Red Sox designate outfielder Grady Sizemore for assignment

BOSTON, MA - The Boston Red Sox today designated outfielder Grady Sizemore for assignment. To fill his spot on the 25-man roster, third baseman Garin Cecchini was recalled from Triple-A Pawtucket. Cecchini will be active for tonight's game against the Minnesota Twins at Fenway Park beginning at 7:10 p.m.

Executive Vice President/General Manager Ben Cherington made the announcement.

Sizemore, 31, batted .216 (40-for-185) with 10 doubles, two triples, two home runs, and 15 RBI in 52 games for the Red Sox in 2014, his first action in the majors since 2011 due to knee and back injuries. Signed by Boston as a free agent on January 22, the left-handed hitter made the Red Sox' Opening Day roster out of spring training and started and homered in the club's season opener on March 31 at Baltimore. Defensively, he made 48 starts for the Red Sox, with 22 in left field, 14 in right field, and 12 in center field. Sizemore delivered four game-winning RBI for Boston this season (3^rd-most on the club), including a walk-off single in a 12-inning win over Cincinnati on May 6.

Cecchini, 23, returns to the Red Sox for his second major league stint of the season. The left-handed hitter has batted .263 with a club-leading 56 hits in 213 at-bats with eight doubles, two triples, and 24 RBI in 62 games at Pawtucket this year, including an International League-high 58 games at third base. He leads current PawSox qualifiers with a .344 on-base percentage and posted the league's longest on-base streak of the season, reaching in 29 consecutive games from April 18-May 22. An All-Star in each of his first three minor league seasons (2011-13), he made his major league debut for Boston on June 1 against the Tampa Bay Rays at Fenway Park, and connected for an RBI double in his second at-bat for his first major league hit.