One of the key pieces of the Mookie Betts trade may not be ready for Opening Day.
New Boston Red Sox outfielder Alex Verdugo has a stress fracture in his back and may not be ready for the start of the season, according to manager Ron Roenicke.
Roenicke says Verdugo has a stress fracture in his back. It’s progressing well, but not healed. They’ll be cautious. Seems unlikely he’ll be ready for the start of the season. Before you flip out, the Red Sox knew about it and feel he’ll be fine in time.
— Pete Abraham (@PeteAbe) February 15, 2020
As Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe notes, the Red Sox knew about the injury before finalizing the trade and clearly had no concerns about it going forward. It’s kind of funny considering how badly the trade got held up on account of another player’s medicals.
Verdugo hit .294 in 106 games for the Los Angeles Dodgers last season. The Red Sox clearly have big plans for their new addition, so they’ll want to be cautious with him and not push him harder than necessary.
