The Red Sox are a full week into camp, and rehabbing first baseman Triston Casasis already making his presence felt around the complex in Fort Myers.
Casas, who has been walking around with a red face mask in the warm Florida heat, is one of the forgotten players who is hoping to make a big impact at some point this coming season. Regardless of what he’s wearing on his face and why, the slugging first baseman is poised to get back to game action and help a team in 2026.
The 26-year-old is attempting to come back from a major injury, a torn left patellar tendon that he suffered last season trying to beat out a grounder.
Once Casas is able to come back, his position will be occupied by veteran first baseman Willson Contreras, who the Sox acquired from the Cardinals this winter. Despite all that, Casas is focused on getting back to game action.
“When I'm healthy, I fit on any team,” said Casas to MLB.com.
Casas’ comment of, “When I’m healthy, I fit on any team,”isn’t a throwaway line from a one-on-one interview. Is he talking about reclaiming his role on the Red Sox this season and beyond or acknowledging that once he’s healthy, he becomes movable in a trade?
Casas needs to get back to full speed before even thinking about joining the group in Grapefruit League game action or another team elsewhere in the big leagues.
“I don't see myself participating with the group, but I will be doing the same activities baseball-wise [as the rest of the team],” said Casas. “But as of right now, I haven't had the clearance to get out there and participate with the group, but I will take ground balls and continue to hit at my own pace, without the structure of being in a team workout.”
Health has been an issue for Casas the last two seasons. He suffered a rib cage injury that sidelined him for a chunk of the 2024 season and now is rehabbing back from the devastating knee injury from last season.
Even with him wanting to get back to regular action, he’s heeding the advice of doctors and is being patient as he rehabs.
“This was a major injury, and I'm a great player, and I don't find any reason to rush this process. And whenever I feel ready to come back is when I am going to contribute best.”
Once he does get back, Contreras will be the starting first baseman, but Casas could contribute there on days off and be the designated hitter. The Sox have a ton of options to DH, including Masataka Yoshida, who continues to not fit the Red Sox roster, but the club is stuck until they can trade him or just decide to release him.
He is aiming for May 1 to get back into game action and will theoretically start with Triple-A Worcester once he’s cleared to play.
“It's progressing well, and I'm meeting all the benchmarks that I am supposed to be on the right timetable currently,” said Casas. “So everything's pointing in the right direction, and I'm feeling great in my progression.”
Getty Images / Red Sox
If he’s healthy, Casas is an intriguing power option for the Sox, but the roster construction and his progress will be the deciding factors for when he plays again for the Red Sox.
The former first-round pick still thinks he has plenty to offer to the Red Sox once he’s fully healthy.
"This process has made me more confident than any hit could have, and I’m really proud of the training staff and the organization for how confident they've made me feel throughout this process,” Casas said. “They’ve been reassuring me and just making me feel comfortable and giving me all the tools that I need to be successful.”
Before Casas was injured, he was struggling at the plate for the Sox. He went 18-for-99 (.182) in 29 games; coupled with his knee injury, Boston went out and added a proven slugger to play first base in Contreras.
Back in January, Casas wasn’t surprised the Sox went out and added Contreras.
“The first baseman position for this team has lacked, over the last couple years, the production from that spot,” he said Jan. 10. “As of right now, the way that is, he’s a better player than me and has been for his entire career. To upgrade at a position that has been deficient for the last two years is exactly what the team needed. Hopefully, I can come back to the player I was a couple years ago and know what I can be and contribute to the team whatever fashion and at whatever position they see fit for me.”
This and yap. Triston Casas crushes this one 420 feet! pic.twitter.com/eisTbx2IIG— MLB (@MLB) August 25, 2024
Casas represents one internal option who could add power back into the lineup once he’s healthy — but where else is it going to come from?
Contreras was brought in from the Cardinals and is expected to hit cleanup every day for the Red Sox. He’s coming off a season in which he hit .257 with 20 home runs, 31 doubles, 80 RBIs and a .791 OPS across 135 games.
“I think similar to what Alex (Bregman) brought last year, offensively, very similar,” manager Alex Corasaid. “This guy is going to hit the ball hard. It’s a quality at-bat. It’s a righty that we needed. He had a good season last year.”
Behind him, Wilyer Abreu is likely to slot in somewhere in the heart of the order, though the rest of the lineup will take shape over the next few weeks as Grapefruit League games begin. Jarren Duran, Trevor Story, and Roman Anthonywill all factor into the middle-of-the-order mix.
The only sure thing right now is Contreras hitting fourth.
“I think the most important thing for me is just having good at-bats,” Contreras said. “It doesn’t matter where I hit in the lineup. We have a really good team from one through nine. Hitting in the cleanup spot is good. It’s fun. I’m looking forward to it.”
Boston is counting on Abreu to take another step. He hit 22 homers in 115 games last season, but the Red Sox want to see improvement against left-handed pitching. Coaches have already noted that Abreu looks more athletic and trimmed down this spring.
“Willy, healthy — I hate to say it — but that’s kind of like the game-changer,” Cora said. “When Willy was in the lineup healthy, that bottom third was a good one. Carlos was doing what he was doing, but Willy was hitting the ball out of the ballpark.”
Story led the club with 25 home runs last season, while Duran and Ceddanne Rafaela each hit 16, and Carlos Narváezadded 15.
Take a LOOK back at this Willson Contreras home run! 👀 pic.twitter.com/HuSUP7kf9j— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) June 14, 2025
“Offensively, they’re going to keep growing into the hitters we projected a few years ago,” Cora said. “Hopefully, we can hit the ball in the air and hit homers.”
The Red Sox believe the power is in-house. They’re banking on growth from Abreu, another healthy year from Story, continued development from Duran and Anthony — and eventually, a healthy return from Casas.
But Casas’ health is still a question mark. And until he proves he can stay on the field, the lineup feels like it’s walking a thin line with other players needing to stay healthy and taking the next steps. If he gets back to form, he changes the equation for the lineup, offering pop and an alternative to the DH spot versus the likes of Yoshida. If not, Boston will need more than optimism to find the power it’s currently missing.
