Finally, the Boston Red Sox have begun receiving positive injury news. After months of recovering and non-updates, Trevor Story has begun his rehab assignment following sports hernia surgery, Roman Anthony is slated to begin one on August 18 and Isiah Kiner-Falefa will get back into action the following day.
Anthony, Story and Kiner-Falefa are each on the 60-day injured list, meaning they'll need places on the 40-man roster in order to be activated. As of August 17, the Red Sox's 40-man roster has two open spaces so Boston will only have to open one there, but each player will also need a spot on the active roster, which will lead to some tough decisions for Red Sox management.
The Red Sox need a full bullpen for their postseason push and amid their reliever injuries, so any of the choices for demotion come from the position player base. Nick Sogard, Mickey Gasper, Anthony Seigler and Andruw Monasterio are probably the top candidates to be moved.
Boston recalled Gasper to replace Masataka Yoshida who sustained a leg injury on August 15. Gasper is a realistic choice to be sent down or designated for assignment upon Anthony's activation because they're both lefty hitters. Gasper is also the third catcher on Boston's roster and it's not necessary to carry that many, but another catcher could be brought back up when rosters expand.
Story and Kiner-Falefa's activations will more than likely come at other infielders' expenses, but deciding which will be difficult. Seigler and Monasterio have both had their moments with the Red Sox so far — the former batted .350/.409/.550 in June after his call-up and he's slashing .350/.417/.500 in his last seven games and Monasterio has racked up 12 doubles and 24 RBI between July and August.
The Red Sox have tough roster decisions coming before Trevor Story, Roman Anthony and Isiah Kiner-Falefa's returns from injury
Sogard's impact at the plate has been less significant, to the tune of a .240/.353/.310 slash line through 29 games. He's had a great eye this season, working 18 walks compared to 22 strikeouts and he has a tendency to land clutch hits.
Seigler and Sogard are more likely to be optioned than Monasterio, despite their moments of success. Monasterio has turned into a doubles machine in recent weeks and the Red Sox need all the slug they can get in their power-hungry lineup.
There's a good argument for giving Monasterio more playing time, or at least having him split time with Story upon the shortstop's return. Story struggled severely at the plate before his surgery with an ugly .206/.244/.303 slash line and 57 strikeouts over 41 games, and while his diminished production could've been a side effect of his injury, Boston can't afford to take any chances during it's playoff push.
Story, Monasterio and Kiner-Falefa could make for a stronger middle infield mix than the Red Sox have had for a while, provided Story bounces back at least a little bit to his 2025 production. Kiner-Falefa is a strong defender and will help balance out some of the mistakes Monasterio and Story have made. Anthony's return should automatically improve the outfield offense by taking some at-bats from the seriously struggling Jarren Duran. The Red Sox's upcoming roster moves will present them with some tough choices, but they'll be worth it. Plus, rosters expand on September 1 and some of the freshly demoted players may be able to return.
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