Chris Sale’s struggles continue as Red Sox fall short of comeback in 9-7 loss to Rays

They made it interesting in the late stages on Wednesday night, but the Red Sox could not come back to knock off the unbeaten Rays. Boston fell to Tampa Bay a final score of 9-7 to drop to 5-7 on the season.

Chris Sale, making his third start of the year for the Sox, surrendered six runs (five earned) on seven hits and two walks to go along with six strikeouts over four innings of work.

The Rays got to Sale right away in the bottom of the first, but the left-hander was not fully responsible for what happened. That being the case because with one out, starting shortstop Bobby Dalbec — a natural corner infielder — mishandled a groundball off the bat of Wander Franco, which allowed Franco to reach base safely.

Franco promptly stole second base off Reese McGuire before Isaac Paredes drew a four-pitch walk off Sale to put runners at first and second. Moments later, Randy Arozarena made the Red Sox pay by clubbing a three-run opposite field home run to give the Rays an early 3-0 lead.

The Red Sox lineup, meanwhile, could do nothing against Rays starter Taj Bradley early on. Bradley, making his major-league debut for Tampa Bay took a no-hit bid into the fourth inning before giving up a leadoff double to Alex Verdugo. Following a Rafael Devers strikeout, Justin Turner pushed across Boston’s first run of the night by plating Verdugo from second on a one-out RBI single to left field.

Sale appeared to have settled in to that point by putting up a pair of zeroes in the second and third, but the lefty ran into more trouble in the latter half of the fourth. There, a Taylor Walls leadoff double and back-to-back singles from Christian Bethancourt and Vidal Brujan filled the bases with no outs. Yandy Diaz drove in Walls with a sacrifice fly before Franco ripped a two-run double into the gap in left-center to make it a 6-1 contest in favor of Tampa Bay.

The fourth inning would prove to be Sale’s last. The 34-year-old finished with 81 pitches (55 stirkes), but he only managed to induce eight swings-and-misses. He was ultimately hit with the losing decision an now owns an ERA of 11.25 through three starts.

With Sale’s day done, the Red Sox went back to chipping away at the deficit in the top of the fifth. Enrique Hernandez broke out of a lengthy 0-for-28 skid by driving in McGuire on a two-out RBI double. Verdugo followed with a run-scoring hit of his own to trim the Rays’ lead down to three runs at 6-3.

Tampa Bay did not back down, however. In the bottom of the fifth, Zack Kelly issued a leadoff walk to Harold Ramirez and surrendered back-to-back RBI hits to Bethancourt (double) and Brujan (single) before coming out of the game with an elbow injury. Boston got one of those runs back in the sixth when Turner scored from third on a Raimel Tapia groundout.

Still trailing by four after Ryan Brasier worked his way around a leadoff single in the bottom half of the sixth, the Red Sox added some intrigue to this one in the seventh. After McGuire singled and Hernandez doubled to put runners at second and third with two outs, the Rays replaced Ryan Thompson with Colin Poche to set up a lefty-on-lefty matchup against Devers.

After fouling off the first pitch he saw, Devers won the battle by crushing a 366-foot three-run blast down the left field line for his first home run of the season. Devers’ homer, which left his bat at 100.8 mph, suddenly brought the Sox back to within one run of the Rays at 8-7.

Unfortunately, that is where the scoring would stop for Boston. After John Schreiber tossed a scoreless seventh inning, Justin Adam made quick work of the three Red Sox hitters he faced in the top half of the eighth before Chris Martin allowed a very important insurance run to score in the bottom half on a sacrifice fly from Arozarena.

Down by two runs heading into the ninth, McGuire reached base yet again with a leadoff single off Pete Fairbanks. Connor Wong, who pinch-ran for McGuire, moved up to second on a Yu Chang sacrifice bunt but did not advance any further as Hernandez flew out and Verdugo grounded out to end it.

Wednesday’s 9-7 loss, which took two hours and 44 minutes to complete, marks the Red Sox’ 12th straight defeat at Tropicana Field. The Rays, on the other hand, are now the first team to start a season 12-0 since the 1987 Brewers.

Next up: Kluber vs. Springs

The Red Sox will look to avoid a sweep while simultaneously handing the Rays their first loss of the year in the finale of this four-game set on Thursday afternoon. Right-hander Corey Kluber is slated to start for Boston while left-hander Jeffrey Springs is expected to do the same for Tampa Bay.

First pitch from Tropicana Field is scheduled for 1:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN and MLB Network.

(Picture of Chris Sale: Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

Masataka Yoshida scratched from Red Sox lineup due to right hamstring tightness

Red Sox outfielder Masataka Yoshida has been scratched from Wednesday’s starting lineup against the Rays due to right hamstring tightness, manager Alex Cora told reporters (including Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe) at Tropicana Field.

Yoshida was originally starting in left field and batting cleanup for Boston in the second game of this four-game series in St. Petersburg. Now that he has been taken out of the lineup on account of a tight hamstring, Raimel Tapia will move from center to left field while Enrique Hernandez will shift from shortstop to center field and play there for the first time this season.

Bobby Dalbec was not in the original lineup. He will now start at short in Hernandez’s place and bat sixth as the Red Sox go up against Rays rookie right-hander Taj Bradley, who will be making his major-league debut. First pitch is scheduled for 6:40 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

“We had to make some arrangements,” Cora said, per MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo.

According to Cora, the Red Sox do not believe Yoshida’s hamstring tightness is a serious issue. The 29-year-old is unlikely to play on Thursday as well, but the hope is he will be able to return to the lineup for Friday’s series opener against the Angels at Fenway Park.

“He showed up here, tried to run,” said Cora. “Obviously, if it’s later in the season, we’d push him to do it and he’d be OK to do it, but it doesn’t make sense to play him tonight.”

Yoshida, who signed a five-year, $90 million contract with Boston in December after spending the first seven years of his professional career in Japan, has started 10 of the Red Sox’ first 11 games this season. The left-handed hitter is currently batting .216/.356/.324 with one double, one home run, six RBIs, eight runs scored, two stolen bases, seven walks, and three strikeouts in 45 plate appearances.

(Picture of Masataka Yoshida: Mike Carlson/Getty Images)

Red Sox release former top relief prospect Durbin Feltman

The Red Sox have released minor-league reliever Durbin Feltman from their Triple-A roster, the WooSox announced on Tuesday. The Boston Herald’s Mac Cerullo was the first to report the news.

Feltman, who turns 26 next week, was originally selected by the Red Sox in the third round (100th overall pick) of the 2018 amateur draft out of TCU. After dominating in his final season with the Horned Frogs, the right-hander signed with Boston for $559,600 and entered the professional ranks with plenty of hype surrounding him.

At the time Feltman was drafted, the Red Sox were experiencing some issues with their bullpen. As such, some believed that Feltman — then just 21 years old — could rise quickly through the minors and contribute at the big-league level by the end of the 2018 season.

It did not pan out that way for Feltman, though, as the righty struggled to find success on a consistent basis in the minor-leagues and was never able to reach the majors while with the Red Sox.

After being named the organization’s Minor League Relief Pitcher of the Year in 2021, Feltman spent the entirety of the 2022 campaign with the WooSox. There, he posted a 7.63 ERA and 5.97 FIP with 56 strikeouts to 24 walks over 40 outings (48 1/3 innings). He returned to Worcester for the start of the 2023 season and had appeared in two games before being released on Tuesday.

The decision to cut Feltman came at a time when the WooSox were facing a roster crunch. With two players (reliever Taylor Broadway and outfielder Wilyer Abreu) coming off the injured list and starter Kutter Crawford being optioned from Boston, Worcester needed to create an opening and did so by releasing Feltman.

“It’s the crappy part of the business of the game, especially early in the season,” WooSox manager Chad Tracy told MassLive.com’s Katie Morrison-O’Day at Polar Park on Tuesday. “But you come out of spring and the big-league club’s still trying to get healthy and you see on the horizon a lot of guys that are going to get healthy quick.

“I know he went through some tough times last year,” Tracy said of Feltman. “I told him today he kept his head up. He always was here, always working, always trying to get better. We love him, we wish him well and hope he lands on his feet. I think he will.”

Feltman peaked as the No. 9 prospect in Boston’s farm system in April 2019, according to SoxProspects.com’s rankings history. His decline since then can partly be attributed to the velocity of his fastball, which topped out at 99 mph in college but sat between just 90-92 mph last year.

With that, a change of scenery could do Feltman good. The native Texan becomes the latest member of the Red Sox’ 2018 draft class to leave the organization in some capacity. Most notably, fifth-rounder Thaddeus Ward was taken by the Nationals in last December’s Rule 5 Draft. Additionally, fourth-rounder Kole Cottam was granted his release last month so that he could sign with the Frederick Baseball Club of the independent Atlantic League.

(Picture of Durbin Feltman: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Brayan Bello impresses in rehab start with Triple-A Worcester, could be activated from injured list this weekend

Red Sox starter Brayan Bello pitched well in his rehab outing for Triple-A Worcester on Tuesday night.

After tossing five innings in an extended spring training game down in Fort Myers last Wednesday, Bello faced more advanced competition in the Columbus Clippers on a warm evening at Polar Park.

Going six innings this time around, Bello allowed just one earned run on four hits, zero walks, and one hit batsman to go along with four strikeouts. That lone blemish came in the top of the fourth, when the right-hander served up a one-out solo shot to Clippers cleanup hitter Zack Collins.

Bello did not falter after giving up the home run, though. The 23-year-old instead retired seven of the last nine batters he faced and wrapped up his night by getting Collins to ground into an inning-ending, 4-6-3 double play in the sixth.

“I felt good,” Bello told reporters (including MassLive.com’s Katie Morrison-O’Day) through translator Jesus Quinonez of Telemundo. ““I was just trying to throw all the pitches in the strike zone, trying to throw quality pitches and everything went well.”

Finishing with a final pitch count of 81 (50 strikes), Bello induced nine swing-and-misses while mixing in a 94-97 mph sinker, an 86-89 mph changeup, an 82-86 mph slider, and an 81-83 mph curveball, per Baseball Savant. That curveball is a new pitch the righty has recently implemented into his arsenal.

“I felt my velo was good and I was also throwing a pitch that I’ve been practicing in the last couple days, a curve,” said Bello. “I feel good. My body feels good. I’m just trying to do the same work and try to rehabilitate well and try to put in the work so this doesn’t happen again.”

When mentioning “this,” Bello is presumably referring to the right forearm tightness that shut him down during the early stages of spring training and resulted in him starting the season on the 15-day injured list. Now that he is healthy, the Dominican-born hurler appears ready to make his return to the Red Sox’ rotation.

On that front, Bello said that while the decision will ultimately be made by the Sox, he believes he has made his last rehab start. As such, he will likely make his 2023 debut in this weekend’s series against the Angels at Fenway Park. If Boston were to give Bello an additional day of rest, he would be lined up to start opposite Shohei Ohtani for the first time on Marathon Monday.

Bello is not the only injured Red Sox starter who will be rehabbing with the WooSox this week. Left-hander James Paxton, who is working his way back from a right hamstring strain, will get the ball for Worcester on Friday.

(Picture of Brayan Bello: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Garrett Whitlock gives up 3 home runs in season debut as Red Sox drop second straight to Rays, 7-2

The Red Sox dropped their second straight to the unbeaten Rays on Tuesday night. Boston fell to Tampa Bay by a final score of 7-2 at Tropicana Field to drop back below .500 at 5-6 on the season.

Garrett Whitlock made his first start of the year for the Sox after being activated from the injured list earlier in the afternoon. In his 2023 debut, the right-hander surrendered five earned runs on eight hits and zero walks to go along with five strikeouts over five innings of work.

The Rays got to Whitlock right away in the bottom of the first. Yandy Diaz led off with a single and scored on a two-out RBI double off the bat of Wander Franco that fell in and out of the glove of a diving Rob Refsnyder in center field. An inning later, Josh Lowe doubled Tampa Bay’s lead by singling with two outs, stealing second base, and scoring from second on a Vidal Brujan RBI single.

Whitlock then began to fall victim to the long ball. After getting through a scoreless third inning, the righty gave up his first of three home runs to Isaac Paredes with two outs in the fourth. In the fifth, Diaz and Brandon Lowe went back-to-back on a pair of two-out solo shots to put the Rays up, 5-0.

Though Whitlock ended things in the fifth, the damage had already been done. The 27-year-old hurler finished with 85 pitches (62 strikes) and induced 11 swings-and-misses. He averaged 93.5 mph and topped out at 95.4 mph with his sinker, a pitch he threw a game-high 49 times.

With Whitlock’s day done, a hapless Red Sox lineup finally broke through against Rays ace Shane McClanahan in the top of the sixth. There, Devers led off with a walk and went from first to third on a Justin Turner single. Tampa Bay then pulled McClanahan in favor of fellow lefty Garrett Cleavinger, who got Masataka Yoshida to ground into a 4-6-3 double play that Devers was able to score on.

After Richard Bleier put up a zero in the bottom of the sixth, though, the Rays responded in the seventh. Kaleb Ort served up a leadoff homer to Josh Lowe. Four batters later, Diaz scored from third on a Randy Arozarena grounder that was mishandled by first baseman Triston Casas, who was charged with a fielding error as Tampa Bay extended its lead to six runs at 7-1.

Following a 1-2-3 eighth inning from Ryan Brasier, the Red Sox strung together a rally of sorts in the ninth. Alex Verdugo and the pinch-hitting Raimel Tapia both singled off Rays reliever Calvin Faucher before Reese McGuire plated Verdugo from second on a base hit of his own. Enrique Hernandez then struck out on six pitches to end it, meaning he is now 0 for his last 27 at the plate.

All told, Boston mustered just six hits in another low-scoring loss. Three of those six hits came in the ninth inning. Two of them belonged to Reese McGuire, who came off the bench as a pinch-hitter in the eighth inning.

With the win, the Rays move to a perfect 11-0 to start the season, which is something that has not been done since 1987 when the Brewers started 13-0. Also of note, the Red Sox have now lost 11 straight games at Tropicana Field.

Wong throws out two base stealers

Coming into play on Tuesday, the Red Sox had allowed 15 consecutive successful stolen base attempts to start the season. Josh Lowe made that 16 by swiping second base in the second inning. In that same inning, though, Boston ended that trend when Connor Wong threw out Vidal Brujan at second for the third and final out.

An inning later, Wong gunned down Randy Arozarena to end the third (the call on the field was upheld after a review). As such, the Red Sox are now 2-for-18 when it comes to throwing out potential base stealers in 2023.

Next up: Sale vs. Bradley

The Red Sox will look to get back on track by sending left-hander Chris Sale to the mound on Wednesday night. The Rays will counter with right-hander Taj Bradley, who will be starting — and making his big-league debut — in place of the injured Zach Eflin. Bradley, 22, is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 3 prospect in Tampa Bay’s farm system.

First pitch from Tropicana Field is scheduled for 6:40 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Garrett Whitlock: Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

Red Sox option Kutter Crawford to Triple-A Worcester to make room on roster for Garrett Whitlock

The Red Sox optioned right-hander Kutter Crawford to Triple-A Worcester following Monday night’s 1-0 loss to the Rays, according to MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo.

By optioning Crawford, the Red Sox have created an open roster spot for fellow righty Garrett Whitlock, who will come off the injured list and make his season debut against the undefeated Rays at Tropicana Field on Tuesday night.

Whitlock will start opposite All-Star lefty Shane McClanahan in the second game of this four-game series (first pitch is scheduled for 6:40 p.m. ET). The 26-year-old began the season on the injured list after getting a late start in spring training as a result of undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his right hip last September.

In two rehab starts with Worcester (on March 31) and Double-A Portland (on April 6), Whitlock allowed two earned runs on seven hits, two walks, and 14 strikeouts over 10 innings of work. He threw 75 pitches (50 strikes) in his first outing and 81 pitches (56 strikes) in his last time out.

Crawford, meanwhile, made Boston’s Opening Day rotation out of spring training to help fill the gaps left behind by Whitlock and Brayan Bello. In two starts already, the 27-year-old has posted an ERA of 8.00 (eight earned runs in nine innings) to go along with 12 strikeouts to just two walks.

Though he got roughed up by the Pirates in his 2023 debut last Monday, Crawford bounced back against the Tigers this past Sunday by scattering five hits and recording six strikeouts across five one-run innings to lead Boston to a 4-1 win over Detroit.

As noted by Cotillo, the Red Sox could have optioned or designated a reliever in order to keep Crawford up with the big-league club by moving him to the bullpen. It instead appears as though Boston would prefer that Crawford continues to work as a starter in Worcester so that he remains stretched out in the event that he is needed at some point down the line.

With Whitlock’s activation, the Red Sox have just two starters remaining on the 15-day injured list in righty Brayan Bello (right elbow inflammation) and lefty James Paxton (right hamstring strain). Bello is slated to begin a rehab assignment and start for the WooSox in their series opener against the Columbus Clippers at Polar Park on Monday night. Paxton, who started for the WooSox in Buffalo over the weekend, is not far behind, either.

(Picture of Kutter Crawford: Paul Rutherford/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Adam Duvall will not require surgery on fractured left wrist, Alex Cora says

Red Sox outfielder Adam Duvall will not require surgery on his fractured left wrist, manager Alex Cora told reporters (including MLB.com’s Ian Browne) following Monday’s 1-0 loss to the Rays at Tropicana Field.

“Just a fracture, that’s it,” Cora said. “No surgery. Just put a cast on it and let it heal, and he’ll be back whenever he’s ready.”

Duvall was diagnosed with a distal radius fracture in his left wrist one day after injuring said wrist in the ninth inning of Sunday’s 4-1 win over the Tigers in Detroit. To lead off the bottom half of the frame, Red Sox closer Kenley Jansen got Spencer Torkelson to lift a 244-foot flyball to shallow center field. Duvall ran in and attempted to make a sliding catch to rob Torkelson of a base hit, but he instead landed awkwardly on his wrist and was immediately taken out of the game as a result.

After having X-rays taken at Comerica Park, Duvall flew back to Boston and was evaluated by a hand specialist on Monday. The Red Sox then received word that the 34-year-old would not need to go under the knife.

According to Browne, Duvall could be back in action within the next six to eight weeks since he avoided surgery. Had a surgical procedure been required, the former All-Star and Gold Glove Award winner could have been sidelined for eight to 10 weeks, if not longer.

“It’s great,” said Cora. “We don’t want to go that [surgery] route, of course. I’m glad that this is the worst news for him. He’s going to be back at some point. We just have to be patient, and whenever he’s ready, he’s ready.”

This is the second time within the last year that Duvall has seriously injured his left wrist. While with the Braves last July, he jammed it against the outfield wall at Truist Park and ultimately underwent season-ending surgery to repair a torn tendon sheath. Fortunately, this latest injury happened on the other side of the same wrist and is unrelated to last year’s tear.

“It’s on the other side [of the wrist],” Cora said earlier Monday afternoon. “For everything I hear with the procedure he had last year, nothing [related] happened.”

Back in January, Duvall signed a one-year, $7 million deal with the Red Sox to serve as the club’s everyday center fielder. The right-handed hitting slugger quickly made his impact felt by batting 455/.514/1.030 with five doubles, one triple, four home runs, 14 RBIs, 11 runs scored, three walks, and five strikeouts in his first eight games (37 plate appearances) with Boston. He earned American League Player of the Week honors for his efforts last Monday.

“It’s interesting because a few weeks ago, not too many people thought it was going to be a big blow. But obviously, the guy is a good player,” said Cora. “We knew when we signed him that he was going to be a good defender and that he was going to put a good at-bat. He worked so hard on a few things with [hitting coach Pete Fatse] to drive the ball to left field.

It’s a big blow but at the same time, somebody has to step up. It’s still early in the season,” he added. “We’ve got time to do our thing, keep playing good baseball like we did this past weekend. Somebody else has to step up. That’s the nature of the business.”

Because Duvall will be out of commission for a while, the Red Sox will need to temporarily fill the void he left behind in center field. To that effect, Cora indicated that Enrique Hernandez, Rob Refsnyder, and Raimel Tapia will all see more playing time in center moving forward.

Since Hernandez is slated to return to center, Christian Arroyo, Yu Chang, and Bobby Dalbec will all get more reps at shortstop. Dalbec, who was recalled from Triple-A Worcester on Monday to take Duvall’s spot on the roster, could also see some playing time in the outfield corners alongside Masataka Yoshida and Alex Verdugo.

All things considered, the Red Sox may have the depth to cover for him, but they will nonetheless be tested offensively while Duvall is out of the lineup. They found out that much on Monday night, as they were held to just three hits in a series-opening shutout loss to the unbeaten Rays.

(Picture of Adam Duvall: Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

Despite strong start from Nick Pivetta, Red Sox squander late scoring opportunity and fall to unbeaten Rays, 1-0

The Red Sox battled in an effort to hand the Rays their first loss of the season on Monday night, but ultimately came up short. Boston fell to Tampa Bay by a final score of 1-0 in the opener of this four-game series at Tropicana Field.

Nick Pivetta put forth a valiant effort in his second start of the season for the Sox. The right-hander scattered just three hits and two walks to go along with six strikeouts over five scoreless innings of work.

The Rays threatened by putting one runner in scoring position in each of the first three innings, but Pivetta did not falter. With one out and runners at first and second the bottom of the third, center fielder Rob Refsnyder robbed Randy Arozarena of extra bases by making a fantastic sliding grab on the warning track to snag a 99.1 mph line drive.

Pivetta got through the rest of the third unscathed by getting Wander Franco to ground out. He then proceeded to retire six of the last seven batters he faced from the middle of the fourth through the end of the fifth. The 30-year-old hurler finished with 83 pitches (53 strikes) and induced 14 swings-and-misses while lowering his ERA on the season to 0.90.

In relief of Pivetta, Josh Winckowski got the first call out of the Red Sox bullpen from manager Alex Cora. Winckowski made quick work of the Rays’ 3-4-5 hitters in the sixth and put up another zero in the seventh.

Heading into the eighth still deadlocked in a 0-0 tie, the Red Sox put together their best scoring opportunity of the night. Having already been held in check by Jalen Beeks, Josh Fleming, and Garrett Cleavinger, Alex Verdugo led off the inning by drawing a five-pitch walk off Rays lefty Colin Poche. A pinch-hit single from Bobby Dalbec and two-out walk from Enrique Hernandez loaded the bases for Rafael Devers.

Devers, in turn, fouled off two of the first three pitches he saw before Poche froze him on an 0-2, 93 mph four-seamer down and away to end the inning and extinguish the threat.

Chris Martin, who had yet to give up a run through his first five appearances of the season, was responsible for the latter half of the eighth. He got the first out of the inning before serving up a go-ahead solo home run to Brandon Lowe on a 3-2, 96 mph heater at the top of the zone.

Lowe’s homer, which came on the ninth pitch of the at-bat, had an exit velocity of 107.9 mph and travelled 404 feet into the right field seats. It also put Tampa Bay up, 1-0, going into the ninth. Pete Fairbanks, the first righty the Rays used all night, struck out Justin Turner before getting both Masataka Yoshida and the pinch-hitting Raimel Tapia to ground out to end it.

All told, the Red Sox went just 0-for-2 with runners in scoring position and left five runners on base as a team in Monday’s loss. At two hours and six minutes, the game was Boston’s fastest of the season by 26 minutes

With the loss, Boston falls back to .500 at 5-5. Tampa Bay, meanwhile, remains unbeaten and improves to 10-0 to start the year, becoming the first team to accomplish that feat since the 1987 Brewers.

Next up: Whitlock’s 2023 debut on tap

The Red Sox will look to bounce back against the Rays on Tuesday night. Right-hander Garrett Whitlock will come off the injured list and make his season debut for Boston. Tampa Bay will counter with left-hander Shane McClanahan.

In order to activate Whitlock, the Red Sox will need to send someone down to make room on the 26-man roster.

First pitch from Tropicana Field is scheduled for 6:40 p.m. eastern time on NESN+.

(Picture of Nick Pivetta: Mike Carlson/Getty Images)

Red Sox recall Bobby Dalbec from Triple-A Worcester

The Red Sox have officially recalled infielder Bobby Dalbec from Triple-A Worcester, the club announced prior to Monday’s series opener against the Rays at Tropicana Field.

Dalbec will take the roster spot of outfielder Adam Duvall, who was placed on the 10-day injured list with a distal radius fracture in his left wrist. The 27-year-old flew from Buffalo to St. Petersburg to to join the Red Sox after Duvall suffered the injury in the ninth inning of Sunday’s 4-1 win over the Tigers in Detroit.

Dalbec was optioned to Worcester before the start of the season after failing to make Boston’s Opening Day roster out of spring training. In his first seven games with the WooSox, though, the right-handed hitter went 6-for-23 (.261) with one double, one triple, one home run, five RBIs, six runs scored, four walks, and 10 strikeouts. He put up those numbers while making three starts at first base, one start at third base, and two starts at shortstop.

Because they are slated to face a plethora of left-handed starters in their next two series against the Rays and Angels, the Red Sox elected to call up Dalbec as opposed to the left-handed hitting Jarren Duran even though Duran would have filled a need in the outfield.

“He’s a right-handed hitter and we can use him at first base, at third base,” manager Alex Cora said of Dalbec. “We’re here in Tampa with this turf, you know, so maybe we can give Raffy (Devers) a day (off) at third base and just use (Dalbec) that way.”

Cora added that Dalbec will get some reps at shortstop alongside Christian Arroyo and Yu Chang since Enrique Hernandez will start playing more center field in Duvall’s absence. The 6-foot-4, 227-pounder could also see some time in the outfield, something he has never done before in his professional career.

“I mean, just come here and be ready,” Cora said in regards to the message he sent to Dalbec. “There’s a few things that we’re doing that we want to continue doing. It starts in the clubhouse and preparation in the dugout and all that and be ready. He’s always ready.

“He was swinging the bat well the last few days down there (in Worcester),” added Cora. “Hopefully whenever he gets a chance, he can just keep doing the things he was doing.”

(Picture of Bobby Dalbec: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Adam Duvall breaks left wrist after trying to make sliding catch on Sunday

Red Sox outfielder Adam Duvall has been diagnosed with a distal radius fracture in his left wrist, manager Alex Cora told reporters (including MLB.com’s Ian Browne) prior to Monday’s series opener against the Rays at Tropicana Field.

Duvall injured his left wrist in the ninth inning of Sunday’s 4-1 win over the Tigers in Detroit. To lead off the bottom half of the frame, Red Sox closer Kenley Jansen got Spencer Torkelson to lift a 244-foot flyball to shallow center field. Duvall ran in and attempted to make a sliding catch to rob Torkelson of a base hit, but he instead landed awkwardly on his left wrist and was immediately taken out of the game as a result.

After having X-rays taken at Comerica Park, Duvall did not travel with the rest of the team to St. Petersburg and instead headed back to Boston to undergo further testing. The Red Sox will now place Duvall on the injured list and recall infielder Bobby Dalbec from Triple-A Worcester to take his place on the roster.

Duvall, 34, signed a one-year, $7 million deal with the Red Sox in January to serve as the club’s everyday center fielder. The right-handed hitting slugger quickly made his impact felt by slashing a stout .455/.514/1.030 with five doubles, one triple, four home runs, 14 RBIs, 11 runs scored, three walks, and five strikeouts in his first eight games (37 plate appearances) with Boston. He was named American League Player of the Week last Monday.

Though his wrist is broken, it is not yet clear if Duvall will require surgery. The Red Sox, as noted by Browne, will continue to gather more information before coming to a decision on that front. Regardless of that outcome, though, Duvall is still expected to be sidelined for the next several weeks, if not months.

This is the second time within the last year that Duvall has seriously injured his left wrist. While with the Braves last July, he jammed it against the outfield wall at Truist Park and ultimately underwent season-ending surgery to repair a torn tendon sheath. According to Cora, this most-recent injury happened on the opposite side of Duvall’s left wrist and is unrelated to last year’s tear.

With Duvall out of commission for the foreseeable future, Cora said Enrique Hernandez, Raimel Tapia, and Rob Refsnyder will get more time in center field in his absence. Refsnyder is batting fifth and starting in center for Boston on Monday night.

Since Hernandez is slated to play more center field, Dalbec, Christian Arroyo, and Yu Chang will see more playing time at shortstop moving forward. Dalbec will also get some reps in the outfield alongside Masataka Yoshida and Alex Verdugo in the corners.

Duvall, meanwhile, becomes the eighth member of the Red Sox’ 40-man roster to be placed on the injured list so far this season, joining the likes of starters Brayan Bello, James Paxton, and Garrett Whitlock, relievers Wyatt Mills and Joely Rodriguez, and infielders Adalberto Mondesi and Trevor Story.

“At one point, we hope, he comes back, just like all of the guys who are on the IL,” Cora said, via MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo. “Hopefully, they can contribute throughout the season and help us accomplish what we set out to accomplish.”

(Picture of Adam Duvall: Duane Burleson/Getty Images)