Why Red Sox are ending experiment of Kristian Campbell playing first
"Now it’s time our time to help him to make adjustments and get him to where we want him to be."
For weeks now, Alex Cora and the Red Sox have signaled that rookie Kristian Campbell was poised to be the next man up at first base.
Triston Casas’ season-ending knee injury created a glaring hole at that spot in the infield, with the subsequent logjam of blue-chip prospects toiling in Triple-A Worcester — namely shortstop Marcelo Mayer and outfielder Roman Anthony — further exacerbating issues for an ill-fitting Boston roster.
But after initially pledging that Campbell — who has primarily played second base and the outfield in his first MLB season — would start at first this past weekend against Atlanta, Cora changed his tune.
Abraham Toro remained at first for Sunday’s eventual 3-1 win for the Red Sox, with Campbell sticking at second base.
Ahead of Monday’s loss to the Angels at Fenway Park, Cora admitted that Boston is halting its plans to move Campbell to first — citing both Toro’s strong showing as of late and the return of Romy Gonzalez from the injured list.
“Toro’s play has helped us slow down that,” Cora said pregame, per MassLive’s Sean McAdam. “Romy’s going to play first, Toro’s going to play first. [Campbell] will still take grounders here and there, but it’s nothing that we’re planning on doing now.”
While a Gonzalez/Toro platoon at first seems to the top option for now, Cora also didn’t rule out that Campbell could see some late-innings reps at first if needed. Alex Bregman’s injury — which prompted a call-up for Mayer last week — also lessened some of Boston’s roster crunch.
For now, the Red Sox might be better suited keeping Campbell in a familiar spot at second — especially if that stability helps him regain his form at the plate.
The AL Rookie of the Month in March/April, Campbell’s production has slid significantly as of late. In the month of May, Campbell batted .135 with just one extra-base hit and four RBI — with his overall WAR dropping to -0.6.
“When you don’t have too many reps, it’s hard,” Cora said of Campbell. “He’s played one year in the big leagues and we have high expectations. Now it’s time to help him to make adjustments and get him to where we want him to be.
“He was the best rookie in April. He wasn’t one of the best hitters in May and now we’re in June. Hopefully, that experience, those at-bats and the way they attacked him helped him to make adjustments and we can help him through that.”
Even with the tough sledding that Campbell is currently trudging through, Cora is not concerned about the rookie hitting a wall at this stage of MLB’s calendar.
“He’s a guy who, you give him information and he applies it. But this is a different level — it is,” Cora said of Campbell. “The stuff is a lot different than in the minor leagues. We still believe in the swing. We still believe in the character. Obviously, we’re going to go through stretches.
“We’ll try to help him out, keep the confidence up, and remind him that he’s still a good player regardless of what the numbers say. Hopefully, it takes one swing, one bullet to right-center that goes out and it clicks for him.”
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