It was a difficult start to the season for outfielder Wilyer Abreu, but the Red Sox rookie has come on strong of late and made a wonderful grab in the first inning of yesterday’s loss to the Cleveland Guardians. From here on out, Alex Cora said Abreu will be in the lineup every day against right-handed pitchers. (Julian McWilliams, Boston Globe)
Believe it or not, though, Alex Cora didn’t even notice Abreu’s catch. He assumed it was a homer and was watching Cleveland hitter Jose Ramirez. (Christopher Smith, MassLive)
The Sox obviously could use some extra outfield performance from Abreu considering that Tyler O’Neill, who leads the league in home runs, needed eight stitches after yesterday’s collision with Rafael Devers and may lose some more time as he battles with probable a potential concussion. (Jen McCaffrey, The Athletic)
With O’Neill out, it could be a while before we see the team’s new home run celebration props, which are the medals that were handed to Cora and hitting coach Pete Fatse after they competed in a 5K road race over the weekend. (Christopher Smith, MassLive)
But at least Red Sox pitchers are doing an excellent job keeping the opposition from breaking out their own home run props. Kutter Crawford has had an especially good start to the season, and he considers the time he spent hurt in 2022 as one of the causes for his progress. (Greg Dudek, NESN)
The batters aren’t the only ones who get to have fun with wacky routines. The bullpen has established a custom of its own: a pregame Red Bull toast. (Rob Bradford, WEEI)
