frustrated than him. I also know who Jarren Duran is and what he can be and so does this fan base.”

Duran is hitting just .183 this season with four home runs, eight doubles, 18 RBIs, 11 walks, and nine stolen bases while posting a dreadful .243 on-base percentage and .548 OPS.

For a Red Sox offense already struggling to consistently generate runs, those numbers at the top of the lineup have become increasingly problematic, especially from a veteran bat.

Boston is averaging just 3.6 runs per game this season and owns the worst OPS in the American League at .666. The issue for Tracy is that there are not many obvious internal alternatives to hit leadoff.

Ceddanne Rafaela may be the most logical option and has already hit atop the order twice this season, but the Red Sox are holding him out of Monday’s lineup because of what the club described as “routine hamstring soreness.”

“A little bit of tightness in his hamstring,” Tracy said to reporters in Kansas City. “Which is not like he’s out indefinitely. He got some treatment. And with the amount of balls that that dude ran down Atlanta, that doesn’t surprise me in the least. He ran a lot of mileage, so I expect him back in there tomorrow.”

In 15 games during May, Rafaela has gone 17-for-53 (.321) with a .390 on-base percentage, .528 slugging percentage, and a .918 OPS. The 24-year-old has quietly been one of Boston’s hottest hitters over the last few weeks while also continuing to provide elite defense in the outfield.

If Rafaela were to miss any additional time beyond Monday, the Red Sox would really begin scraping the bottom of the barrel for reinforcements within the organization, not just offensively, but defensively as well.

The month of May will come to a close in just two weeks, and as the Red Sox prepare to enter June, the club continues hovering around the American League Wild Card picture. But despite remaining within striking distance, Boston hardly looks like a team built for a deep postseason run with the offense in its current form.

If the Red Sox are still in contention as the summer approaches, Craig Breslow needs to act with urgency and find a way to add a productive bat to the lineup. The pitching staff has largely carried its weight this season. The offense has not, and it's due to the overall construction of the roster and a redundancy of the same player up and down the lineup. 

If Boston continues operating under the status quo throughout June, any hopes of a legitimate playoff push during the dog days of summer could quickly become futile, and what has already been a disappointing season may fully become a lost one.

Until then, the first step for the Red Sox is simple: get Anthony healthy and back in the lineup. From there, Boston needs the 22-year-old to catch fire quickly and provide much-needed offensive production near the top of the order.