Boston Red Sox Rumors: Could Scott Rolen End Up in Boston?

By Justin Söderberg
Scott Rolen (Photo: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports)
Mark J. Rebilas – USA TODAY Sports

After ending his season early in 2012, Boston Red Sox third baseman, Will Middlebrooks re-aggravated his wrist injury in Wednesday night’s spring training game. The 24-year old exited the game in the first inning after trying to check his swing on a Chris Tillman pitch. He immediately dropped the bat and held onto his wrist and as he left the field, he tossed his helmet into the dugout and walked to the clubhouse. Following the game the Red Sox diagnosed him with wrist soreness and will be re-evaluated on Thursday.

The Red Sox were looking forward to having Middlebrooks man the hot corner for an entire season in 2013. Playing in only 75 games in 2012, Middlebrooks had a rookie of the year type season. Of course, at the moment, nothing looks too serious and Middlebrooks could be back swinging the bat before the end of the week.

If Middlebrooks is unable to start the season for the Red Sox, who will man third base? An internal option could be Pedro Ciriaco. The 27-year old spent the majority of his playing time last season at third base, 35 games in all. For the Red Sox in 2012, Ciriaco batted .293 with two homers, 19 RBI and 16 stolen bases.

Another option is veteran third baseman, Scott Rolen. The 37-year old has played in the major leagues for 17 seasons, spending time with the Philadelphia Phillies, St. Louis Cardinals, Toronto Blue Jays and more recently the Cincinnati Reds. Over his career, Rolen has batted .281 with an OBP of .364, 316 homers, 1,1287 RBIs and 517 doubles in 2038 games.

Adding a veteran like Rolen to the Red Sox lineup is a welcome addition, however the Red Sox haven’t called the free agent third baseman’s agent. There’s belief that Rolen is interested in coming to Fenway Park, however in order for the Red Sox to become more interested him in, Middlebrooks’ injury would have to be more serious that expected.

Red Sox Nation should be worried if Middlebrooks’ injury is more serious, although they could add someone like Rolen to fill in. One of the reasons this Red Sox team is better than last season is an entire season of Middlebrooks in the lineup so hopefully his injury isn’t too serious.

Justin Soderberg is a Boston Red Sox writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter, “Like” him on Facebook and add him to your network on Google. To read more articles from Justin Soderberg, click here.

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