FORT MYERS, Fla. — It has been a little more than two weeks since our initial roster projection for the Red Sox. A lot has changed.

Alex Bregman was signed and will play … somewhere. Rafael Devers may or may not be the designated hitter, and Kutter Crawford is headed for the injured list after leading the team in starts and innings last season.

Let’s try this again.

 

Rotation (6): RHP Tanner Houck, LHP Garrett Crochet, RHP Walker Buehler, RHP Brayan Bello, RHP Lucas Giolito, RHP Quinn Priester.

Crawford was able to pitch — and pitch well — with a sore right knee most of last season. The Sox are bringing him along slowly, hoping to avoid surgery.

Slot Priester into his spot to start the season, although it could be Cooper Criswell or Richard Fitts.

Bello and Giolito are being built up cautiously as they recover from injuries but are on track to be ready for the start of the season. Crochet looks like the ace the Sox have been missing for several years.

The busy April schedule and the fact that most of the rotation would benefit from an extra day of rest suggests a six-man rotation.

Bullpen (7): LHP Aroldis Chapman, RHP Luis Guerrero, RHP Liam Hendriks, RHP Justin Slaten, LHP Justin Wilson, RHP Garrett Whitlock, RHP Josh Winckowski.

For this version, Criswell is bumped to the Triple A rotation and replaced by Whitlock, who has looked impressive as he returns from surgery.

It’s unclear who the closer will be as Alex Cora is not ceding the job to Hendriks. Chapman or Slaten are possibilities, but this is a potential weakness.

Hendriks was last a closer in 2022. Chapman hasn’t had the job over a full season since 2021. Slaten has two career saves.

Don’t discount Guerrero as a possibility, although he has to make the team first.

Infielders (5): 1B Triston Casas, 2B Kristian Campbell, 3B Alex Bregman, SS Trevor Story, 2B-SS David Hamilton.

In the end, Bregman will play third base with Devers getting occasional games there. The alternative would be the Sox not being willing to put their best team on the field.

The Sox are committed to giving Campbell every chance to make the team. Story is healthy, and the plan is to play him four times a week in spring training to build up momentum headed into the season. Hamilton is a more useful bench player than Vaughn Grissom.

Outfielders (4): RF Wilyer Abreu, LF-CF Jarren Duran, CF Ceddanne Rafaela, LF-RF Rob Refsnyder.

Abreu is recovering from a gastrointestinal issue but has time to be ready. If not, a door opens for Roman Anthony. Rafaela had a productive offseason and needs to show the Sox a better approach at the plate than the swing-at-everything style he had last season.

Masataka Yoshida is being prepared to play the outfield again after getting one inning last season, but his slow return suggests he’ll open the season on the injured list.

Cora still believes Yoshida can be a productive hitter, but that Scott Boras landed him a $90 million contract may be his finest work as an agent.

Designated hitter (1): Rafael Devers.

This is where Devers fits best, even if he doesn’t want to be there, but don’t assume it will be easy. Devers has played the field since he was old enough to play and is used to the rhythm of the game. Pacing around waiting for four or five at-bats requires different preparation and even a different mind-set.

Catchers (2): Connor Wong, Carlos Narvaez.

No changes here. Blake Sabol could wrestle away the backup job, but Narvaez is a far superior defensive catcher and that usually is what makes a difference.

Utility (1): 1B-SS-2B-3B-OF Romy Gonzalez.

It seems odd that the only players in camp with any major league experience at first base are Casas, Gonzalez, Refsnyder, and non-roster journeyman Abraham Toro.

Refsnyder hasn’t played first base since 2020 and Toro has only nine starts the last four seasons. That makes Gonzalez valuable. He has been slowed by a sore oblique but will be in games soon.