The Boston Red Sox front office dreamed that this would be the year Triston Casas would fully blossom, connecting 30 home runs and exploiting the dimensions of Fenway Park to the fullest in a way that other left-handed hitters have achieved. However, Casas is out for the rest of the season after suffering a ruptured left patellar tendon, and now manager Alex Cora must find a replacement.
But this is not a situation in which the Red Sox have to look for help outside the organization. Evaluators from other teams analyze the Major League roster and Boston’s organizational depth and believe that the Red Sox are in a solid position, with many options.
Based on feedback from management executives, scouts, and Major League Baseball personnel, these are the best options for the Red Sox’s first base, in order of collective preference of those we spoke with.
1. Rafael Devers
Starting Tuesday afternoon, Cora said he had not asked Devers about a move to first base, and some rival evaluators believe that makes sense because of political complications. After Devers was surprised by the late-winter signing of Alex Bregman and initially rejected the idea of moving from third base, he eventually accepted a move to designated hitter.
He already made a big change, so it would be difficult to ask him to make another one in the season. Leave him at the designated hitter position and let him get comfortable there.
An evaluator
He has fully committed to the designated hitter.
Another evaluator
But that doesn’t stop Devers from knocking on Cora’s door and telling his manager that he’d like to change positions, which could be the best-case scenario for the Red Sox. And in doing this, Devers could be accepting the inevitable, because eventually, he’ll probably move to first base. Devers is in the third year of a 10-year, $313.5 million contract that extends through 2033.
Are you ever going to put him back at third base after taking him out of that position? And he’s too young [28] to settle into a full-time designated hitter role. It’s better for him if you put him in the field.
A rival executive
It doesn’t have to happen all at once. If Devers volunteers, he could start taking ground balls for a week or two and then gradually play at first base, returning to the form needed to play in the field regularly.
There would be natural concerns about his defense at a new position, but a couple of evaluators noted that Devers’ main defensive problem at third base was throwing, something he would do much less at first base. At a minimum, Devers would be fully accustomed to the speed of the game for a corner infielder.
I don’t think he was bad there. It’s not like he was a total zero at third base. Sometimes he was okay.
An evaluator
If Devers were to play first base, that would open up the designated hitter spot for Cora to use as a resting place for position players suffering from fatigue or nagging injuries and create an opening for Roman Anthony or Marcelo Mayer to be promoted.
2. Marcelo Mayer
His future with the Red Sox is as an intermediate infielder, but there are precedents in Boston’s history of using a star prospect as a temporary solution. In 2013, the Red Sox needed a third baseman and promoted shortstop Xander Bogaerts to play that position, and they won the World Series. For Mayer to move from shortstop to first base, it would be a more drastic change, but a staff member believes he could do it with relative ease.
He’s athletic enough to do it, and he’d hold down the position offensively. You’d have some growing pains defensively, but he’s played on the right side of the infield before [at second base] and he’d hit enough to make it work.
A staff member
That is the question: they need offense from that position. If they weren’t trying to win, you wouldn’t think about it. But they are trying to win and it’s something to consider.
A staff member
Mayer is currently playing for Triple-A Worcester, although Red Sox fans are eager to see him with the Major League team.
It would work for [Mayer] because it would take him to the Major Leagues immediately.
A staff member
3. Give Romy Gonzalez and Abraham Toro a chance to share the work at first base
Gonzalez and Toro have been the two players who have received repetitions at first base since Casas went down on Friday night, with Gonzalez having the bulk of those, although he exited Wednesday night’s victory and is questionable after colliding with Texas Rangers first baseman Josh Smith while trying to beat out an infield hit.
Gonzalez is a right-handed hitter who has been a good player for the Red Sox the last two seasons and is batting .308 in 58 plate appearances this season. The utility player had only played 20 games at first base at the major league level before this season, so the best Cora could probably hope for would be league-average defense. Gonzalez doesn’t hit for much power, but he will get on base regularly, if he can stay healthy. Toro is a switch-hitter who has played 368 games with five different teams, generating a career adjusted OPS+ of 80.
However, it seems more likely that the Red Sox will seek more impact in what is a position of power.
4. Move Kristian Campbell from second base to first, with Marcelo Mayer having the opportunity to win the second base position
Campbell is seen by a talent scout as “primarily an offensive player”.
He’s going to bat. He’s not particularly good at any position defensively. He’s moved around a lot in his career, and he’d be okay at first base.
A scout
Campbell has played a lot in the infield in his time in baseball, and at 6 feet 3 inches and 200 pounds, he would present a good target for other infielders at first base. And Mayer had a brief audition at second base in spring training.
However, an evaluator said that Campbell has already been learning a new position this season and asking him to learn another might be too much, and the Red Sox might be better off simply leaving him at second base and allowing him to get comfortable at the plate.
5. Move Trevor Story to first base and promote Mayer to play shortstop
This was brought up by ESPN analyst Eduardo Perez on the “Baseball Tonight” podcast. But as difficult as it was to ask Devers to move from third base, it could be even more complicated to get Story to accept the idea of moving to first. He is under contract for two more seasons after this year at $25 million annually, and has been a shortstop for almost his entire 10-year career.
Also: If the Red Sox are going to make a significant change, they will do so to improve their offense, and Story has not been a great run producer. In 105 games over the last three seasons, he is batting .233/.287/.354.
6. Move one of the outfielders to first base, either Wilyer Abreu or the rising star prospect Roman Anthony
Some rival evaluators believe this is the worst possible option because you would be asking two high-level outfielders to learn to play in the infield on the fly.
What a waste that would be. Anthony is going to be a star, a guy who hits .280 with 28-30 homers, and can really play the outfield. A total waste. They have enough infield guys to move someone else there.
A scout
7. Vaughn Grissom
The infielder acquired in the Chris Sale trade to the Atlanta Braves, Grissom, was injured for a large part of last year, batting .191 in 31 games for the Red Sox. In Triple-A this season, he is batting a respectable .260/.343/.398. But two evaluators from other teams believe that there wouldn’t be much difference between the Gonzalez/Toro platoon and what Grissom could provide offensively.
They would probably stick with the guys already in the Major Leagues.
A staff member
