Ceddanne Rafaela will sit out each ends of Boston’s doubleheader towards the Chicago Cubs at Fenway Park Friday, extending an absence triggered not by a brand new harm however a hamstring scare from two days earlier.
Boston has already clinched its playoff spot, which implies each determination on Rafaela proper now will get measured towards a much bigger query: who’s patrolling heart area when the Wild Card Sequence opens.
| BOSTON RED SOX STARTING LINEUP (GAME 2) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP: Brayan Bello (RHP) • 6-7, 4.49 ERA | ||||
| September 25, 2026 • Fenway Park, Boston, MA • 5:35 PM ET • Cubs at Pink Sox | ||||
| # | Participant | Pos | AVG | SLG |
| 1 | Roman Anthony | RF | .246 | .401 |
| 2 | Jahmai Jones | LF | .213 | .381 |
| 3 | Wilyer Abreu | DH | .249 | .447 |
| 4 | Trevor Story | SS | .240 | .358 |
| 5 | Nick Sogard | 1B | .254 | .388 |
| 6 | Andruw Monasterio | 3B | .238 | .378 |
| 7 | Jarren Duran | CF | .209 | .364 |
| 8 | Isiah Kiner-Falefa | 2B | .238 | .306 |
| 9 | Connor Wong | C | .238 | .354 |
| Lineups confirmed. Season stats proven (AVG / SLG). Umpire: D.J. Reyburn • Climate: 63°, Wind 23 mph • O/U: 6.5 Runs • Line: CHC -118 / BOS -102. | ||||
Ceddanne Rafaela’s Hamstring Timeline
Rafaela’s Wednesday return from the injured record lasted two innings earlier than hassle discovered him once more. He had missed the earlier 17 video games with a proper quadriceps pressure suffered Sept. 2 towards Seattle, in keeping with a Newsweek report.
He made his presence felt instantly, diving to rob Steven Kwan of additional bases on the sport’s first pitch sequence, then singling within the second inning. Rafaela grimaced operating to first, stayed in to complete the at-bat, and was pulled by supervisor Chad Tracy as soon as he stored flexing the leg jogging out to heart for the third inning.
Tracy referred to as it upper-hamstring tightness “extra on the swing” than the run, ordering a precautionary MRI. Rafaela downplayed any connection to the quad harm that sidelined him for 3 weeks.
“Not even shut,” Rafaela mentioned, when requested to match the sensations, in keeping with MLB.com. “I feel it was only a cramp. Possibly I wasn’t hydrated sufficient.”
Thursday’s scans got here again clear, and Tracy reinserted Rafaela into the lineup that very same evening. “Yeah, he’s good,” Tracy mentioned. “Did an MRI. All the things was clear. The texture is that it was a cramp, in all probability really precipitated by the dive. He tends to dive, and he does have low back-hip stuff that throws him out of line for a second.”
Rafaela began in heart and batted sixth Thursday, taking part in the total sport with out incident.
| CHICAGO CUBS STARTING LINEUP (GAME 2) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP: David Peterson (LHP) • 9-8, 4.96 ERA | ||||
| September 25, 2026 • Fenway Park, Boston, MA • 5:35 PM ET • Cubs at Pink Sox | ||||
| # | Participant | Pos | AVG | SLG |
| 1 | Pete Crow-Armstrong | CF | .280 | .573 |
| 2 | Seiya Suzuki | RF | .268 | .472 |
| 3 | Michael Busch | 1B | .241 | .395 |
| 4 | Michael Conforto | DH | .240 | .473 |
| 5 | Ian Happ | LF | .222 | .419 |
| 6 | Nico Hoerner | SS | .262 | .350 |
| 7 | Pedro Ramírez | 2B | .261 | .406 |
| 8 | Carson Kelly | C | .260 | .379 |
| 9 | Matt Shaw | 3B | .238 | .417 |
| Lineups confirmed. Season stats proven (AVG / SLG). Umpire: D.J. Reyburn • Climate: 63°, Wind 23 mph • O/U: 6.5 Runs • Line: CHC -118 / BOS -102. | ||||
Pink Sox Handle Ceddanne Rafaela’s Workload
Friday introduced a special sort of absence. Rafaela sat the doubleheader opener regardless that the hamstring cramp by no means really price him a begin, in keeping with RotoWire, which described the sit as simple relaxation forward of the nightcap.
That nightcap should do with out him too. Boston’s lineup for the second sport has Jarren Duran in heart and no Rafaela on the cardboard, in keeping with the Boston Globe’s Tim Healey. No recent clarification from Tracy surfaced publicly past the warning already established round Rafaela’s decrease physique.
The Pink Sox open the AL Wild Card Sequence Tuesday, towards the New York Yankees in a rematch of final season’s Wild Card matchup win in three video games by New York, and Boston activated Rafaela particularly to get him reps earlier than that sequence begins. A clear MRI and a full Thursday begin level towards availability, not a setback.
Rafaela’s absence issues due to what he brings on each side of the ball. The 2025 American League Gold Glove winner in heart area, he’s hitting .282 with 16 dwelling runs, 70 RBIs and 17 stolen bases this season. Boston’s offense has scuffled in September, and dropping Rafaela’s bat and glove for prolonged stretches isn’t one thing the roster simply absorbs.
Duran stays the default fill-in with Rafaela out. Roman Anthony performs left area most days. Whether or not Rafaela returns Saturday or waits till Tuesday’s play-off opener seemingly depends upon how his legs reply to a weekend off.
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