Chad Tracy Reveals Why Ceddanne Rafaela Isn’t In Lineup For Royals Opener originally appeared on NESN.
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The Boston Red Sox won’t have center fielder Ceddanne Rafaela in the lineup in the series opener against the Kansas City Royals on Monday.
Rafaela is given the day off as Darren Duran will play center field, while Masataka Yoshida will play left field, and Mickey Gapser at DH.
It was a bit of a surprise to not see Rafaela in the lineup, but the Red Sox’s interim manager, Chad Tracy, said it was due to him dealing with a bit of tightness in his hamstring.
“A little bit of tightness in his hamstring,” Tracy said about Rafaela. “Which is not like he’s out indefinitely. He got some treatment. And with the amount of balls that that dude ran down Atlanta, that doesn’t surprise me.”
Rafaela is hitting .284 with four home runs and 19 RBIs this season with the Red Sox.
With Rafaela given the day off, Boston’s lineup on Monday is as follows:
- J. Duran CF
- M. Gasper DH
- W. Abreu RF
- W. Contreras 1B
- M. Yoshida LF
- A. Monasterio SS
- M. Mayer 2B
- C. Wong C
- N. Sogard 3B
The Red Sox will be giving the ball to Sonny Gray as Boston looks to get back on track after losing on Sunday to the Atlanta Braves. First pitch is set for 7:10 p.m. ET.
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