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BOSTON — Danilo Gallinari and the Celtics reunited at practice on Thursday in what marked one of their final sessions before the playoffs. Gallinari continues to travel with Boston to maintain access to their rehab staff and sit in team meetings. He never ruled out a return this season — and still won’t — following his second torn left ACL of his career in August.

He smiled at Derrick White entering the scrum after signing some autographs at the team facility, hoping to have White join him for an interview with reporters where he announced continued progress in line with the timeline he received upon injuring the knee. Gallinari also admitted it’s difficult to return during the postseason. Most ACL recoveries take 9-12 months, which takes him to June, at the earliest, following his Sept. 29 surgery.

“Playoffs is still in my head,” Gallinari said. “That’s something that I’m looking forward to. I don’t know if it’s going to happen or not, but from a motivational standpoint, that’s always something that motivates me more. I don’t know if it’s going to happen or not. Of course, you will have to go through one-on-one, two-on-two, three-on-three, play five-of-five, so a lot of steps that need to be done before you play an actual game, and maybe even after all those steps, you’re not ready for a playoff game, because when you don’t play the whole season, then be ready to play a playoff game, it’s not easy for anybody, not just body-wise, but mentally. It might happen. We’ll see.”

The Celtics did not release a timeline when they announced Gallinari’s surgery in September, though skepticism exists regarding his ability to play this year. MassLive reported Boston offered Payton Pritchard, two second-round picks and Gallinari, who owns a $6.8-million player option for next season, in exchange for Jakob Poetl, which the Spurs declined. Grant Williams, Sam Hauser, Luke Kornet and Blake Griffin stepped into the front court role the team originally signed Gallinari to fill.

In recent months, Gallinari focused on balance to catch up his left knee’s strength to that of his right. He recently began making cutting moves on the court in controlled environments, putting up shots and hitting them at a rate that impressed Derrick White. Brad Stevens and Joe Mazzulla both saw Gallinari flying on the treadmill faster than they’d seen before.

“He’s working hard. He doesn’t seem to miss anytime I watch him shoot,” White said. “It’s good to see him moving around and doing things we’re used to seeing Gallo do.”

Gallinari originally projected to compete with Grant for minutes while playing the five alongside him as insurance and a complement for Robert Williams III. Adding Mike Muscala filled the front court further, though Grant’s impending free agency could increase the team’s reliance on Gallinari next year if Grant departs.

Despite approaching 35-years-old this summer and 20 years in professional basketball, Gallinari eyes the future. He previously about the importance of playing for the Celtics and pursuing a championship, reasons he signed with Boston, but he won’t take the floor earlier than advisable just to contribute this year. Gallinari wants his career to continue for years to come.

“At this stage, maybe you want to push a little more, but at the same time, yes, I’m older, but I’m far from being done with basketball,” he said. “You don’t want to risk it too much, because you’re not that young, but you still got some years to play. The best way to do it is just listening to your knee, and whatever the knee is telling you, that’s the path you’ve got to follow and things that you’ve gotta do day-by-day.”

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BRADENTON, Fla. -- Back from the World Baseball Classic, where he did a lot more spectating than playing for Team Mexico, Jarren Duran resumed his quest to crack the Opening Day roster for the Red Sox, even though the odds seem stacked against him.

Duran led off on Thursday against the Pirates in Boston's 7-4 victory, which provided the left-handed hitter an opportunity to make a sudden impact. Even though he got out on a weak chopper back to the pitcher in his first at-bat, Duran's speed was noticeable as he made it a close play.

Manager Alex Cora’s response when asked what he is looking for from Duran was fitting.

“Just play,” Cora said.

Duran, the No. 4 prospect in Boston’s farm system just two years ago, admits that he let the outside noise get to him, whether it was the high rankings or criticism of his defense in center field. In other words, there were times Duran didn’t "just play" because there were too many other thoughts swirling around in his head.

“Whenever you have high expectations [from others], you expect a lot out of yourself. But I guess it's always just tough to do what everybody else wants you to do,” Duran said. “At the end of the day, you just have to do what’s best for you and what makes you happy and your teammates happy.”

The 26-year-old is in a better place now, and he is in the mindset of letting his talent take over. In the offseason, he hit the weight room hard -- which is obvious with a quick glance at his biceps -- but Duran was also able to maintain his speed.

“You put on a little bit of weight, but you’ve also got to work on your speed and just continue to run and stay strong,” said Duran. “But I think the stronger you get, the faster you get. I think it [goes] hand in hand.”

Duran was rated so highly two years ago because of his tools. He knows he didn’t lose those skills in a span of two years, even if his results have been lacking in the Major Leagues. Duran’s hope is that his improved mindset will lead to improved results when he either breaks camp with the team or is called up during the season.

“I'm just gonna keep working, and hopefully I'll get my opportunity and I'll be able to show it off,” said Duran.

Though Duran had just five at-bats for a Team Mexico squad that advanced all the way to the semifinals of the World Baseball Classic, he isn’t wasting any time second-guessing his decision to play for the country his father is from.

“You're not going to get that experience anywhere else,” said Duran. "It [feels like] the bottom of the ninth, full count, every single pitch.”

Team Mexico is going to the semifinals for the first time in #WorldBaseballClassic history! pic.twitter.com/yzOyvX5hMW

— MLB (@MLB) March 18, 2023

If Duran is upset he didn’t get more playing time, he isn’t saying so publicly.

“It's baseball, it happens. You get used to it,” said Duran.

Now, Duran is in the unique spot of getting his playing legs back under him with just a few days left in camp.

“I don't even know what to expect, but [Duran] was swinging the bat so well before he left,” Cora said. “The situation, going to a tournament, not playing, we don't control that. I know we're proud of him.”

If not for the presence of veteran Raimel Tapia, who is in camp on a non-roster invite and doesn’t have options, Duran -- who does have options -- would have a better chance to make the team.

“I've never been that guy that looks at that. They're going to make a decision, no matter what you think. There’s no point in stressing about it,” said Duran.

It was Tapia who lofted an inside-the-park grand slam over Duran’s head at Fenway Park in a 28-5 loss to the Blue Jays last July. Duran lost the ball in the twilight and didn’t chase after it. It was fuel for those vocal critics who didn’t think he was a good defender in center. Duran admits he lost confidence in himself as an outfielder. Now, he has it back.

“I think it’s more [about] telling myself I can play there more than anything else. I know I can do it, but sometimes you doubt yourself, especially when you listen to outside noise,” Duran said. “But I have more confidence in myself, especially with how hard I’ve been working.”

And if there’s one thing that can help Duran turn his career around, it is this.

“Just play loose,” said Duran. “Don’t get too tight out there.”

Heads up: There’s a big, juicy, truffled burger taking over the South End right now. Ryan Skeen, the chef who oversees the kitchen at the Beehive, a popular restaurant and live music hangout in the South End, has put together a $37 dry-aged burger with black truffles and bacon — a nod to his past as a burger savant of sorts in NYC — and it has been met with sellout success at the restaurant.

“We were a little apprehensive at first, we didn’t know how well it would sell,” Skeen says. “We made, like, 50 of them [last week] and they were gone in three days.”

Skeen put it on the menu as a nod to the best-selling burgers that he engineered during his days in New York City at restaurants like Church Street Tavern, an upscale Manhattan pub that lasted for a couple of years. Critics lauded his burger blends at the time for the choice cuts of meat mixed with unexpected touches like beef hearts that produced “added gamey funk,” as New York Magazine put it.

Similarly, Skeen’s burger blend at the Beehive is an upscale mix that includes dry-aged ribeye, strip loin, short rib, and skirt steak from Creekstone Farms, a Kansas-based operation that counts acclaimed meat supplier Pat LaFrieda among its customers. The burger is topped with bacon, black truffle shavings, a fancy gruyere cheese, and frisée, all sandwiched between a brioche bun from local bakery Iggy’s.

That $37 price tag, however, is enough to turn heads on its own. Like many other food items, burgers have been creeping up in price as restaurateurs contend with rising costs of ingredients. In New York City, a fancy burger can now cost up to (and exceeding) $50. Still, Boston’s most acclaimed burgers are generally way less pricey, from the beef chuck number slathered with bacon-onion marmalade at the Haven in Jamaica Plain ($20) to the dry-aged beef version layered with jalapeno chips at Little Donkey in Cambridge ($17). The Beehive even has another burger on the menu — a basic pub burger with a general blend of meat from the whole cow — that is priced at $20.

“Obviously, it’s not for everyone,” Skeen says of his dry-aged, truffled creation. “But it’s kind of a nice little luxury you can get every once in a while.”

Still, for some customers, it’s a huge hit. Last Saturday, the kitchen sold more of the luxury truffle burgers than its regular pub burger, according to Skeen. He’s currently prepping for a batch of 100 burgers to sell through the end of this weekend, and then it’ll reappear on the menu intermittently as the kitchen can get access to in-season truffles.

One week remains before the Red Sox host the Orioles for an Opening Day date at Fenway Park. And while Boston hasn’t quite finalized the 26-man roster that will take the field that day, it’s getting closer.

Injuries have piled up throughout spring for the Red Sox, who may begin the year with as many as nine players on the injured list, including projected starters Brayan Bello and Garrett Whitlock.

With one week to go, here’s a look at Boston’s projected roster (non-roster invitees denoted with *):

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STARTING PITCHERS (5): RHP Corey Kluber, LHP Chris Sale, RHP Tanner Houck, RHP Nick Pivetta, RHP Kutter Crawford

INJURED LIST (3): RHP Brayan Bello, LHP James Paxton, RHP Garrett Whitlock

ANALYSIS: In the rotation, nothing has changed since we last projected the roster two weeks ago. Kluber, Sale and Houck (who has struggled mightily in spring training) will each start games in Boston’s first series of the year against Baltimore. Nick Pivetta will have a rotation spot and will be slotted in fifth (his first start is April 4 vs. Pittsburgh). The final rotation spot (the fourth one in the order to start) will either go to Kutter Crawford or Josh Winckowski. The guess here is that Crawford grabs it while Winckowski also makes the team as a long relief option.

The Red Sox entered camp with seven ready-made rotation options — Sale, Kluber, Whitlock, Bello, Paxton, Pivetta and Houck — competing for five spots. That depth has already been tested with Whitlock (hip), Bello (forearm) and Paxton (hamstring) all slated to begin the year on the IL. Whitlock might miss just one start while Bello will be ready at some point in April. Paxton’s recovery has been slower and anything before a May return seems unlikely.

For now, Boston will open the season with Kluber, Sale, Houck, Pivetta and likely Crawford in the rotation with Winckowski and prospects Bryan Mata, Chris Murphy and Brandon Walter, who are all on the 40-man roster, all providing depth. When everyone is healthy, Houck seems ticketed for a bullpen role while Pivetta’s future is a bit up in the air. The Sox don’t seem inclined to use Whitlock, Paxton or Bello as relievers. Bello could see some time in Triple-A as well.

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RELIEF PITCHERS (8): RHP Kenley Jansen, RHP Chris Martin, RHP John Schreiber, LHP Richard Bleier, RHP Ryan Brasier, RHP Zack Kelly, RHP Josh Winckowski, LHP Ryan Sherriff*

INJURED LIST (3): LHP Joely Rodríguez, RHP Wyatt Mills

ANALYSIS: The shape of Boston’s projected relief group has changed in the past few days as Rodríguez, who was a lock to make the team, suffered a Grade 2 oblique strain and will miss the beginning of the year. Mills was also a candidate for the big league team but is out of the mix now that elbow inflammation (the team believes it’s minor flexor soreness) will land him on the IL to start the year.

Jansen, Martin, Schreiber and Bleier are locks and Brasier, despite an uneven spring, will crack the roster as well. Manager Alex Cora said Thursday that he expects both Crawford and Winckowski to make the team so Winckowski gets a spot as a long reliever as long as Crawford is in the rotation. That leaves two spots for a group that includes righties Zack Kelly and Kaleb Ort and lefty non-roster invitees Ryan Sherriff and Oddanier Mosqueda. The Red Sox are trying to decide whether they would rather carry a lefty like Sherriff or Mosqueda in Rodríguez’s absence or a multi-inning option.

Kelly deserves a spot and will likely get one, leaving one final opening. Ort (8.64 ERA, 4 HR, 7 BB in 8.1 innings) has had a brutal spring and might finally lose his 40-man spot as a result. Keeping someone like Sherriff (5.2 scoreless innings, 6 K this spring) would make sense; a waiver claim or small trade addition can’t be ruled out, either.

The Red Sox have 18 pitchers left in camp. They’ll carry 13 while placing five others (Bello, Paxton, Whitlock, Rodríguez, Mills) on the injured list. There aren’t too many difficult decisions when it comes to the staff. Ort vs. Sherriff might be the only one.

***

CATCHERS (2): C Reese McGuire, C Jorge Alfaro

INJURED LIST (1): C Connor Wong

ANALYSIS: The catching situation presents one of the most interesting battles entering the last week of camp. Reese McGuire will be the starting catcher but it’s still not clear who his right-handed hitting platoon partner will be. That job will either go to Connor Wong or Jorge Alfaro.

Wong suffered a minor hamstring strain on March 2 and has returned to game action since, though Cora said earlier in the week that he’s getting close after taking at-bats on back fields in recent days. Alfaro is healthy but was away from the team for weeks to play for Team Colombia in the World Baseball Classic. Complicating matters is that Alfaro’s minor league contract includes an “upward mobility” clause that would allow him to leave the Red Sox for a major league opportunity elsewhere as early as Saturday. A decision on his future should come soon.

The Red Sox have been impressed by Alfaro’s offense (.556 average in 7 spring games) and throwing arm but are wary of his status as a below-average receiver behind the plate. The club does have confidence in Wong, if healthy, but is in a tricky spot; Boston can keep Alfaro and Wong by selecting Alfaro to the roster and optioning Wong but cannot keep Alfaro without at least giving other teams a chance to snag him. The guess here is the Sox will try to preserve depth by keeping Alfaro in the coming days and figuring out their catching mix in April. Adding Alfaro to the 40-man roster would mean clearing a spot elsewhere.

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INFIELDERS (6): 1B Triston Casas, 2B Christian Arroyo, SS Kiké Hernández, 3B Rafael Devers, INF/DH Justin Turner, INF Yu Chang

INJURED LIST (2): 2B/SS Trevor Story, 2B/SS Adalberto Mondesí

ANALYSIS: Casas, Arroyo, Hernández and Devers will make up the starting infield on a day-to-day basis and Turner will be the DH who can sub in at the corners if needed. Story and Mondesí both remain multiple weeks away from returning.

In the infield, there’s a battle for a reserve spot, likely between Chang and Bobby Dalbec. Both right-handed hitters have had good months, as Dalbec has torn up Grapefruit League pitching and Chang was named the Pool A MVP in the World Baseball Classic after a torrid four-game stretch for Chinese Taipei. The choice between them might be a difficult one.

Chang’s candidacy benefits from the fact he already has a 40-man roster spot and the fact he is seen as a plus defender across the diamond. Dalbec has played shortstop on a few occasions this spring but is much more limited with the glove. The Red Sox can keep both players by putting Chang on the roster and optioning Dalbec to Triple-A; the tough part is that Chang has not yet been in camp at all this winter due to the WBC and visa issues and will have less than a week in front of Red Sox decision-makers to make his case.

***

OUTFIELDERS (5): LF Masataka Yoshida, CF Adam Duvall, RF Alex Verdugo, OF Rob Refsnyder, OF Raimel Tapia

ANALYSIS: The starting outfield is set in stone with Yoshida in left field, Duvall in center and Verdugo in right, assuming everyone is healthy. Refsnyder is back as a lefty-mashing fourth outfielder who should get plenty of chances to play the corners against southpaws in place of Yoshida and Verdugo.

Barring a surprise, the Red Sox will also carry a left-handed hitting outfielder to balance things out. The two prime candidates for that spot are Tapia and Jarren Duran, who just returned to the team after playing for Team Mexico in the WBC.

Tapia likely has a leg up for a few reasons. First, he has been excellent this spring, hitting .325 with two homers and a .972 OPS in 15 games entering Thursday. Also, his contract situation, which is similar to Alfaro’s, might force the issue. Tapia can opt out of his contract and hit free agency Saturday if he so chooses; the Red Sox can block that by simply adding him to their roster. Considering Duran only got a handful of at-bats in the WBC, the Sox might want him to get everyday reps in Worcester to start the year. They can preserve depth by keeping Tapia on the roster and Duran at Triple-A.

Adding Tapia, such as with Alfaro and Sherriff, would require a 40-man roster move.

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.

Masataka Yoshida will make his debut for the Red Sox on March 30 when he bats cleanup against the Orioles at Fenway Park, but the Japanese star had his coming-out party during the international showcase that is the World Baseball Classic.

In that high-voltage environment, Yoshida got a chance to show off his production and plate discipline to fans who hadn’t seen him play. Japan defeated the United States, 3-2, in the championship game and Yoshida finished the tournament with a WBC record 13 RBIs.

Most dramatically, Yoshida belted a game-tying three-run homer in the seventh inning of the semifinal round against Mexico on Monday night, making Japan’s thrilling walk-off win possible. In the same game, Yoshida threw out a runner at the plate when Mexico had a chance to extend its lead to three runs in the top of the eighth. And in the bottom of the ninth, Yoshida followed Shohei Ohtani’s leadoff double with a walk, helping to set up the walk-off, two-run double by Munetaka Murakami.

When the Red Sox signed Yoshida to a five-year, $90-million contract that included a $15.4 million posting fee, there were anonymous team executives around the game who questioned the signing. Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom has been steadfast in his belief that the club’s valuation of Yoshida was on the money. It will take a while to find out if he was right, but early signs are encouraging.

• Allow Masataka Yoshida to introduce himself to the world

“He’s a good player. And this isn’t about [people] doubting us or whatever. Everyone is going to judge us for the next five years, right? You talk to anyone who played with or against him in Japan, they feel like he’s going to [thrive] here,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said.

“Just watching the tournament, with all due respect to everyone in that group, he’s been probably the MVP of the Japanese team. That at-bat [for the three-run homer] was great. Also, the patience. Going the other way with two strikes. The walk. The throw from left field. I’m not saying he’s the whole package, but I can say he’s a good baseball player.”

Given that Yoshida will be playing in the pressurized market of Boston, it was a good sign for him to flourish the way he did on the stage that is the WBC.

“He’s not afraid. This guy, he’s very stylish,” Cora said. “I don’t think he’s going to shy away from the spotlight. It seems like he can slow down the game too, which is very important. We’re very proud of him.”