Red Sox

‘He’s fine’: Alex Cora clears the air on Triston Casas’s health, discusses timeline for return

Casas hit a long extra-base hit on Saturday during his latest rehab start in Worcester.

Alex Cora gave a positive update on Triston Casas when speaking to reporters Saturday. (Matthew J Lee/Globe Staff)

By Colin McCarthy

Triston Casas made a concerning comment about his health on Friday night. On Saturday, both he and Red Sox manager Alex Cora gave a much more encouraging update.

Casas compared making contact with a baseball to the feeling of being stabbed or shot in the ribs when speaking to the media on Friday. Cora noted his confusion when he heard that comment.

“Sometimes I read stuff and I’m like, ‘Are we on the same page here?’ … that one caught me off guard,” Cora told reporters on Saturday. “He’s fine. Obviously, he will feel it. But it’s not like what he was feeling before he went on IL. The progress has been great.

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“We want him here. Not as fast as possible, but whenever he’s ready. I’m not upset at him, but at the same time, it caught me off guard … hopefully that’s the end of it.”

Casas also gave some added context to his previous comments, when asked if swinging the bat will make his rib injury worse.

“No, they said that through movement, through exercises that are specific to baseball, that it will actually come back better, maybe even stronger,” Casas said, per NESN reporter Laura Stickells.

At least now it seems both sides are on the same page. And Casas’s performance in his latest rehab game on Saturday might help ease concerns about his progress.

Casas launched arguably his best hit since his return to play, a near-home run off the wall in left-center field. It was good for a bases-clearing 3-RBI double.

Though Casas won’t be rushed back to Boston, his imminent return will be a welcome boost to a Boston lineup already exceeding expectations in his absence.