by Alex Bregman will be back on the diamond for the Red Sox against the Tampa Bay Rays Friday after a month-and-a-half away from game action.
Bregman, 31, was activated from Boston’s injured list before the second game of its series against Tampa Bay. As a corresponding move, infielder David Hamilton was optioned to Triple-A Worcester.
Bregman suffered a
right quad strain
after rounding first base on May 23 versus the Baltimore Orioles. The ailment kept him out of the lineup for 43 games.
The team and Bregman went back and forth on whether or not the player would be activated before the All-Star break (beginning July 14). Bregman maintained throughout his recovery that he was rehabbing well and was eager to resume play.
Initially, it didn’t sound like he would be able to play again before the break. However, something changed during Bregman’s recovery over the last couple of weeks. Both Bregman and Red Sox manager
Alex Cora
began floating the idea of the player suiting up during Boston’s homestand.
“Trending toward a return here pretty quickly,”
Bregman told reporters
on Monday. “Whether it’s the end of this week or first game after the break. One of those two. But hoping it will be the end of this week.”
To ease Bregman back into playing games, he will suit up in two out of three games over Boston’s next three series, per Cora (via
The Boston Globe
‘s Tim Healey
).
Despite missing a large chunk of time, Bregman was still named a 2025 MLB All-Star earlier this week. He played in 51 games prior to the injury and batted .299 with a .938 OPS and 11 home runs. Bregman was arguably the Red Sox’ best hitter alongside former teammate Rafael Devers before landing on the IL.
Even though Devers has been a San Francisco Giant for nearly one month and Bregman hasn’t played in a game since May, Boston is rolling. The Red Sox are coming off one of their best wins of the season, a 4-3 comeback victory against the Rays to extend their winning streak to seven.
With Bregman’s activation, Boston inserts a star slugger back into its lineup with the chance to reach an eight-game winning streak, which would be its longest since 2023 (April 29-May 6).
In his first game back, Bregman will bat second and play third base. His return to the diamond is slated for 7:10 p.m. Eastern Time Friday.
Kaley Brown is a sports producer for Boston.com, where she covers the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots, and Red Sox.
Sign up for Red Sox updates⚾
Get breaking news and analysis delivered to your inbox during baseball season.
