Adley Rutschman Out of Red Sox Lineup Again With Elbow Issue

Adley Rutschman is out of the Boston lineup again, scratched with an elbow issue that Ian Browne of MLB.com reports may persist through the remainder of the season.

The timing is worth noting. Boston is navigating a stretch run with its catching situation already under pressure — Willson Contreras was placed on the 10-day IL with a left hamstring strain, an injury he had been managing for weeks before it finally sent him to the shelf. A second catching concern on top of that leaves the Red Sox thin behind the plate at exactly the wrong moment.

What remains unconfirmed

No timetable has been reported, no diagnosis has been named, and there is no indication in the material of whether Rutschman is expected to miss additional games beyond this one. The characterization that the issue "could linger" is the operative phrase — a possibility, not a certainty.

What to watch

With Contreras on the IL and Rutschman's availability uncertain, how Boston manages its catching depth through the stretch run is the thread to follow. The club's September roster expansion — which brought in Isiah Kiner-Falefa and right-hander Jedixson Paez — adds bodies, though neither addresses the catching crunch directly.