Aug 10, 2025; San Francisco, California, USA; Washington Nationals first baseman Nathaniel Lowe (33) bats against the San Francisco Giants during the sixth inning at Oracle Park. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

New Roles Revealed Amid Red Sox Power Outage

Originally posted on Boston Red Sox on SI
By Patrick McAvoy | Last updated Aug 19, 2025 9:00 AM ET

The Boston Red Sox added new first baseman into the mix already this week.

Boston has had a question at the position since Triston Casas got hurt but now Nathaniel Lowe is with the organization and seemingly is the answer the club has been waiting for. Well, at least that is the case on paper. Lowe is a former Gold Glove Award winner and Silver Slugger Award winner.

He was designated for assignment by the Washington Nationals after an uncharacteristic season. He appeared in 119 games with the Nationals and slashed .216/.292/.373 with 16 homers and 68 RBIs. He has consistently been a player to finish a season around a 3.0 WAR, but was at -0.4 when his time in Washington ended.

But, now how has a fresh start and Red Sox manager Alex Cora revealed what his role will look like.

"We’ll use him against righties, certain lefties, pinch-hit late,” Cora said. “We’ll maximize the roster...We can mix and match throughout the game, so we feel comfortable where we’re at,"

That's exactly what Boston did on Monday night in its loss against the Baltimore Orioles. Lowe pinch hit late in the game and walked and scored a run in his first taste of action at Fenway Park as a member of the Red Sox.

Red Sox reveal unexpected role for newly-acquired first baseman Nathaniel Lowe

With all of the questions that the Red Sox have had at first base this season, it's somewhat surprising that Boston landed someone with Lowe's track record and immediately talked about a pseudo platoon. But, again, it hasn't been a season up to his standards so maybe that is why. Maybe this means we'll see Lowe against most righties and still see someone like Romy González against the lefties. González has been phenomenal this season specifically againsts left-handed pitchers, but it is still at least somewhat surprising to hear about a potential platoon right away.

The Red Sox dropped their first game in their brief two-game series against the Orioles on Monday night and will finish off the series on Tuesday before a day off on Wednesday. After that the Red Sox will return to the field on Thursday to begin one of the team's most important series of the season so far against the New York Yankees on the road.

This article first appeared on Boston Red Sox on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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