BOSTON — The Red Sox are still unsure when Alex Bregman will be ready to rejoin the active roster, with Bregman having already missed almost six weeks with a serious quad strain.

But whenever he’s cleared to play, the Red Sox may well take the unusual step of skipping a minor league rehab assignment and have him return directly to the major league team.

In essence, Bregman would get his rehab at-bats playing for the Red Sox, who remain on the periphery of the wild card race.

Bregman did some running Tuesday and also took ground balls. He’s done some hitting in the last week and is inching closer to being able to take part in games.

“We’ve done it before with some players,” noted Alex Cora, citing Dustin Pedroia in 2019 as one example. “We’ll talk about it and see where we’re at.”

Most teams who’ve tried such a strategy have done so in September, when time is running out on the regular season schedule. That’s not the case here, obviously, but both sides are viewing this with a sense of urgency.

Cora said a number of factors make Bregman uniquely qualified to skip a rehab assignment.

“The simplicity of his swing and the pitch selection,” said Cora, ticking off two variables. “He’s not going to chase. It’s something we’ve been talking about. I know it’s worth it to get at-bats away from the environment, (minor league) games that don’t mean much to us.

“But at the same time, understanding the type of player they are and the type of hitters they are, you have to respect that, too. It’s a big conversation. The (Triple A) level is a lot different; 25 or 30 at-bats in the minor leagues, yeah, they might help. But do they prepare you for (a return to major league competition?)”

“We’ll put everything on the table and then we’ll make a decision.”

While Bregman is pushing to come back directly to the big league team, the Red Sox aren’t averse to the idea and see the merit of such a move.

“We went through this in ‘19 with Dustin,” said Cora. “It was a little bit different situation because it was early in the season and all that. But like I said, we’ll sit down and talk about it. Whatever decision we make is for the benefit of the team and, of course, taking care of the player.”

Cora added that Bregman will not travel with the team to Washington for their holiday weekend series. The Sox return Sunday night and begin a seven-game homestand that will take them to the All-Star break.

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