Red Sox rookie Campbell could make his first-base debut this weekend Corah: Ready to be battle-tested

When asked about Kristian Campbell's pregame first-base training progress (on a 1-10 scale), Red Sox coach Alex Cora rated it as "about 2.5 to 3" on May 20. To fill the void of Triston Casas' knee injury reimbursement, the infield rookie began training on first base. Just eight days later, his meteoric improvement has earned him a chance to start first base this weekend.

"He told me a few days ago, 'I'm ready,'" Korra revealed before the Red Sox 5-6 overtime loss to the Brewers, "and it could well have him make his first-base debut in the Atlanta Series." It will be a new chapter in Campbell's whirlwind rookie season – the 22-year-old started April with a 0.301 batting average and 0.902 attack index with four hits and 12 RBIs, but fell into a serious slump of 0.120/0.165/0.160 in May, in sync with the Red Sox's collective silence.

Attacking struggles didn't stop him from expanding his defensive base. Since his college days, first base has been the only defense area he has not set foot in, except for the shooting position. Although Cora acknowledges the flexibility of his guarding, he will still take protective measures: "It is possible to arrange for the coach to keep an eye on the whole time and guide the positioning and movement in real time in the rest area. He emphasized that the arrangement was not a "throw-right into the deep water" risk: the plan was to gradually increase the number of first bases instead of consecutive games, and to choose the Warriors instead of the Brewers as their debut opponents, who had a more explosive play (as opposed to the Brewers' style of consuming pitchers).

When Campbell stands on first base, it will be the fourth position he has played for the Red Sox in 42 games. "He said, 'If you don't play, you never know if you can do it,'" Korra recounted the rookie's fighting spirit, "and that belief made me decide to put him to the test in Atlanta." "