The Boston Red Sox will enter the postseason heavily injured. The New York Yankees present a tough challenge, but it will be even harder without Roman Anthony, Marcelo Mayer, and the excess of pitching depth they used to have.
Anthony and Mayer, who are sidelined by an oblique strain and wrist surgery, respectively, were present for the Sox's final series at Fenway Park. They participated in clinching festivities after another Ceddanne Rafaela walk off, and saw former Triple-A teammate José De León make the final regular season start to save Lucas Giolito's arm for the postseason. They will not travel to New York with the team for the Wild Card series, however.
Anthony and Mayer will travel to Fort Myers to rehab with other injured Red Sox and players the team is keeping loose in case of an emergency (per Tim Healey of The Boston Globe, subscription required). Kristian Campbell and Jhostynxon Garcia are there, along with pitchers Dustin May, Cooper Criswell, Luis Guerrero, Isaiah Campbell and more.
Unfortunately, the Red Sox still don't have a timeline for Anthony's return to the roster. Chris Cotillo of MassLive reports that 's been limited to "light" workouts and exercising, which doesn't paint the best picture of a return early in the Sox's postseason run.
Roman Anthony and Marcelo Mayer will join other Red Sox players, minor leaguers in Fort Myers to stay ready for potential playoff appearances
Alex Cora told Anthony to envision the first at-bat of the ALCS to inspire his recovery. Not only would he have to be recovered and ready to play by mid-October, but the Red Sox have to make it far enough in the postseason for Anthony to take the field again. With the Yankees and Blue Jays in their way, that will be a tall task.
Anthony would be a huge boost in Boston's lineup if he were healthy. He batted .292/.396/.463 with an .859 OPS over 71 games in the big leagues. He got particularly hot in August, and slashed .311/.394/.504 in his last 30 games.
Mayer could also give the Red Sox a solid offensive boost and improved defense in the middle infield. Cora opened the door for a potential return before the Sox's September 26 game againstthe Tigers. He said Mayer has begun taking dry swings and playing catch, and that he's "pushing" for a return in the postseason.
It could be risky to push Anthony and Mayer, two young future stars, so hard to return since the Red Sox aren't guaranteed to make it far enough in the postseason to need either of them. They'll have a long offseason ahead of them to recover properly, though, so it may be a risk worth taking in Boston's eyes, especially with Anthony and his critically important bat.
He won't be joining Sox players in Fort Myers, but the Red Sox also announced that Liam Hendriks underwent elbow surgery, officially ending his season. The procedure was described by Cotillo as a "right elbow ulnar nerve transposition with posterior interosseous nerve release."
Hendriks only posted 13.2 innings for the Red Sox in 2025 and didn't appear for them at all in 2024 due to UCL surgery. Losing Hendriks isn't a factor in the postseason, but it's unfortunate that the 2025 Roberto Clemente Award nominee didn't get to spend more time on the mound for the Red Sox.