The Boston Red Sox activated third baseman Pablo Sandoval from the disabled list after placing second baseman Dustin Pedroia on the 10-day DL with a wrist injury. The 30-year-old has been out since April 23, but is expected to take over as the everyday third baseman once again.
Heading into the season, a slimmed-down Pablo Sandoval was among the most anticipated stories to follow for the Boston Red Sox. A mediocre showing in the first few weeks of the season and an early knee injury calmed any excitement that Sandoval would be able to break out for the Red Sox this season.
After a month on the disabled list, Sandoval will now have another opportunity to change the narrative surrounding his career with the Red Sox and provide a spark to the dismal third base production for Boston. Sandoval's return is a likely signal that the Deven Marrero experiment as the team's starting third baseman will come to an end.
With Pedroia, Brock Holt and Marco Hernandez all injured, Marrero will likely take over at second base for the time being. As such, Sandoval – despite his lackluster showing to start the season – will once again look to find his groove with the Sox.
In 17 games to start the season, Sandoval hit .213 with a .646 OPS and three home runs. While his numbers are a far cry from his stats with the San Francisco Giants, Sandoval did show signs that he'd be able to improve upon his 2015 season with Boston.
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With the retirement of David Ortiz, it was expected that Sandoval's improved physique would lead to an increased offensive output from the third baseman. While his sample size has been limited this season, it's difficult to gauge what kind of production Sandoval will give Boston going forward. He went just 4-for-25 in seven rehab games at Triple-A over the past week, but his timing at the plate was likely impacted by the knee injury.
Boston ranks fifth in the majors in runs scored with 148 over the team's last 14 games, so Sandoval isn't entirely needed to contribute at a high rate. It's entirely possible that slotting Sandoval lower in the order while the rest of the team is relied upon to score will allow him to get into a groove. But as Sandoval has proven in his tenure with Boston, he's among the most unpredictable players in the league.
Perhaps he'll hit five home runs this week. Or, more likely, Boston manager John Farrell will have to shuffle his lineup as the team finds the best way to utilize Sandoval's skillset.
