The Boston Red Sox have looked utterly lost without Alex Bregman. The third baseman strained his quad on May 23 while running out a long Fenway Park single, and Boston has lost seven of its 10 games since.
The Red Sox were initially cautious with Bregman's injury and waited until the following morning to see how he felt before making any plans for an injured list stint. His pain only worsened, though, and an MRI showed a similar quad injury to one he had in 2021, which kept him on the shelf for over two months, which would be devastating for Boston's offense.
But Bregman's recovery has gone swimmingly so far. Peter Abraham of The Boston Globe reported on June 3 that Bregman's recovery is going "about 10 times better" than he and the Red Sox hoped.
“Obviously, got to respect the injury, but it’s been healing extremely fast, and just got to keep making strides every day and hopefully be back sooner than later,” Bregman told Abraham before Boston's 4-3 extra-innings loss to the Angels.
Alex Bregman is recovering quickly from quad strain as Red Sox struggle in his absence
There is still no official timeline for Bregman's return. The Red Sox placed him on the 10-day IL on May 24, which made him eligible to return at the beginning of the week. He still has some recovering to do, though, and Abraham Toro has been a reliable replacement at third base, so Boston shouldn't rush Bregman back to action. Toro is slashing .304/.310/.493 in 21 games with a few errors on his stat sheet, but he's also made some nifty plays to save a hit or two.
Still, the Red Sox clearly miss Bregman's bat and leadership. Boston has dropped two of the three series Bregman has missed so far, including a sweep by the Brewers, and its schedule is only getting harder as it gears up for three straight divisional matchups, two against the Yankees and one with the Rays. Bregman is batting .299/.385/.553 with a .938 OPS, 17 doubles, 11 homers and 35 RBI over 51 games.
Bregman's longtime former club, the Astros, have been the bane of the Yankees' existence in the postseason over the last many years. It's a shame Bregman will miss Boston's first two series of the year against its arch-rival — it would be sweet to see him become a Yankee killer in a Red Sox uniform.
Abraham's update about the speed of Bregman's recovery is excellent news for a struggling Boston team, but it shouldn't be too hasty with his rehab process. The Red Sox need Bregman at the top of his game when he returns to help put the team in a position to add at the trade deadline, and speeding through his recovery could be a recipe for another disaster.