Alex Bregman (right quad strain) began his running progression Thursday, manager Alex Cora said. “If it’s up to him, he’ll be playing tonight,” Cora joked Friday before Boston’s series opener against the Yankees at Yankee Stadium.

Hunter Dobbins wasn’t one of the young Red Sox pitchers competing for an Opening Day roster during the final days of spring training. Boston optioned him to minor league camp 16 days before the regular season opener.

This is one that I’ve had circled for a long time,” Hunter Dobbins told the Herald as he stood in the visitors dugout watching passing showers soak Yankee Stadium. The 25-year-old right-hander is among several Red Sox rookies who arrived in the Bronx eager to make their mark on what many consider the greatest rivalry in sports.