Curtis Mead lands on IL with fractured wrist

Mead hasn’t taken an at-bat in a game situation since suffering a fractured left wrist during his Red Sox debut back in late July. The 25-year-old corner infielder has been added to Boston’s playoff roster in the wake of Roman Anthony suffering yet another hand injury. He’ll be available off the bench with Boston facing elimination in Game 2 at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday.

Red Sox interim manager Chad Tracy told reporters Mead will progress to hitting off a tee on Wednesday. It doesn’t seem like Mead is going to make it back before the regular season concludes, but the fact that he’s resumed swinging means he could be an option during the postseason. The 25-year-old infielder suffered a fractured left wrist during his Red Sox debut back in late July.

The clock is definitely ticking here. Mead has just over two weeks left to ramp up a hitting progression if he’s going to help the Red Sox during a potential postseason run. The fact that he hasn’t been cleared to resume swinging a bat roughly seven weeks after fracturing his left wrist is a bit concerning.

Mead no longer has a cast on his left wrist after fracturing it back on July 27th. It’s nice to see him playing catch without the cast on his glove hand, but we’ll need to see him hit before we have a better sense of exactly when he’s going to return to Boston’s lineup.

Cotillo elaborates that it’s a tentative return timetable, which leaves open the possibility that Mead could make it back at some point in mid-September. The encouraging news is that he won’t require season-ending surgery after suffering a fractured left wrist when he was hit by a pitch during his Red Sox debut earlier this week. There should be a clearer return timeline once he’s cleared to resume baseball activities at some point in August.

It’s the worst-case scenario outcome for Mead after he was drilled by a pitch during the second at-bat of his Red Sox debut against the Athletics on Monday night. The 25-year-old infielder was acquired from the Nationals for lefty Connelly Early last week and is already facing an extended absence. There’s a strong possibility his season is over given the severity of the injury. Cassell adds that Nick Sogard is coming up from Triple-A Worcester to take Mead’s roster spot. It’ll be Caleb Durbin handling third base with Anthony Seigler moving back into a starting role at the keystone.

The positive news here is that Mead appears to have avoided serious injury during his Red Sox debut after initial X-rays came back negative for any fractures. He was struck by a pitch from Athletics starter Jack Perkins during his second at-bat of the contest. The 25-year-old infielder, who was acquired from the Nationals in a trade over the weekend, is presumably day-to-day moving forward. It’s a significant relief for Boston and fantasy managers as well.

You can’t make this stuff up. Mead was replaced by Anthony Seigler at second base a couple frames after being drilled by a pitch on the left hand during his second at-bat in a Red Sox uniform after striking out in his first plate appearance. He’ll undergo X-rays to determine whether he suffered any fractures. There should be an update on his status shortly.

Mead has a phenomenal opportunity to make some noise in Sutter Health Field’s high-octane offensive environment in West Sacramento after coming over from the Nationals in a challenge trade for lefty Connelly Early over the weekend. The 25-year-old former top prospect has gone through a bizarre odyssey in the early portion of his career, but he appears to have finally arrived as an impactful everyday option this season, launching 17 homers in 327 plate appearances for Washington. He’s started pulling the ball in the air with much greater frequency this season, which will absolutely work in Fenway Park. He’s at second base in his Boston debut, but is likely to also see time at the hot corner over the final two months.

The Red Sox could have easily acquired Mead a few months ago, but they’re obviously much bigger believers now after he hit .254/.352/.500 with 17 homers in 327 plate appearances for the Nationals. And he does look like a perfectly legitimate major league hitter at this point. However, his bat speed and exit velocity numbers are all pretty average, and he just doesn’t offer much defensive value as a well-below-average defensive third baseman and potentially adequate first baseman. The Red Sox will likely make him their primary DH for now, allowing him to maintain some mixed-league value. Still, if they’re ever at full strength, he might not warrant starts against righties. Time will tell, but giving up Early here seems like a misstep. With Mead likely to see significant time at DH, Masataka Yoshida will again become a reserve, though perhaps a Jarren Duran trade could put him in left field for a time.