It's been over two months since Roman Anthony has played baseball and Boston Red Sox fans are desperate for any positive update they can get on his progress. Unfotunately, his recovery is moving painfully slowly.
When reports emerged that Anthony's rehab would be moved to Fort Myers and that he would see the Atlanta Braves' hand specialist, Dr. Gary Lourie, fans assumed the worst. Lourie has experience treating Anthony's rare hand injury — a tear in the carpometacarpal (CMC) ligament in his ring finger — in former Braves infielder Adonis Garcia, who needed surgery to repair the ailment.
Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow appeared on the July 9 installment of WEEI's "The Greg Hill Show" to give an update about Anthony's injury. The update isn't a devastating one, but it isn't great, either.
"Dr. Lourie kind of confirmed the diagnosis and treatment plans that our doctors had identified that Roman's been on. Unfortunately, this is just an injury that is taking longer than expected to heal, but by all accounts it sounds like we are on the right track," Breslow said.
Roman Anthony doesn't need surgery on injured hand, but Red Sox don't learn anything new from specialist visit
Roman Anthony UPDATE! Report of seeing a hand specialist accurate? Red Sox CBO Craig Breslow joins!
— WEEI (@WEEI) July 9, 2026
Breslow: "Unfortunately, this is just an injury that is taking longer than expected to heal, but by all accounts it sounds like we are on the right track" #RomanAnthony #update pic.twitter.com/0jIpGQ3nhM
it's good to hear that Anthony's injury isn't more severe than the Red Sox initially thought, and it's the biggest relief that he doesn't need surgery. But Boston also didn't learn anything new about Anthony's injury — all it can do is hurry up and wait longer.
Anthony has tried to swing since he went down with the injury with no success. He still has a lot of work to do before he can be reactivated, including building up his swing and going through a long rehab assignment, since he hasn't played since May 5. Even if Anthony could swing a bat tomorrow, it would still be weeks before his return.
Anthony struggled at the plate to begin the season but was finding his way in the games before his injury, with a .269/.345/.346 slash line in his last seven games. Hopefully, upon his return, he has the same impact as he did after his debut last season when he batted .292/.396/.463 in 71 games.
The Red Sox need all the help they can get to continue their winning streak and maintain their recent relevance in the Wild Card race, but it will be at least a few more weeks, maybe even a month, before Anthony can contribute. At least he doesn't need surgery, but he can't come back to action fast enough.
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