McAdam: Collin McHugh on why he chose Red Sox, his timetable and remorse over sign-stealing

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Collin McHugh had other teams interested in signing him this past winter, but when the Red Sox presented him with the opportunity to come to Boston, McHugh's mind was made up quickly.

"I mean, it's the Red Sox,'' McHugh said Friday, a day after agreeing to a one-year, $600,000 deal with the Sox. "It's one of the most storied franchises in all of sports. I'm a huge baseball fan so for me, it was kind of a 'pinch me' moment to be able to look up and realize that you're playing for this team that's been around for so long and had so many great players come through.

"You see your jersey in your locker, and you start thinking of all the guys who have put that uniform on. For me, it's just a really great opportunity and I'm hoping I can make the most of it and help this team win some ballgames.''

As McHugh well knows, it will be a while before he accomplishes the latter. He missed the end of last season with a flexor tendon injury in his right elbow and underwent a procedure in December. He hasn't yet begun a throwing program, but believes that isn't far away.



"It seems to be going really well,'' he said. "We're still in the rehab process so I'm coordinating with the rehab staff and the training staff here to make sure we're all on the same page before we hit the ground running with some throwing here soon and work my way into game shape.

"I think it's a little too early for us to put a hard time-table on it. We're still getting to know them and they're getting to know me. I think we'll have a better idea moving forward in a couple of weeks and we'll figure out exactly what the road ahead looks like. I'm not 100 percent sure -- obviously the sooner the better and that's what I'm working toward. I came into camp and signed thinking in my head we're really close, we're ready to get going really soon.''

McHugh said the flexor tendon issue "kind of came out of nowhere (last season). I've never been a guy with elbow problems. I don't know if it was changing from starting and relieving and back, or changing routine or workload. It was kind of frustrating last year to not be able to help as much as I wanted to.''

The righty has worked both in relief and as a starter, and isn't sure for now how he'll be utilized, though it stands to reason, with the Sox in need of experienced rotation options, they'll first look to use him as a starter.

"We've had some conversations,'' said McHugh. "I think it's going to be an area where what the team needs. I've done both and had success doing both. More recently, I was a reliever but I've been a starter since 2013 and it's kind of what I've done my whole life. So that's not foreign to me at all. I told (Chaim Bloom) I'm open to doing both.''

Ideally, McHugh would prefer to have one role and stay with it for the season.

"I think any pitcher would tell you they thrive when you have routine'' he said. 'Obviously, it would be great to know what I'm doing every day and be able to come out and prepare toward that goal.''

McHugh spent the last six seasons with the Astros and he'll miss Houston.

"It really did feel like home in a lot of ways,'' McHugh said, "so it was tough to leave from that perspective. But going into free agency there's a new level of excitement and opportunity that you hope is out there. We looked forward to just seeing what other teams were available, who was in need and where we could help.''

Of course, as a former Astro, McHugh has watched his former organization go through a reckoning this winter as they deal with the aftermath of the MLB's sign-stealing investigation.

"It's tough,'' said McHugh. "A lot of the guys are close friends and I feel for them because it's going to be a tough season and it's going to be a long road ahead. It's not going to be an easy road for them.''

But even as McHugh feels for his ex-teammates, he also knows that those who participated in the sign-stealing brought this on themselves.

"Looking back on the 2017 season, I feel like I have a lot more perspective now,'' he said. "Pitching in general in the big leagues right now is really hard. It's a grind. To put myself in the shoes of the guys who pitched against us in 2017 and know that our hitters made that job that much harder that year, it's hard to swallow. And I feel for them. And I understand the anger. I understand when people are mad and pissed off. I get it — I've been there. I know what it feels like to be out there and feel like the other team has your signs. It's a lonely place.

"So from that perspective, that it happened to some of my fellow pitchers that year, I understand. I empathize with them and the fans. I think about watching baseball as a kid and looking up to them and wanting to be just like them, probably the most disappointing thing is what we've said to fans throughout this process -- it's setting the wrong example.

"In order to be a good baseball player -- and I don't mean a talented baseball player but a good baseball player and somebody I would want to look up to as a kid -- you've got to be brave. You've got to be able to stick up for what you believe in and what you believe is right and what's wrong. And I think a lot of the guys on that team, including myself, are looking back now and wishing we had been as brave in the moment as we thought we were beforehand.''