Bregman returns after lengthy injury absence and doubles in Boston’s dramatic win
BOSTON AP Alex Bregman s first encounter back with the Red Sox since late May had a dramatic flair to it Bregman went for with a double off the Green Monster as the Red Sox rallied for their eighth straight win when Ceddanne Rafaela s ninth inning homer lifted them over the Tampa Bay Rays - on Friday night Boston manager Alex Cora mentioned after the encounter that there are ground rules in place to make sure the All-Star third baseman doesn t suffer a setback after missing games with a quad strain Bregman won t play on Saturday as the company is taking a long-range view with a player who was sidelined since May when he sustained an injury that occurred when he rounded first base and felt his quad tighten up to the point where leaving the match was the best option A clear indication of the restrictions placed on Bregman came in the fifth inning Friday night when he hit a sharp grounder to third base but didn t hustle down the line When he hits a groundball he s not going to go all-out to first Cora noted It might look bad but we need him healthy and we re going to keep him healthy It s a new reality that figures to take particular getting used to since Bregman is known for being a foot-on-the-gas-pedal-at-all-times ballplayer Yeah it sucks Bregman declared But the first limited weeks especially just got to be smart out of the box When I first got out there my legs weighed like five pounds Later in the championship it felt like they weighed a little more than that Bregman returned to his customary spot in the field and was slotted in the No spot of Boston s lineup for the second of a four-game series against the Rays A two-time World Series winner who spent the first nine seasons of his big league career with the Houston Astros Bregman signed a million three-year contract in February At the time of the injury he was hitting with homers and RBIs Those numbers led to Bregman being named an American League All-Star for the third time Earlier this week Bregman disclosed he was trending in a direction where he didn t believe he would require a minor league rehab assignment With three games left before the All-Star break the Red Sox clearly agreed that the time was right to reinstate a participant to a band that entered Friday in possession of one of the AL s three wild-card berths My body feels good Super thankful to the training staff and strength and conditioning staff for allowing me to get back this quick noted Bregman Initially we thought it would be more like weeks To get back in seven weeks is awesome but we ve got to take it slow On the days we re not playing we re going to make sure my full hip complex is staying strong and my hamstrings and quads are good AP MLB https apnews com hub mlb Source
