Franchy Cordero’s readiness for Opening Day was never more apparent than in the first inning on Sunday afternoon, when he hit a heat-seeking missile over the bullpen in right-center field against Twins starter José Berríos during the Red Sox's 8-3 victory at JetBlue Park at Fenway South in Fort Myers, Fla.
For weeks, there was a big question of whether the lefty slugger would be ready for the start of the season. He missed roughly the first half of Spring Training after testing positive for COVID-19 and needing time to pass all the subsequent protocols.
Manager Alex Cora’s standard line on the possibility of the left fielder being ready for Opening Day has been, "There’s a chance." So it was eye-opening Sunday morning when Cora upgraded that to, "There’s a good chance.”
When that solo shot -- which came one pitch after Enrique Hernández smashed one over the replica Green Monster at JetBlue Park -- landed, Cordero’s slot for Thursday’s opener at Fenway Park against the Orioles seemed just about cemented.
The final test comes Monday, when Cordero is scheduled to play on back-to-back days for the first time this spring.
“He feels great,” Cora said. “There’s a good chance he’ll be with us Opening Day. Let’s see how he reacts out of this one, but everybody is very positive with the way he’s been able to bounce back. The game in Tampa [on Friday], he hit a triple. He’s moving around in the outfield. He’s in a good position.”
Another player with a good chance? Vázquez
The Red Sox also seem to have a general expectation that catcher Christian Vázquez will be ready for Opening Day. On Thursday, Vázquez, wearing sunglasses, was struck just under the left eye by a thrown ball during a team drill. He suffered a contusion and a laceration.
“Christian, he was just playing catch actually with Eduardo [Rodriguez],” Cora said. “He’s going to be able to actually track pitches today. There’s a good chance he’ll be with us on Opening Day. There’s a really good chance. But we have to be careful how we push him, what he can do, what he cannot do.
“There's a good chance he might go tomorrow to Minnesota to the 'B' game to get at-bats. You know, I was still debating if he’s OK [to do that], but I just talked to [trainer] Brad [Pearson] and that might be [good]. You know, we’re playing six innings, so there might be six at-bats there in the back fields, no pressure, track pitches, see pitches. So hopefully, you know, he gets the green light and he can do that.”
More good news: E-Rod update
All signs continued to be encouraging for Rodriguez, who will throw his second bullpen session in three days on Monday. This comes on the heels of Friday’s announcement that the lefty would miss Opening Day due to experiencing a "dead arm" in his most recent Grapefruit League start on March 22 against the Rays, when he labored for two innings.
Rodriguez is expected to throw at higher intensity on Monday than he did in his 36-pitch session on Saturday. It appears his time away from the starting rotation will be minimal.
“We just want to make sure he's over this hump,” Cora said. “That's the most important thing. And he can say everything is great but, you know, we have to make sure. Like we said in the beginning, they're going to let us know. Their bodies are going to let us know. Obviously there's more stuff that goes on in the training room that's going to tell us where they’re at, but in this particular case with everything that happened last year, the communication is very important.”
Why was Dalbec scratched?
Rookie first baseman Bobby Dalbec was in the original starting lineup on Sunday. But when the game started, Michael Chavis was at first base.
It turns out Dalbec is dealing with right index finger soreness, and he was held out as a precaution.
“There was a ground ball yesterday that came up, and he got hit with it. Actually, thank God it hit his hand,” Cora said. “If not, it was going to hit square in his face, so we’re just being cautious. We’ve got three more days here. If it’s a regular-season game, he’s ready to play. He didn’t play today. He won’t play tomorrow. He’ll play Tuesday and be ready for Opening Day.”
Brasier trending up
With Matt Barnes out of the mix for at least a bit due to a positive COVID-19 test and at least three other pitchers among eight players in contact tracing protocol, it would be great timing for setup reliever Ryan Brasier to turn a corner in his return from a fractured right pinkie finger. Brasier was stalled coming to camp due to family reasons, which delayed his rehab from the injury.
“We feel like it’s going to be sooner rather than later. I hate giving you timelines, I try to stay away from that. It’s not fair to the player. But it’s trending up,” Cora said. “He has a ‘B’ game, he’s going to be part of the ‘B’ game on Monday against the Twins. He’s throwing one inning. We’re running out of time, of course, with Opening Day on Thursday, but it seems like he’ll be OK sooner rather than later.”
Up next
Righty Tanner Houck, Boston’s No. 7 prospect, will start on Monday against the Braves in North Port. Houck has been up and down in his Grapefruit League outings. Adam Ottavino, who will likely close at the beginning of the season, is scheduled to pitch for the second straight day. Lefty Darwinzon Hernandez, another key bullpen piece, is also expected to see action. First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. ET.
"Ready" - Google News
March 29, 2021 at 05:03AM
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Notes: Franchy looks ready; Vázquez healing - MLB.com
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