Ahead of Sunday’s series finale against the Pittsburgh Pirates, the Boston Red Sox placed designated hitter Masataka Yoshida on the 10-day injured list with a left hamstring strain and reliever Justin Slaten on the 15-day injured list with right elbow soreness.  

The move to place Yoshida on the injured list comes after the 33-year-old departed Saturday night's win in the top of the third inning. The injury occurred when Yoshida ripped a double down the right field line and appeared to come up short just before diving safely into second base. Yoshida told reporters after the game that he had suffered a similar injury during his career in Japan, and it took him about a month to return.

Since June 13, Yoshida has been among the Red Sox' most consistent hitters during their historic turnaround, hitting .305/.363/.466/.829 in 41 games, leading the team in batting average. Overall, the 33-year-old is hitting .274/.347/.399/.746 in 87 games while playing an expanded role in the absence of the injured Roman Anthony. 

While Yoshida’s placement on the IL was expected, the injury to Slaten was a surprising one, stretching an already thin Boston bullpen even thinner. 

It has been an up-and-down 2026 season for the 28-year-old right-hander, who, at times, has looked unhittable coming out of the bullpen. Slaten has allowed 16 earned runs on 35 hits across 31.1 innings, good for a 4.60 ERA; however, eight of his 16 earned runs allowed came in two blow-up appearances. Since July 1, though, he has returned to form, posting a 2.19 ERA in 12.1 innings as the Red Sox have gone 12-2 in games he's appeared in. 

However, after the injury to Garrett Whitlock, Slaten was one of three arms that were going to be looked to in order to bridge the gap to closer Aroldis Chapman. His placement on the IL leaves only Tyron Guerrero and Erik Miller as the main high-leverage options for interim manager Chad Tracy to turn to ahead of his All-Star closer. 

Mickey Gasper has been recalled from Triple-A Worcester to take Yoshida’s place on the roster, while left-hander Raymond Burgos was recalled to replace Slaten. Alex Speier of the Boston Globe was first to report the Boston roster moves. 

About Gasper 

The 30-year-old switch-hitting catcher returns to Boston for his second stint at the major league level after being optioned to Worcester on June 28. 

Gasper initially provided a spark upon his first call-up of 2026, hitting .344/.364/.406/.770 in his first 10 games after being recalled on May 10. However, he hit only .200/.282/.267/.549 in his next 28 before being demoted to Triple-A. Overall, he’s hitting .243/.305/.308/.613 in 34 games at the big league level. 

In 23 games since being demoted, Gasper has performed well, hitting .393/.476/.631/1.107 with 15 RBI. Now, he’ll return to Boston, where he’ll likely split designated hitter duties with Jahmai Jones, playing primarily against right-handed pitchers. 

About Burgos

The 27-year-old left-hander returns to the big leagues just one week after being optioned back to Triple-A in a bullpen reshuffle. Burgos made two appearances in his first stint in Boston, tossing six innings, allowing two runs on two hits, while striking out four in mop-up duty during the Red Sox' back-to-back losses to the Athletics. 

Burgos was signed by Boston on May 7 after beginning the 2026 season with Guerreros de Oaxaca of the Mexican League. After signing with the Red Sox, Burgos reported to Worcester, where he’s made 15 appearances (14 starts). In those 15 appearances, he has posted a 5.63 ERA in 64 innings, while opponents have hit .305 against him.

Up next for the Red Sox 

Boston will look to take the series against the Pirates in Sunday afternoon’s rubber match. After Pittsburgh pushed back the start of reigning National League Cy Young Award winner Paul Skenes, Lake Bachar (1-2, 3.97 ERA) will get the start for the Pirates opposite veteran left-hander Patrick Sandoval (1-1, 3.30 ERA) will get the start for the Red Sox. First pitch from PNC Park is set for 1:35 p.m. ET.