This story was excerpted from Ian Browne’s Red Sox Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

BOSTON -- The dog days of August hit the Red Sox hard this past weekend, as they were swept at home by the Astros, losing three games by an aggregate score of 23-10.

There was James Paxton on Sunday, limping off the mound just five pitches into his start with a right calf strain, with no guarantee he will pitch again this season.

There was star slugger Rafael Devers, needing a day off to rest after playing day after day with a left shoulder injury that has nagged him all season.

There was Tyler O’Neill, a key run producer all season, still out due to an infection in his left leg.

There was the beleaguered bullpen on Sunday, forced to pitch nearly the entire game for the second day in a row, and getting belted around in the finale.

However, if the Red Sox can swiftly put an end to this four-game losing streak and have a strong enough finish to the month to stay in the postseason race, they could be set up for a successful September.

Reinforcements are on the way.

The first will come by Aug. 20 at the latest, when Triston Casas is expected to return to the lineup after missing four months with torn cartilage in his left rib cage. The impact he could have on an already strong lineup could be as enormous as the 6-foot-5 Casas himself.

While Casas was always expected back at some point this season, the now seemingly likely return of Trevor Story is something nobody -- not even Story himself -- could have forecasted months ago. Story will take batting practice on the field at Fenway Park on Monday, and he could go on a Minor League rehab assignment soon if he keeps making progress. The return of Story would impact the Red Sox in three significant ways (defense, offense and leadership).

There’s also Liam Hendriks, who threw live batting practice on the mound prior to Saturday’s game. The three-time All-Star closer could provide a lift for the bullpen in the season’s final weeks.

Here is a look at how the Red Sox could line up down the stretch.

Lineup
1. Jarren Duran, LF
2. Wilyer Abreu, RF
3. Trevor Story, SS
4. Rafael Devers, 3B
5. Triston Casas, 1B
6. Tyler O’Neill/Masataka Yoshida, DH
7. Connor Wong, C
8. David Hamilton, 2B
9. Ceddanne Rafaela, CF

Rotation
Tanner Houck
Brayan Bello
Nick Pivetta
Kutter Crawford
Cooper Criswell

Bullpen
RHP Kenley Jansen
RHP Chris Martin
RHP Justin Slaten
RHP Liam Hendriks
RHP Lucas Sims
RHP Luis Garcia
LHP Cam Booser
RHP Zack Kelly
RHP Josh Winckowski

Even after a tough past few days, the Red Sox (61-55) remain in the hunt, trailing the Royals (65-53) by three games (two in the loss column) for the final American League Wild Card spot, with the Mariners (63-56) a half-game ahead of the Sox.

It would be interesting to see how an almost fully healthy Boston roster could function if the club is still in contention.