The Boston Red Sox have begun the season with a 1-1 record after defeating the Seattle Mariners 6-4 on Thursday and then falling to them 1-0 on Friday.
In the second matchup, Boston was without third baseman Rafael Devers due to shoulder soreness, and before Saturday’s game, the team announced Devers wouldn’t play again.
The Red Sox will go into the game with the following lineup with Kutter Crawford on the bump:
- LF Jarren Duran
- DH Masataka Yoshida
- SS Trevor Story
- 1B Triston Casas
- RF Wilyer Abreu
- CF Ceddanne Rafaela
- 2B Enmanuel Valdez
- 3B Pablo Reyes
- C Connor Wong
Abreu and Reyes are making their first starts of the season for the club.
In 2023, Abreu hit .316 with two home runs, 14 RBIs and three stolen bases in 28 games while Reyes hit .250 with two home runs, 20 RBIs and seven stolen bases in 64 games. The latter has appeared in both games this season as a replacement, recording one hit and two strikeouts in four plate appearances.
Without Devers, the Red Sox are lacking offensive firepower. Casas and Story will need to pick up the slack as the team’s stars, and having some of the less experienced players like Yoshida and Rafaela step up would be beneficial as well.
That’s especially the case if Boston gets another strong performance from the starter. They can’t keep giving those games away or the season will get away from them quickly.
