BOSTON — As the Red Sox have endured their longest losing streak in three seasons in the past week, all Alex Bregman has been able to do is watch from the sidelines.
Bregman, who has missed just over a month with a quad strain he suffered on May 23, has resumed baseball activities over the past couple days, swinging a bat and taking grounders on the Fenway Park field. His progress is encouraging and suggests a return at some point around the All-Star break. Still, though, there’s the feeling — with the Red Sox entering Saturday three games under .500 at 40-43 — that time has slipped away.
“It’s very tough,” Bregman said Saturday. “Obviously, I want to be out there contributing and helping win baseball games. It’s time to battle our tail off and fight.”
Bregman, who outplayed his massive free agent contract with a .299 average, 11 homers, 17 doubles and a .938 OPS in 51 games to start the season before getting hurt, is now unquestionably Boston’s best offensive player with Rafael Devers having been traded to the Giants. For a lineup that has sputtered in the 10 days since the Devers trade, the return of Bregman’s big bat will be much welcomed. He’ll return to a different-looking group to the one he last shared the field with. Devers and Kristian Campbell (demoted) are no longer on the team and rookies Roman Anthony and Marcelo Mayer are.
Bregman, whose signing displaced Devers at third base and ultimately catalyzed the tension that led to the messy divorce between the Red Sox and their franchise player earlier this month, said he, like many, was shocked to see the slugger dealt to San Francisco.
“I really enjoyed every second of playing with him and being his teammate,” Bregman said. “I think he’s one of the smarter baseball players I’ve played with. He’s really good just at the little things with his approach and gameplan. Obviously, I was shocked, but it’s well above my pay grade and what I’m supposed to do.”
When Bregman got hurt in the middle of a blowout win over the Orioles, the Red Sox were well on their way to getting back to .500 at 26-26. In the 31 games since, Boston has gotten both very hot (a six-game winning streak from June 10-16) and super cold (their current skid). He hopes to return to a club that is still in the mix — and has an eye on adding at the July 31 trade deadline — in a couple weeks.
First, though, he must gain strength back in his right leg. Bregman said he has been pain-free for weeks and that his rehab is now more about building up muscle than anything else.
“Just need to build volume, and the muscle is healing,” said Bregman. “Just taking it step-by-step and trying to feel 100% and get out there and contribute and help. Obviously, I want to be out there really badly so trying to push the envelope but also be smart about it.”
Bregman will continue to run, do infield drills and swing a bat during the rest of Boston’s homestand, which concludes Wednesday. It’s unlikely he’ll travel to Washington, D.C. for the club’s quick three-game trip there on Fourth of July weekend. When the team returns for a seven-game homestand to finish off the first half from July 7-13, Bregman could be close to returning. He reiterated that a rehab assignment before being activated isn’t a requirement in his mind.
“Maybe. You never know,” he said. “It just depends on when it is. If it’s sooner rather than later, maybe no. If we have the ability to get it in when I’m missing time here, that would be great.”
For now, the Red Sox are reassessing Bregman’s condition on a week-to-week basis and making sure they don’t rush him back. While he has been sidelined, he has still proved valuable as a clubhouse presence and mentor figure for young players like Mayer and Anthony.
“It’s refreshing (to see him progressing) but at the end of the day, we’ve got a job to do,” said manager Alex Cora. “We have lost six in a row. We’ve been in games and we’ve had the lead late in games but we haven’t won.”
