Red Sox rookie Roman Anthony sidelined with left oblique strain

Roman Anthony, the Red Sox rookie outfielder who burst onto Boston's lineup after a June call-up, remains sidelined with a left oblique strain and is unlikely to return to game action before the regular season ends, team officials said. The 21 year old has been limited to light workouts since suffering the injury on September 2 and has not yet begun baseball activities that would lead to a return to the lineup.

Anthony established himself as one of the club's most productive hitters in a 71 game stretch this season, hitting .292 with a .396 on base percentage, a .463 slugging percentage, eight home runs, 18 doubles, 32 RBIs and 48 runs. Boston was 32-35 before his June 9 promotion and improved to 78-62 by Sept. 2, the last game he played. The team also produced markedly better offensive numbers while he was in the majors, including a .268 batting average, a .335 on base percentage and a .454 slugging percentage across a long midseason run.

Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow said Anthony is "making progress" and "getting a little more comfortable every day," but added the oblique injury "will take some time to heal" and there is "still quite a bit of room to get to in...