Boston Red Sox
“When he went back out there, he kept flexing it, so we said, let’s go ahead and make the change.”
Ceddanne Rafaela returned to the Red Sox lineup on Wednesday after missing the last 17 games due to a quad strain.
But his return was short-lived — as the Red Sox outfielder was pulled from the game after just two innings of work due to what the team called right hamstring tightness.
The 2026 All-Star made an immediate impact in Wednesday’s game against Cleveland, robbing leadoff man Steven Kwan of an extra-base hit with a diving catch in center field.
But things went south during Rafaela’s first at-bat in the bottom of the second inning. After knocking a single to left, he pulled up gingerly after reaching first base — stretching his leg before chatting with both Chad Tracy and trainer Brandon Henry.
Rafaela did stay in the game and remained on the basepaths in the second, and even started to make his way back out to center field in the top of the third inning. But before the inning could begin, Rafaela was pulled out of the game by both Tracy and Henry.
“Just saw him continuing to flex it. That’s all. He seemed to have felt some cramping in the back there,” Tracy told ESPN’s Buster Olney on the broadcast. “When he went back out there, he kept flexing it, so we said, let’s go ahead and make the change.”
Rafaela had been on the injured list since Sept. 6 before getting the green light to play on Wednesday.
An injury setback for Rafaela would be disastrous for the Red Sox, especially with a potential three-game playoff series with the Yankees set to begin on Tuesday.
The 26-year-old outfielder is one of the top defensive difference-makers in baseball out in center — and entered Wednesday batting .282 with 16 home runs and 70 RBI while swiping 17 bases.
“He’s a huge piece of this, on both sides of the ball,” Tracy said pregame, per Tim Healey of The Boston Globe. “Heck of an offensive season. We’re all well aware of his capabilities as a defender in center field. And he changes the game. He can run. He can change your game in so many ways. Having him back is huge.
“Now [it] just becomes: Get him out there, check out his gait, check in with him frequently.”
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