PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. -- With the Netherlands advancing to the semifinals of the World Baseball Classic, Red Sox shortstop Xander Bogaerts might be away from Spring Training for another week.
It will not affect his preparedness for the start of the regular season, according to manager John Farrell.
:: 2017 World Baseball Classic ::
"There's going to be roughly 10 days before the [April 3] opener, and we feel like there's going to be ample time to get him feeling as comfortable as possible before the start of the year," Farrell said.
Bogaerts has played every game at third base for the Netherlands, which has qualified for a berth in Monday night's semifinal game at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. The championship game will be played next Wednesday.
Andrelton Simmons plays shortstop for the Netherlands, moving Bogaerts over to third, a position he has not played for the Red Sox since July 2014. In six Classic games, Bogaerts is 4-for-19 with a triple and six walks.
Bogaerts started 157 games at shortstop for the Red Sox last season, hitting .294 with 21 home runs. Farrell said there are no conditions under which he would play third base for Boston.
The World Baseball Classic runs through March 22. In the U.S., games air live exclusively in English on MLB Network and on an authenticated basis via MLBNetwork.com/watch, while ESPN Deportes and WatchESPN provide the exclusive Spanish-language coverage. MLB.TV Premium subscribers in the U.S. have access to watch every tournament game live on any of the streaming service's 400-plus supported devices. The tournament is being distributed internationally across all forms of television, internet, mobile and radio in territories excluding the U.S., Puerto Rico and Japan. Get tickets for games in San Diego's Petco Park and the Championship Round at Dodger Stadium, while complete coverage -- including schedules, video, stats and gear -- is available at WorldBaseballClassic.com.