The Red Sox will have to get by without their steadiest bat for at least the next stretch, after placing Willson Contreras on the 10-Day Injured List with a left hamstring strain.
Contreras exited Sunday’s series finale against the New York Yankees because of a hamstring issue that had been bothering him, and Boston was already up 6-0 at the time. There was no reason to push it any further, and the club made the move official on Monday afternoon, announcing it on X while bringing Mickey Gasper back to the majors just one day after optioning him to the minors.
“The Red Sox today placed 1B Willson Contreras on the 10-Day Injured List with a left hamstring strain. To fill his spot, Boston recalled C/1B Mickey Gasper from Triple-A Worcester,” the Red Sox announced.
Contreras has clearly been grinding through discomfort for a while. Over his last eight games before landing on the IL, he hit just .129/.206/.194 with a .399 OPS, no home runs and one RBI. That stretch stood out against the season he’s put together overall.
Even with the recent slump, Contreras has been the engine in Boston’s lineup. He earned his fourth All-Star selection and has already reached a new career high with 26 home runs.
In 125 games, he’s slashing .274/.384/.516 with a .900 OPS, along with 26 homers, 79 RBIs and 21 doubles. His 4.4 wins above replacement would also be a career best if the season ended today.
Losing him now is a real hit to the middle of the order. With the playoffs nearing and Boston most likely locked into the No.
2 American League Wild Card spot after dropping its series against the Yankees, the next few weeks are about getting healthy. Contreras sits near the top of that priority list, and the Red Sox know they won’t make a deep run if he isn’t right.
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