Red Sox’s Shortstop Gamble Already Backfiring

CJ Abrams arrived in Boston as the answer to a months-long question: who plays shortstop for this team down the stretch? He lasted one game. After getting plunked in the left wrist in the fourth inning, Abrams joined a growing list of Red Sox infielders dealing with injury problems, leaving Craig Breslow’s roster looking thinner than advertised at a position that was supposed to be settled.

This is the Red Sox shortstop depth chart in late July: Tsung-Che Cheng and Andruw Monasterio, two career depth pieces, are now the primary options. Abrams was supposed to change that narrative. Instead, he’s hurt before we could even evaluate whether the deal made sense. Was it a smart acquisition? A gamble? A misreading of the market? We won’t know until he gets healthy—if he gets healthy soon.

The real problem here isn’t Abrams specifically. It’s what this says about the Red Sox’ ability to acquire and deploy talent when they need it most. Alex Cora has a team fighting for something in September, and the shortstop position remains a question mark. Cheng and Monasterio can fill innings, but they’re not the caliber of player you want starting 40 games down the stretch in a competitive division.

Breslow has bigger decisions ahead. If Abrams’ wrist injury lingers into August, does he look for another option on the trade market? Does he trust a pair of journeymen to hold the line? The Red Sox have shown they’ll spend money and take swings on talent—the Abrams acquisition proved that. But swings only work if the batter stays healthy enough to step into the box.

For now, we’re back to square one at shortstop. The Red Sox need to find out quickly whether Abrams is a short-term setback or a sign of deeper roster problems.