Triston Casas is the wild card for the Boston Red Sox's roster, at least during the first half of the upcoming season.
Not only is Casas recovering from a torn patellar tendon in his left knee, which has him behind schedule for opening day, but if he were going to be ready in time, it's unlikely he would have a spot in the lineup. With the arrival of new first baseman Willson Contreras and Boston having an extra outfielder slotted into the designated hitter role, it's not immediately clear where Casas fits into the picture.
First things first, though. Before sorting out what pieces need to move around to insert Casas' bat back into the lineup, the Red Sox need some clarity about when he'll return. And manager Alex Cora gave a positive update on Tuesday about how the 26-year-old was progressing.
“I don’t want to say he’s ahead but he’s moving well," Cora said, per Mac Cerullo of the Boston Herald. "I’m not a doctor and they’ll make the decision, but he looks pretty good, but we’re still I think a ways from seeing him every day.”
It works to the Red Sox's advantage that Casas will get a rehab stint after starting the season on the injured list, which gives them 21 days to assess him in Triple-A before deciding whether to use one of his two remaining minor-league options.
Once we start hearing about the potential of Casas appearing in Grapefruit League games, we can start trying to put a date on his regular-season debut. If he's in the majors before June, it's likely a sign that everything went according to plan on his end, while an opportunity simultaneously opened up on the roster ahead of him.