Without Mead after one game, urgency for Red Sox to upgrade lineup amplifies as trade deadline approaches

WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Ouch.

Newly acquired second baseman Curtis Mead’s Red Sox unveiling proved painfully brief. A stray 95 mile-per-hour fastball from Athletics starter Jack Perkins in Mead’s second plate appearance Monday night smashed into the base of the righthanded hitter’s left wrist. Though initial ballpark X-rays proved negative, a follow-up MRI on Tuesday revealed a fractured left wrist, requiring the Sox to place the 25-year-old on the injured list.

Read more Sources: Red Sox to place newly acquired infielder Curtis Mead on injured list

Before a flight back to Boston on Tuesday night to meet with a team hand specialist, a dismayed Mead — wearing a brace on his left wrist — acknowledged the grim reality of his circumstance.

“Super disappointing,” he said. “It kind of doesn’t feel real that [it happened in the] first game.”

Will Mead play again this year?

“I hope so,” he said, noting that he was eager to get information on a timeline for his return after his appointment in Boston.

Is there at least a chance the injury is season-ending — particularly given that surgery evidently hasn’t been ruled out, pending the meeting with the hand specialist?

“It’s hard to say,” said Sox interim manager Chad Tracy. “All we know right now is he can’t play right now, and then we’ll get him home to see the specialist, and then we’ll be able to see.”

The uncertainty surrounding Mead’s health upends the Sox’ expectations of a lineup upgrade in advance of next Monday’s trade deadline.

The Red Sox acquired Mead from the Nationals on Saturday night in exchange for lefthander Connelly Early, believing his breakout year — .253/.353/.498 with 17 homers — could bolster a power-deficient lineup in their postseason push. Tracy immediately installed him in the No. 2 spot in the lineup, a testament to the impact the team anticipated he could make as a top contributor.

“We were ready to kind of live life with him in the lineup,” said Tracy. “And then that happens to him.”

The Sox, of course, entered Tuesday having gone 24-5 while averaging 5.0 runs per game over 29 games. Infielders Anthony Seigler and Andruw Monasterio had both made significant, stabilizing contributions to the lineup. That performance, in turn, offered the club some reassurance of its ability to withstand the abrupt loss of Mead’s anticipated upgrade.

Read more Lindsey Graham eulogized as an ‘American original’ with global reach

“My mind goes to obviously [feeling] terrible for him,” said Tracy. “But [then] my mind goes to, ‘OK, we’re going to pivot back to the team that won 15 in a row together and 20 out of 23 and we’re going to go play baseball and win a game tonight … and see what happens over the next week until the deadline and go from there. These guys are very well aware that we were winning games before and we still have a good ballclub, and our job is to go out there and win baseball games.”

Still, chief baseball officer Craig Breslow and the front office now face an intensified need to pursue bats before Monday’s deadline. After acquiring Mead and prior to his injury, according to major league sources, the Sox had remained active in the market for either a shortstop or catcher who could add more thump to the lineup.

Now, the Sox must do so while mindful that it will be at least several weeks before they enjoy the boost provided by the player whom they’d already acquired, if Mead is able to contribute at all moving forward.

There’s a range of outcomes in play, none good. There are no best-case scenarios — only degrees of bad.

As for potential middle infield reinforcements within the organization: Trevor Story (sports hernia) is still ramping up his baseball activities, and a discussion about a minor league rehab assignment has yet to commence. Marcelo Mayer (stress reaction of the left ulna) is doing drill work off a tee and soft toss, but isn’t facing real velocity. Isiah Kiner-Falefa (stress reaction of the left ulna) isn’t even swinging off a tee.

So, the Sox must account for the need to upgrade their middle infield — while already having parted with a top trade chip in Early — with a narrowing window to consummate trades. If there is a silver lining, it is that Mead’s injury occurred while the team still has a chance to account for his absence.

In 2006, the Sox lost outfielder Trot Nixon to the injured list the night before the trade deadline and catcher Jason Varitek to a knee injury in a game played hours after the trade deadline passed. There was no chance to react.

Breslow and the Sox still have time to respond to the loss of Mead — and should have clarity about the duration of his absence. Still, a sense of bewilderment swirled around the team Tuesday as an addition had suddenly become a loss.

Read more Teleprompter operator accused of betting on Trump speeches is out of a job, according to AP