All-Star Mookie Betts is back in the Red Sox lineup on Wednesday, serving as the designated hitter against the Yankees in New York.
Yankees slugger Aaron Judge, who returned to the lineup Tuesday night after being out with a broken wrist, is also serving as DH on Wednesday, batting second.
Boston can win the American League East with a win.
Betts, who left Sunday's game against the Mets after injuring his side while making a throw, was held out of the lineup for Tuesday night's 3-2 loss to the Yankees in New York. Cora scratched Betts out of caution because of the soggy conditions.
Cora can be cautious with Betts because the Red Sox have by far baseball's best record, but Betts prefers consistent at-bats to stay sharp. He's also making a push for his first MVP award with an AL-best .337 batting average.
"I know he's close to doing a few things that are very special in this game,'' Cora said Tuesday. "But like I've been saying, he's a small guy, not as big as some other ones, and we need him to be close to 100 percent.''
In June, Betts hit the disabled list with left side soreness and missed 12 games. Cora said the latest injury was not related to that.