It's taken Caleb Durbin quite some time to warm up in his sophomore season — maybe too long for the Boston Red Sox. They've been patient with Durbin in hopes that his bat wakes up to the degree they hoped over the offseason, but things only seem to be trending down offensively.
The 2025 National League Rookie of the Year finalist is batting just .165/.247/.245 over 43 games. He's 1-for-18 with six strikeouts in his last seven games. He has the lowest wOBA (.231) and wRC+ (37) of any qualified hitter this season, and Trevor Story and Jarren Duran aren't far behind.
Durbin's wRC+ was 47 in April and its plummeted down to 12 in May. While there are still a few weeks left in the month, the Red Sox can't afford many more severe offensive troubles — their defense is a among the best in the league and their pitchers have posted a 2.61 ERA in the last 15 days, the third best metric in MLB over than span. Interim manager Chad Tracy may have already switched gears at third base.
Durbin has sat for two straight games (May 17 against the Atlanta Braves and May 18 against the Kansas City Royals) in favor of Nick Sogard. Tracy has managed Sogard for years and he turned to his former player for a spark.
Red Sox have temporarily swapped Nick Sogard for Caleb Durbin amid the latter's severe offensive troubles
It hasn't been much, but it's something, contrary to what Durbin has produced. Sogard has two hits, including a double, a walk and an RBI in his first two games with Boston this season. The Red Sox have turned to him as a reliable infield depth option before, to the tune of a .260/.317/.344 slash line over 30 games last season.
Sogard even picked up where Durbin left off, defensively, after making an excellent play against the Royals. The latter third baseman has been one of the best in the league with the glove, as he's logged four outs above average for 94th percentile range and his six defensive runs saved are tied for second-most in the league at his position, which likely is one of the main reasons why the Red Sox have stuck by Durbin so firmly until now.
Tracy said before the Red Sox's series opener in Kansas City that he's put Sogard in the lineup to play a hotter bat, but Durbin hasn't been permanently replaced. But given his offensive struggles that have only worsened in May, the Red Sox are right to look elsewhere for offensive production, at least temporarily.