It didn't take long for the Boston Red Sox to see one of their starters go down with an injury and the team wasted no time in making a roster move to address the loss.
Upon being diagnosed with a left fractured pinky finger after Toronto Blue Jays outfielder George Springer's bat struck Connor Wong's hand during the follow-through on his swing, the Red Sox officially placed their starting catcher on the IL.
At this time, the timetable for Wong's return is unknown but the team has already made a corresponding move to add depth behind the plate as Boston called up Blake Sabol to provide depth behind Carlos Narváez, who is expected to move into the starting lineup in Wong's absence.
While Narváez is undoubtedly excited for his opportunity to see regular playing time during this stretch, the catcher knows how important Wong is to this team and expressed as much following Monday's 6-2 loss to Toronto.
“Tough loss for us,” said Narvaez of the injury to Wong, per Sean McAdam of MassLive.com. “Nobody wants that. Connor has been a very important piece for us. Hopefully, he’s going to be back soon. In the meantime, while he’s out, I’m going to take accountability to help the team win every game.”
Wong joined the Red Sox in 2021 and has been with the franchise ever since. A career .250 hitter, Wong had gotten off to a slow start to the 2025 campaign having recorded just two hits in 23 plate appearances. Now, Wong will need to overcome this injury and whatever rust may come with being sidelined before he has the opportunity to turn his slow start around and contribute to the Red Sox's success on the diamond.
The 28-year-old catcher addressed the media following Boston's loss and didn't hide his frustration with the injury as Wong noted that this was one of the more direct hits he has taken on a play that ultimately was deemed catcher's interference.
“Obviously, frustrated,” said Wong, per McAdam. “I feel that’s something we go over as a unit, knowing who the potential ‘catcher interference guys’ are. I knew that going in and I felt like I was in a good spot. It was just bad luck, I think.
"I feel like on that one, it was more so (a matter) of saving a strike (with framing). I was set up down-and-away on a breaking ball and I saw it pop up there and wanted to make sure I was able to catch it and stick it. (Springer) caught me on his swing. I have had a couple of catcher’s interferences, but this one was a lot more flush than any of the other ones."Connor Wong
When you take into consideration how competitive the AL East has been to start the season, first place and last place in the division are separated by just 1.5 games in the standings, losing Wong for any extended period of time could be a rather significant blow.