Caleb Durbin Undergoes Foot Surgery

The Red Sox announced that Caleb Durbin underwent surgery on the fifth metatarsal in his right foot (relayed by Christopher Smith of MassLive). It’s the second postseason operation for the third baseman, who also had a minor procedure on his left pinky finger a few weeks ago. Boston didn’t reveal a recovery timetable, but there’s no indication either surgery is expected to impact his readiness for Spring Training. They mostly serve to confirm that Durbin was playing through a few different injuries down the stretch. Despite the health concerns, the 26-year-old infielder was much better in the second half than he’d been early in the season. Durbin’s first two months in Boston were ugly enough that it came as a moderate surprise that the Sox didn’t option him to Triple-A. The front office was rewarded for its faith. Durbin caught fire in June and July. While his power numbers dropped again in the final two months of the season, he continued to reach base at a strong clip. Durbin finished the year with a league average .248/.332/.378 batting line with 13 home runs in aggregate. The Sox will hope for something closer to the .279/.369/.424 slash he posted after June 1 as he enters his second season at Fenway Park. Assuming he’s fully healthy, Durbin will enter camp as the presumptive starter at third base. He has the versatility to move to second if the Sox add an impact bat at the hot corner, but it’s a very weak free agent class at the latter position. Skipper Chad Tracy suggested the early plan is to have Durbin, a Gold Glove finalist, back at third while giving Curtis Mead first crack at the second base job. View Comments (4)