The Red Sox got a boost at just the right moment Saturday afternoon, with Willson Contreras back in the starting lineup for their game against the Athletics after missing two straight games because of an illness.
Boston had Contreras hitting fourth and starting at first base for the second game of the weekend set at Fenway Park. The club announced his return when it posted its lineup on social media, writing, “Some Saturday afternoon work.” That update mattered even more with the Red Sox trying to stretch their winning streak to nine games.
Contreras’ absence began Wednesday, when he left Boston’s win over the Chicago White Sox after dealing with dizziness and a high temperature. He then sat out Thursday’s series finale and was also out Friday when the Red Sox opened the Athletics series.
The encouraging sign came Friday, when he was back at Fenway and able to resume baseball activities. Interim manager Chad Tracy had said Thursday that Contreras was still dealing with symptoms, but his tone improved a day later.
“He’s doing better,” Tracy said Friday, according to MLB.com. “He came in today, which was good. He did a little bit of work, and we’ll see how he feels tomorrow.”
Boston clearly liked what it saw. Contreras was slotted right back into the middle of the order Saturday, with Jahmai Jones leading off as the designated hitter. Ceddanne Rafaela and Caleb Durbin hit behind him, and Contreras followed in the cleanup spot against Athletics left-hander Gage Jump.
Even during a brief absence, Contreras’ value was impossible to miss. He entered Saturday hitting .288 with a .395 on-base percentage and a .540 slugging percentage in 105 games, along with 23 home runs and 70 RBIs. It has been one of the strongest offensive seasons of his career.
His bat has been especially loud during Boston’s surge. During the Red Sox’s historic 15-game winning streak in July, Contreras hit .361 with four home runs and a 1.230 OPS. That stretch helped push him to No. 8 in MLB.com’s latest Hitter Power Rankings.
The Red Sox kept rolling without him, too. Friday’s win over the Athletics came behind a dominant outing from Payton Tolle, who struck out 14 as Boston picked up its ninth straight victory. That moved the Red Sox to 64-51 after spending much of the season chasing their way back into the American League postseason race.
So while the illness was never expected to become a major issue, getting Contreras back at first base and in the cleanup spot gave Boston exactly the kind of good news it wanted before going for 10 in a row.
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