Red Sox Rumors: Alex Verdugo benched last week for poor work ethic

Boston Red Sox outfielder Alex Verdugo got punished last Wednesday for not hustling enough against the Cleveland Guardians. Red Sox manager Alex Cora decided to bench Verdugo for the following game, the series finale versus Cleveland, but it seems as though the two have since moved on.

In Wednesday's game, down 5-2 in the seventh, Verdugo slowed his running between first and second base and was easily thrown out. Here's the play in question.

Immediately afterward, Cora removed Verdugo from the game.

Verdugo was back in the lineup for the Red Sox's series against the Yankees this past weekend as well as the most recent series against the Rockies.

No hard feelings? That appears to be the takeaway from the benching incident as Verdugo himself spoke this past week about how getting taken out of the game "didn't sit well" with him. He said that he understood Cora's decision at the time and that he and Cora are "good" now.

Verdugo is slashing .292/.367/.447 in 65 games this season.

Red Sox Rumors: Matt Dermody in hot water for homophobic social media posts

Pitcher Matt Dermody's future with the Red Sox hangs in the balance after the club caught wind of his insensitive social media activity from a few years back.

Boston signed the 32-year-old to a minor league deal last offseason and called Dermody up for a spot start on June 8 (during Pride Month, no less). At that point in time, the Red Sox were already aware of one of Dermody's homophobic tweets, and Dermody's call-up faced heavy public backlash.

One week later, chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom is finally expressing regret over the decision to call-up Dermody. Bloom told the Boston Globe: "That's something we can't undo. It happened and we really regret it."

Prior to signing with the Red Sox, Dermody played in Japan and South Korea. In June of 2021, during one of his stints in the Nippon Professional Baseball league, he posted a tweet (which he later deleted) denouncing homosexuality as a sin:

#PrideMonth. Homosexuals will not inherit the kingdom of God. They will go to hell. That is not my opinion, but the #Truth. Read 1 Corinthians 6:9. May we all examine our hearts, ask Jesus to forgive us, and repent for our sins. I love you all in Christ Jesus!

Boston still called up the lefty to face the Guardians last Thursday, but Dermody was designated for assignment and sent to Triple-A Worcester shortly after.

The Red Sox have since uncovered more of Dermody's controversial social media activity leading them to re-evaluate his place on the roster, whether it's in the minors and majors.

Red Sox Rumors: Triston Casas' defense needs the most fixing, per coaches

First baseman Triston Casas was replaced with Justin Turner in Tuesday's game against Rockies because of his defensive issues, according to Red Sox coaches.

Alex Cora said that the club hasn't "given up on Triston" and plans to keep working with him to turn him into a better defender — albeit Casas could use extra offensive coaching, too.

Casas is batting just .202 this season through 61 games; however, he wasn't benched because of his plate percentages.

Rather than harp on his poor production at the plate, Boston believes the former top offensive prospect has the potential to win a Gold Glove and has started to incorporate more routine plays into his training.

Only time will tell if Casas can hone his performances out on the field and win back his first baseman job.