Familiar face could be the Red Sox answer to uncertainty with Triston Casas injury

The Boston Red Sox were dealt a brutal blow with Triston Casas, one of the few players worth watching on the team, heading to the IL. Casas suffered a rib injury that could wind up being a long-term issue.

The 24-year-old broke out in a huge way last season, hitting 24 home runs and posting a .856 OPS on the season. He wound up being a Rookie of the Year finalist, finishing third in the balloting.

Casas had established himself as a key piece for Boston not only in the future but in the present as well. He had gotten off to another strong start this season, hitting six home runs in 22 games with a .857 OPS before suffering the injury.

Boston started Pablo Reyes at first base in Sunday's game, but since that was just his first-ever start at the position, he's far from a long-term solution there. Boston's Casas replacement might just be a bigger name who is more accustomed to the position.

Red Sox could turn to familiar face to replace Triston Casas

Had the Casas injury been a short-term deal, the Red Sox might've been fine to stick with internal options like Reyes or Bobby Dalbec, but with the injury appearing to be a longer-term issue, Boston could turn to a familiar face, C.J. Cron.

The Red Sox signed Cron, a former All-Star, to a minor league deal ahead of the 2024 campaign, and he had a chance to make the team in spring training. Unfortunately, he had just three hits in 15 at-bats and did not make the team. Since Boston went in another direction, the team released Cron, giving him an opportunity elsewhere. He remains a free agent almost one month into the season.

Cron is coming off a down year in which he slashed .248/.295/.434 with 12 home runs and 37 RBI in 71 games splitting time with the Rockies and Angels, but this is a player who, when healthy, has hit for a ton of power over the course of his career.

While his best numbers understandably were when he played with the Rockies, Cron had a streak of four straight 25+ home run campaigns in full seasons (excluding 2020) before his oft-injured 2023. That included a 30-home-run season with the Rays in 2018 and a 25-home-run season with the Twins in 2019 before eventually ending up in Colorado.

Whether Boston is willing to go back to Cron after releasing him just one month ago remains to be seen, but he'd be a solid short-term option for a Red Sox team that hopes to just tread water in Casas' absence.