Thursday afternoon the Red Sox made their decision on Vaughn Grissom, activating the young second baseman from the injured list and optioning him to Triple-A.

Friday afternoon, Red Sox manager Alex Cora explained why the club felt Worcester was the best place for the 23-year-old to be, at least for now.

“We’ve been talking about it for weeks, we’re trying to get this guy to who he is and there’s a program in place,” Cora said. “Obviously he was disappointed that he’s not going to be part of this right now, but he’s making strides offensively, defensively, running, getting stronger, we all talk about his offseason and spring training and he’s been hurt most of the time.

“So let’s be patient here,” Cora continued. “He’s going to be a big part of what we’re trying to accomplish now and in the future, so this is a good time for him to keep playing, keep building up and we’ll see what the future holds.”

Grissom was acquired this past offseason in exchange for left-hander Chris Sale, but shortly after the trade he suffered a groin injury, the first in a series of injury setbacks that have collectively derailed his first season in Boston.

Between the groin issue and a subsequent left hamstring strain Grissom missed all of spring training and didn’t make his season debut until May 3. After that he struggled badly, batting .148 with a minuscule .367 OPS in 23 games. He managed just one extra-base hit in 87 plate appearances and was eventually shut down on June 2 after suffering a right hamstring strain.

Cora has frequently said that Grissom’s been behind physically all season and that now they want to allow him all the time he needs to ramp up. Optioning him will allow Grissom more time to build up after his 20-day rehab assignment expired, plus it will allow the second baseman regular playing time when he would have otherwise had to compete for at bats with Romy Gonzalez, David Hamilton and Nick Sogard.