Sam Travis Replaces Steve Pearce on Opening Day Roster

Sam Farmer - Contributing Writer(@samfarmer24)

Due to a Steve Pearce calf injury, Sam Travis will now be on the opening day roster for the Red Sox. Pearce injured himself in a March 17 game against the Pirates and hasn’t played since. Travis will likely share first basemen duties with Mitch Moreland until Pearce returns and he is likely sent back down to the minors.
Christopher Evans / Boston Herald

Travis has spent a combined 52 major league games with the Red Sox over 2017 and 2018 hitting .250 with a homer and 8 RBI’s in 52 games. Travis is a decent fielder at first base but likely isn’t expected to provide much pop with the bat in Pearce’s absence.

The right handed Travis has historically performed well in Spring Training, but didn’t impress as much as usual this year. He hit only .221 and didn’t manage any homers in the 21 games he played in. Despite poor numbers in spring training, Alex Cora believes that his swing is looking good and seems confident enough about his ability going into the season.

Hopefully Travis is boosted by the managers confidence and can find his swing for the first couple of series. He will likely go down when Pearce is healthy no matter what, but being on the opening day roster might give Travis a little extra experience and confidence for the upcoming year.