After a nearly two-month warm-up, the Boston Red Sox's offense is starting to show signs of life. It may soon get a key reinforcement it's waited months for.
Utility player Romy Gonzalez is making progress toward a rehab assignment, according to interim manager Chad Tracy. The 2025 breakout bat underwent surgery on his left shoulder during spring training due to an injury that lingered from September through the offseason.
On June 6, Tracy told NESN that Gonzalez is swinging at 100 percent and can now finish swings one-handed. Tracy noted that Gonzalez will have to focus on swinging "for a little bit" before he can be sent for a full rehab assignment since he hasn't played since last season and didn't have a warm-up in the spring. The Red Sox did not give a timeline for his activation, but early season reports expected his return to action in June.
Gonzalez posted the best season of his career last year, with a .305/.343/.483 slash line, 23 doubles, three triples, nine home runs and 53 RBI over 96 games. The now-29-year-old was designated for assignment after parts of three lackluster seasons with the Chicago White Sox (.222/.239/.361 over 86 games) and the Red Sox turned him into an everyday player.
Breakout Red Sox utility infielder Romy Gonzalez nearing rehab assignment after recovery from shoulder surgery
If Gonzalez can replicate his success from last season, he'll be a massive boost to the Sox's lackluster infield. Caleb Durbin is finally hitting his stride after his troublesome start with Boston, but he's still slashing just .192/.253/.291 with hits in eight of his last nine games. Marcelo Mayer is also struggling at the plate with a .189/.242/.222 slash line and one of the worst wRC+ metrics (27) since May.
Gonzalez is an upgrade over Andruw Monasterio, who's played quite well lately with a .302/.318/.512 slash line in his last 15 games. The two players have similar skillsets, including defensive flexibility and hitting talent against lefties (although Monasterio's splits have evened out significantly this season), Gonzalez is the more consistent version of the two, which the Red Sox need as soon as possible.
It'll be at least a few weeks until Gonzalez is built up and ready to join the Red Sox, but if he can play shortly after the All-Star break, he could help Boston establish itself as a contender before the trade deadline.
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