Roman Anthony was a great star for the Boston Red Sox last year. He hit .292 with eight home runs. Those hitting numbers placed him in the top five on the team. Boston really needs his bat right now. However, his strong season stopped when he hurt his hand on May 4. The front office first said it was a minor issue, but the real injury is much worse. Now, Red Sox CEO Sam Kennedy is apologizing. His mistake makes fans wonder if the leadership can handle player injuries correctly.

The Red Sox completely botched the timeline for Anthony’s return.

“Well, listen, I need to own up to my mistake,” Kennedy said via WEEI’s ‘The Greg Hill Show’ on Thursday. “I mean, I was unequivocal in my response to you regarding Roman and his situation. Apparently, I missed that day at Harvard Medical School. I shouldn’t be sitting here talking about a sprain. A sprain is a tear. I was reading off of a report that identified the sprain…So, I apologize for my mistake there. I’ve communicated with Roman about that. That’s all good. Most important is he’s doing the work to get back.”

Anthony started the year on a moderate note. Till his last game on May 4, he was hitting .229/.354/.321 with one home run and five runs batted in across 30 games. Even with his slow start, the 22-year-old outfielder is very important. He signed an eight-year, $130 million contract extension, which shows that Boston invested heavily in his bat. Now, he is out for a long time.

To make matters worse, Anthony got hurt right when Boston’s offense was already struggling. The bad timing made the team’s problems even deeper.

The Red Sox initially called the injury a right wrist sprain. Anthony later revealed it was a “partially torn ring finger ligament.”

“I don’t know if it’s made clear, but it’s a partially torn ring finger ligament. My ring finger CMC (carpometacarpal), to be exact,” Anthony said on May 29.

However, the Red Sox front office kept dismissing speculations. Kennedy publicly denied reports of a torn ligament. “He’s got a sprain in the ligament at the base of the ring finger; there’s no evidence of the tear,” Kennedy said.

Kennedy finally admitted his mistake this week. Right now, the team has not set a date for Anthony’s return.

Without Anthony and other key players, the Red Sox have dropped to a 27-39 record. They are now 13.5 games behind the first-place Tampa Bay Rays. Their offense is in shambles. They are ranked 29th in terms of total runs (258) and 30th in terms of hitting home runs (52). A .292 hitter from last year would have worked wonders, but the front office botched it up. And Anthony is not the only one the Red Sox have managed poorly.

Under Kennedy, the front office seems to be making a habit of hiding how bad injuries really are. In the past, they messed up recovery timelines for players like Triston Casas and Trevor Story. They kept fans in the dark about when those players would actually return.

The Red Sox’s injuries are turning out worse

Similar to Roman Anthony, the team also mismanaged Garrett Crochet‘s injury. Crochet entered a 60-day IL on June 5, but on Wednesday, he updated that his injury “is a lot worse than what we thought” initially.

He was diagnosed with a left shoulder lat strain and left shoulder inflammation. The team, however, at first said Crochet had minor shoulder inflammation. Now, there’s no clear timetable for when he can even resume playing.

“Unfortunately, he’s dealing with a lat issue,” Kennedy said. “I’ll stop there. If anything, I learn from my mistakes in terms of putting timetables and getting into details.”

However, with the All-Star break around the corner, the Red Sox have limited time to rebound from their current slump. Last year, Crochet pitched brilliantly, tying for second in MLB in wins with an 18-5 record in 32 games. He also posted a 2.59 ERA and led the league with 255 strikeouts. Currently, the Red Sox are ranked 11th in terms of ERA (3.93); Crochet’s presence could have worked wonders.

In addition, names like Tanner Houck and Kutter Crawford in the IL are just making things difficult for the team. Kennedy apologized for botching up, but it’s far from saving the team from disaster.