McAdam: Steve Pearce finally finds his baseball home with Red Sox

SARASOTA, Fla. -- As Steve Pearce walked onto the field at Ed Smith Stadium on Friday, the surroundings had an air of familiarity to them.

For one thing, Pearce has a home nearby. For another, it wasn't that long ago that Pearce was a member of the Baltimore Orioles.  On three different locations.

For that matter, Pearce's nomadic existence in the big leagues has taken him to every one of the AL East teams, some more than once. In spring training, Pearce can trace his stays up and down the Gulf Coast of Florida, from Dunedin (Blue Jays) and Tampa (Yankees) to Sarasota to Port Charlotte (Rays) and Fort Myers (Red Sox).

Journeyman may be too pejorative, but it's no exaggeration to suggest that he's had an itinerant existence, bouncing from one team to another -- almost all of them in the division -- and often in the middle of the season.

Now, at nearly 36 and despite the fact that he's only been here since last June, Pearce feels as though he may, at long last, be where he's supposed to be.



"For sure,'' said Pearce. "This is such a special group. We did so well together and got really close. When you make a run like the one we did, you're in the trenches. You're in that clubhouse and it has that 'home' vibe.''

Following his half-season with the Red Sox, Pearce blossomed in the postseason, hitting .333 against the Yankees in the ALDS. In the ALCS, he had just three hits, but one was a double and another was a homer. Pearce then saved his best for last with a 1.667 OPS in the World Series, including a torrid stretch in the final two games when he smoked three homers and seven RBI in the final two games as the Sox finished off the Dodgers.

That burst landed Pearce World Series MVP honors and made him a commodity on the free agent market. But he instructed his agent from the outset that his clear preference was to come back to the Sox. In a matter of weeks, a one-year deal was cut for him to return for 2019.

But even before the Sox capped their 108-win season and finished it off with the title and championship parade, Pearce, forever on the move, knew that he didn't want to leave.

As someone who has experienced a long list of baseball environments, Pearce instinctively -- and almost immediately -- senses that there was something different about the Red Sox.

"The way the pitchers and position players were intertwined,'' noted Pearce. "Usually, pitchers do their thing and position players do theirs. But when I got in the clubhouse, everyone was together and having fun. When I played (elsewhere), you'd see how much fun they had and how they played, and it took all of five minutes to see that in person when I came here.

"It was like, 'Wow, I get it; I understand what they're doing here.'  You don't see that in other places.''

Pearce is quick to stress that he had played for successful teams in the past, and on teams which enjoyed themselves and even exhibited some camaraderie. But there was deniably a unique feel to the Sox.

"It was different in a good way,'' said Pearce. "There was a closeness that you see. Maybe it was because a lot of them had played together for a while and jelled.''

The core was quick to welcome Pearce and make him feel a part of the team, despite his newcomer status. And even before the October run manifested itself into a championship, Pearce knew that he didn't want to go elsewhere.

"What we did in the postseason was the cherry on the top,'' he said. "I had already decided this was where I wanted to play and hopefully finish out my career.''

Part of what makes it a welcoming environment is the communication that takes place throughout the organization. As someone who was accustomed to playing infrequently, Pearce came to appreciate that Alex Cora made it a priority to let him know when he would be in the lineup.

''There was an open-door policy and that created a great vibe,'' said Pearce. "That allows everyone to relax and when you're relaxed, you just go play. And it showed on the field. Everybody communicated and for someone who spot starts, to get a heads up about when you're playing and when you're not, that goes a long way.

"I know players have to always be ready to play, but players have routines. You like to know the day before. So the communication is huge and you've got people always talking.''

Just like at home.