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With Returning Stars, Boston Red Sox Chasing Down Wild Card Spot

The Boston Red Sox have had some of their stars return from injury just in time for their Wild Card chase.

The Boston Red Sox (69-64) have been one of the teams in MLB this season that has dealt with a plethora of injuries to their star players. With Trevor Story hitting the injured list since April 6th, Triston Casas missing 98 games, and Tyler O'Neill spending three separate stints on the injured list, those three are just the tip of the iceberg.

The Red Sox have, however, had Casas and O'Neill return from the injured list within the last two weeks.

In a recent article from Bleacher Report, Kerry Miller used one sentence to describe every MLB team as we head into the stretch run of the season. Here is how Miller described the Red Sox:

"The trade-deadline acquisitions of James Paxton (a likely season-ending calf injury), Lucas Sims (6.23 ERA) and Luis García (11.17 ERA) haven't gone according to plan, but getting Triston Casas and Tyler O'Neill back last weekend could be the spark they need to chase down a wild-card spot."

Casas returned from his injured list stint on August 16th and O'Neill from his most recent stint on August 17th. The Red Sox have played 13 games since the 16th, and have gone 6-7. It has not been the offense that has held the Red Sox back, however.

While Boston's offense has slowed down from their meteoric pace over the first three weeks of the second half, they are still batting .249/.304/.435 since the 16th. Their pitching, on the other hand, while also improved from their disastrous first three weeks of the second half, has still pitched to a 4.57 ERA across 106 1/3 innings since the 16th.

The pitching has begun to turn a corner and get closer to the first-half production that it was providing the Red Sox, but it still has not been great.

The Red Sox do have more reinforcements to come that are still on the injured list in Trevor Story and Liam Hendriks, but by the time they return, the race may be decided.

Boston currently sits just three games out for the third Wild Card spot. With 29 games left this season, there is still time. If the Red Sox can win out this month, they will have set themselves up nicely for one final push through September.

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