Mickey Gasper's improbable summer ended in a wince. The Boston Red Sox catcher and designated hitter, who spent August turning himself into one of the most productive hitters in baseball, suffered what interim manager Chad Tracy called a significant biceps injury during the first game of Friday's doubleheader against the Chicago Cubs, an injury that will likely keep him out for the remainder of the season just as Boston prepares to face the New York Yankees in the AL Wild Card Series.
Gasper was removed from the game before the top of the sixth inning after striking out in the prior at-bat, according to the Boston Herald. He underwent an MRI afterward, and while the Red Sox have not determined the full extent of the injury, Tracy sounded pessimistic about Gasper's availability going forward. Connor Wong took over behind the plate and delivered a tiebreaking seventh-inning double in Boston's 4-3 win, a result that, per CBS Sports, helped lock the Red Sox into the No. 5 seed for a best-of-three Wild Card Series against the Yankees, set to begin Tuesday.
The timing stings in a particular way for Red Sox fans, given where Gasper came from. He was originally selected by the Yankees in the 27th round of the 2018 MLB Draft out of Bryant University — the 817th overall pick, and, as Heavy Sports notes, the only player chosen in that entire round to ever reach the majors before the draft was shortened in 2020 to eliminate the 27th round altogether. Now, instead of facing the organization that once passed him along the chain, he'll be watching from the sidelines.
A New England Story Built From the Ground Up
Gasper, 30, grew up in Merrimack, New Hampshire, and played college ball at Bryant University in Rhode Island, where he won the Futures Collegiate Baseball League MVP award in 2016 with the Nashua Silver Knights before turning pro. According to SoxProspects, his local roots helped fuel the popularity of his second-half emergence among Boston fans who watched him grind through six seasons of minor league ball before finally earning his major league call-up in 2024.
His path back to Boston was anything but direct. The Red Sox originally acquired Gasper from the Yankees in the minor league phase of the Rule 5 Draft in December 2023, then traded him to Minnesota a year later. Boston re-acquired him off waivers in February 2026 — setting up the breakout campaign that followed.
An August Surge Among the Game's Historic Hot Streaks
Gasper's rise took shape after an August 16 recall from Triple-A Worcester, brought up to replace injured outfielder Masataka Yoshida. His surge continued over the final two weeks of August.
By the numbers laid out in the original article facts, Gasper hit 10 home runs in 33 games since returning to the team in August, batting .272 with a 1.119 OPS entering Friday's game. He was particularly dangerous from the left side of the plate and had been expected to see late-game action against right-handed pitchers, including a moment fans won't soon forget: watching his own three-run home run sail out during the sixth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks. That surge helped push the Red Sox into the postseason in the first place.
Boston's Lineup Crisis Deepens Before October
Gasper's exit compounds an already difficult stretch for Boston's offense. All-Star first baseman Willson Contreras, who leads the team in home runs, RBI and OBP, revealed Thursday that severe right hand pain from a September 17 hit-by-pitch has kept him from swinging a bat, leaving his Wild Card availability doubtful, according to MLB Trade Rumors. Contreras had only recently returned from a hamstring injury before suffering the hand bone bruise, leaving Boston without two of its top offensive catalysts as October begins.
Gasper's absence will test Boston's catching depth immediately.
For now, the Red Sox will open the Wild Card Series against the Yankees without the two-way threat who helped carry them there as October begins. The player whose story began in the Yankees' own draft room will be watching from the dugout rather than the batter's box.
