Roman Anthony, Trevor Story Activations Not Simple for Red Sox

Soon enough, the Boston Red Sox will have Roman Anthony and Trevor Story back into the lineup. At this point, the question is when, not if.

At this point, every Red Sox fan knows this. Anthony and Story have been on minor league rehab assignments, along with Isiah Kiner-Falefa. When a position player goes on a rehab assignment, they have a maximum of 20 days down in the minors before the club has to make a roster decision. The clock is ticking on all three of these guys.

Anthony's rehab assignment began on Aug. 18. Story's rehab assignment kicked off on Aug. 16. Kiner-Falefa's rehab assignment began on Aug. 19. The Red Sox have a few days left for each of these guys before there is a pressing decision.

Over the last few days, there have been times when it has seemed like a promotion for Anthony and Story was imminent, but both are still down in Triple-A. It seemed like the beginning of the New York Yankees series was going to be a perfect time to activate them both after the Red Sox didn't play on Thursday. But, again, they're in Worcester. On Saturday, Red Sox interim manager Chad Tracy shared that it's "hard to say" when they will be activated, although Sunday hasn't been ruled out, per Tim Healey of The Boston Globe.

When Is Roman Anthony Coming Up?

iMay 3, 2026; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox designated hitter Roman Anthony (19) warms-up before batting against the Houston Astros during the first inning at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

"No real update this morning on Roman Anthony and Trevor Story," Healey wrote. "They will play in Worcester's 4 p.m. game today, then TBD. The Red Sox have not ruled out bringing either or both back Sunday. 'It's just hard to say right now,' Tracy said."

While the fans want specifically Anthony in the lineup right now, it's not that hard to see why it's "hard to say" when they will be activated. The second that Boston activates these guys, a roster crunch is coming. With Masataka Yoshida injured, the Red Sox easily could slide Anthony into the designated hitter spot and keep Jarren Duran in left field, which would be an easier situation to deal with when the regular season began and there was an outfield surplus. But what about Jahmai Jones and Eli White, who have both been helpful pieces over the last few weeks?

When Story is activated, he's expected to take over shortstop. Then, all of a sudden the Red Sox will have a crunch to think about with Nick Sogard, Anthony Seigler, Andruw Monasterio and Mickey Gasper. Kiner-Falefa adds to this mix further.

These are all guys who have helped to get Boston to the place it is in right now. So, the Red Sox have to figure out who to send down and balance whether to option guys, or DFA veterans without options left.

With all of them still having a few days left on their rehab assignments, Sep. 1 becomes an intriguing date to watch. Rosters expand and in that scenario, fewer players would have to be sent down. The roster jumps from 26 players to 28.

Then, on top of all of this, there's the idea of getting enough at-bats to really contribute to the big league roster. Anthony hasn't played in a big league game since May 4. Story hasn't played in a big league game since May 14. Kiner-Falefa hasn't played in a big league game since June 18. When these guys are activated, will they have had enough at-bats to really help or will they struggle? That's another thing to weigh.

It's not as easy as just bringing them up to the bigs. That's why it has been such a big topic all week and if Sep. 1 wasn't in just a few days, the conversation would also likely be different.

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