Boston Red Sox first baseman Triston Casas cannot catch a break.
When he made his big league debut back in 2022, he was viewed among the top overall prospects in the game at the time. Even before he made his big league debut, he was already being talked about as the Red Sox's potential first baseman of the future. Unfortunately, he is becoming a "what if" story.
As a rookie, he bashed 24 homers and drove in 65 runs while slashing .263/.367/.490 across 132 games in 2023 after just a cup of coffee in the majors in 2022. But it has been downhill since then.
In 2024, Casas played in just 63 games due to torn cartilage in his rib cage. In 2025, his season was cut short after just 29 games due to a ruptured left patellar tendon. He was brought along slowly in Spring Training this season, but hasn't been able to get back on the field and get up to speed fully.
This isn't even because of the ruptured left patellar tendon that impacted his 2025 season. Casas suffered a left abdominal strain in April. Eventually, he was able to swing but then a wrist injury shut him down . The wrist injury clearly wasn't great as Boston announced on Thursday that Casas underwent successful left wrist surgery.
May 2, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox first baseman Triston Casas (36) warms up before a game against the Minnesota Twins at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
"Red Sox 1B Triston Casas today underwent a successful left wrist arthroscopy," the Red Sox announced. "The procedure was performed by Dr. Matthew Leibman at Newton-Wellesley Surgery Center in Wellesley, MA."
At this time, the Red Sox haven't announced a timeline for Casas to return.
Casas hasn't played in a game for Boston since May 2, 2025 and right now it's fair to wonder if Red Sox fans will ever see him back on the field wearing a Boston uniform again. On the bright side for Casas, he's just 26 years old. Despite all of the injuries, he's young enough to believe that he could get back to the big leagues at some point. But would that be with Boston?
But when it comes to Boston specifically, it has found a replacement at first base in Willson Contreras and he's under contract for the 2027 season and has a club option for the 2028 campaign as well. There's a real chance that whenever Casas is even able to return, there won't be a spot available for him on the big league roster.
It's unfortunate how things have shaken out for the young slugger. When he's healthy and at his best, he has 30-plus homer potential and a great eye for the zone. But he hasn't been able to stay healthy since 2023. Boston can't rely on that.
Fortunately, the Red Sox went out and acquired Contreras this past offseason or else they would've been in a hole again at first base. At this point, arguably the best-case scenario would be Casas working his way back and showing that he's healthy and can help a club and then looking to make a deal. Of course, that isn't a topic for right now, but more in the long run. But, again, his future is murky with Boston.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/mlb/red-sox/onsi as Red Sox's Triston Casas Becoming 'What If' Story After Another Setback .
