A month from now, we could be singing about another 489-foot home run hit by Franchy Cordero. That is the rhythm of a baseball season.
But for now, we have to do digest and analyze what is in front of us. And that is the uncomfortable images being supplied by the key player coming back from Andrew Benintendi this offseason.
After a decent start in which he lived on opposite field singles -- some coming at very key moments -- Cordero's existence is one of the more concerning for a Red Sox team still trying to fit all its puzzle pieces.
The 26-year-old has one hit over the last 10 days, striking out 15 times over that span. In Saturday's 8-2 loss, Cordero fanned three times, swinging and missing at six of the last seven pitches he faced.
For the season, the lefty hitter has swung and missed 45.4 percent of the time, which would give him the second-highest swing-and-miss rate in the majors, only behind Chicago's Javier Baez.
There have been no home runs, or semblance of living life as an impactful offensive player.
Simply put, Cordero -- a player who now has 112 major league games under his belt -- doesn't look like a major league player.
"You’ve got to keep coaching the player and giving him confidence," said Red Sox manager Alex Cora. "This week he had one big hit against (Lucas) Giolito going the other way so it’s not lack of effort, he’s working on his craft everyday with Timmy (Hyers) and Peter (Fatse). He’s in a bad stretch right now but he’s a guy we trust and believe is going to make contact and when he makes contact, good things happen. Like I said earlier, I believe he’s in between. Kind of like trying to make contact instead of putting up a good at-bat. If he does that he’s going to be in a better spot."
Now, that can change. We have seen it before. Remember all those swing-and-miss stretches Jackie Bradley Jr. went through with the Red Sox (and now finds himself mired in with the Brewers)? But we have to be realistic as to what is best for the Red Sox and Cordero right now.
He is so off, missing pitches by so much, it seems fair to reassess Cordero's early-season role.
Enter Danny Santana.
It is believed the veteran utilityman has an April 30 opt-out, forcing the issue when it comes to making a roster decision. The original belief was that Santana would find his way onto the Red Sox' roster at the expense of one of the Red Sox' 14 pitchers, with the team getting a break in the schedule heading into May.
But two things might have changed that line of thinking: 1. A good chunk of the starting rotation hasn't shown an ability to give enough innings to allow Alex Cora to draw back on the bullpen; and 2. Cordero.
While many would love to see this as an opportunity to call-up lefty-hitting Jarren Duran, Santana is the more likely option. He, like Marwin Gonzalez and Kiké Hernandez, can play outfield on a regular basis, while also serving as an infield option.
A switch-hitter, Santana is better against right-handers which would allow to slot into Cordero's role as a lefty-hitting outfield option.
This isn't a conversation about who won the Benintendi trade. It's way too early. The Royals obviously haven't seen the best of the former Red Sox' outfielder, who is hitting just .209 with a .582 OPS but has scored runs in each of the last four games while managing his first home run of the season Friday night. And, the guess here is the Red Sox haven't seen the best of Cordero.
Also, don't forget, Josh Winckowski, the pitcher the Red Sox also received in the Benintendi trade, was one of the standouts during few spring training appearances. And there are also the player-to-be-named-later guys who are coming to the Sox, the likes of which won't be identified until well into the minor-league season.
This is about the here and the now and deciphering what is best for the 2021 Red Sox, both short- and long-term.
It's OK to recalibrate. And now would seem to be the time to do it.