A year ago, the Red Sox were playing in front of a couple dozen security guards and another 20 or so media members in an otherwise empty Fenway Park.
Fenway, ordinary raucous and energized, was almost totally silent. When a player struck out or popped up, a shouted expletive could be heard echoing through the empty ballpark.
Gone was the surge that came out of the stands when the home team rallied. Gone, too, was any reaction to developments on the field -- good or bad. And gone, obviously, was an interaction between players and fans.
That was the backdrop of Alex Verdugo's first season with the Red Sox. Initially, it was theorized that the lack of fans might not be such a bad thing. What if, as the only current piece from the recent Mookie Betts trade on the major league roster stumbled in adjusting to a new league and a new club? Would the fans use Verdugo as a vessel for their frustration? Would that negative fan reaction stunt his development, making the transition that much more difficult?
As it turned out, Verdugo barely struggled. In fact, as J.D. Martinez experienced a tailspin of a season and Rafael Devers took a while to get untracked, Verdugo -- along with the ever-steady Xander Bogaerts -- was one of the few reasons to keep watching the Sox in 2020. But the watching took place from afar. With no fans allowed in any MLB ballparks during the regular season, ballparks morphed into overgrown TV studios -- a place for the games to originate and brought into living rooms, and little else.
Given Verdugo's high energy and flair, the narrative suddenly flipped. Verdugo would be an instant fan favorite, and would have benefitted from their presence.
This year, a year delayed, Verdugo and the fans have met. Fenway went to full capacity almost six weeks ago and it's like the fans never left. And, as the old movie line suggests, the bond between Verdugo and Red Sox fans looks like the beginning of a beautiful relationship.
"Having fans there just automatically brings energy,'' Verdugo told BostonSportsJournal.com. "To go from seeing just empty seats to seeing all sorts of different colors and shirts, hats...Some people standing up, some sitting. Just seeing it is cool enough and obviously hearing how they act and what they have to say is what makes fans, fans. You wake up with a different vibe, a different mindset.
"Last year was so weird. It was hard to do a lot of things. A lot of things that we'd been doing since we got into pro ball just got put on hold. It felt weird. This year, the fans coming back makes it that much more fun. Just to hear them scream, hear them yell, hear them get excited, or even boo you. It's that constant feedback again. You always want to be liked, you always want to do good and not give them a reason to boo. It gives you that extra bit of motivation.''
Even after just a few months, Verdugo feels a bond has been established with fans at Fenway. It seems a natural fit - a vocal, passionate fan base meets a player who isn't afraid to show his emotions.
"I've been seeing the No. 99 jerseys,'' he said. "And just talking to fans that I've signed for, or just kind of seen around town, they've all been super cool to me, very nice, telling me they like the way I play. They're constantly giving that positive feedback. If you're struggling a little bit, the fans have been like, 'Hey, it's all right, you've got this.' It's been cool to see.' It's cool to know that they've got your back.''
On the road, naturally, it can be a different story. But Verdugo is outgoing -- and confident -- enough to handle a more hostile environment. When the Sox traveled to Houston earlier this season, a fan was riding him behind the Crawford boxes in left field at Minute Maid Park. But when Verdugo playfully returned the verbal fire, he won the fan over enough to start a chant in support of Verdugo.
Last month, Verdugo was mic'd up for the Fox telecast and was shown (and heard) exchanging trash talk in Yankee Stadium. While fans teased him for striking out the inning earlier, Verdugo good-naturedly explained how Yankee starter Jameson Taillon had surprised him with his pitch sequence. His candor and willingness to engage the fans won over a group that's historically been hostile to Sox players.
"I like to mess around,'' said Verdugo. 'I know how it is as a fan. When you're watching a game, you get frustrated. You want something so good to happen so much and when it doesn't, you're mad at the player. I get it and I understand it. But at the same time, it's like, 'We're out here for a reason; we're the best at what we do and you can't do what we can do out here.' This game's hard. I keep that mentality. That's why I never take what they say too seriously. It doesn't get under my skin much.
"There's some stuff that might aggravate you or annoys you, but you learn - 'Before I say something I shouldn't, I'm going to have a clever, smart-ass response that's going to be clean and appropriate and also funny that everybody can kind of laugh at. If I can be witty about it, it usually turns the tide.''
Closer to home, there's no hostility to be heard at Fenway, where Verdugo has been a positive contributor to a first-place club.
Patrolling mostly left field, Verdugo can hear fans above him in the Monster Seats atop Fenway's left-field wall, as well as the fans seated in the box seats and grandstands down the left-field line.
"The Monster Seats, you can hear the people really well because they're right on top of you,'' he said. "They'll lean over. But it's hard to have a conversation with those guys, because if I'm looking up, it's steep and I don't want to take my eye (off the action). I can hear the people down the line. I feel like the right field fans can be more aggressive. There's the low wall and it feels like they're on the field with you. They're right there in the action, and they can say whatever they want. They chirp a little bit more.''
Asked to recount some of the better interactions with fans this year, Verdugo is uncharacteristically reticent.
"You have so many,'' he said. "You hear them, but they don't all stay in your head. You hear parts of someone riding you, and you think, 'That son of a gun....' ''
Verdugo played parts of two seasons with the Dodgers and insists that the reputation West Coast fans have -- with a tendency to arrive late and leave early -- is largely undeserving.
"I don't necessarily think that Boston fans are more hard-core than fans in L.A.,'' he said. "In Cali, you have people who jump on board, go to the game just to have a good time. But there's also some Dodger fans who bleed with the team. Some travel everywhere and fill up stadiums on the road. They have some intense fans. I just think it's a different vibe -- they're having a good time, they're partying. And if the Dodgers don't win, they get a little pissed, but it's like, 'OK, we'll get 'em tomorrow.'
"Whereas, Boston fans live and die with every pitch.''
Verdugo confesses he's allowed himself to think about what a packed Fenway will be like in October if the Red Sox find their way back to the postseason.
"We've had some games where it feels like a playoff game and that kind of prepares you,'' he said. "But I can't even imagine how loud and intense it would be for the playoffs. It's great now, but it would only be heightened.''
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At the start of the season, the supposition was that this would be transition years for both the Red Sox and Chicago Cubs. The Sox were looking to make incremental steps forward following a last-place finish in 2020 while the Cubs appeared positioned to perhaps take one more run with a roster full of expiring contracts.
For a time, both looked to be exceeding expectations. But while the Red Sox continue to streak -- winning 11 of their last 14 before Saturday -- and set the pace in the American League, the Cubs, who were tied for first place in the National League Central as recently as June 24, have hit the wall in recent weeks and dropped to third in the division, 8.5 games out while going 2-12 in that stretch.
That led to Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer to declare that his team was "open for business'' -- i.e., ready to sell off pieces ahead of the trade deadline later this month. The Cubs have some big names to deal, including shortstop Javy Baez and third baseman/outfielder Kris Bryant.
But two other veterans, also set to reach free agency this winter, could be of interest to the Red Sox. Each would fill an obvious need, and as important, have prior to ties to the Sox.
First baseman Anthony Rizzo, chosen by the Red Sox in the 2007 draft and later included in the package that brought them Adrian Gonzalez, would give the Sox a lefty-hitting first baseman who could handle the majority of playing time at first, or at the very least, platoon with Bobby Dalbec.
Rizzo would also be a big defensive upgrade at the position -- Dalbec is currently ranked dead last among first basemen with -8 defensive runs saved.
Then there's closer Craig Kimbrel, who has enjoyed a huge comeback season, with an .057 ERA and a WHIP of 0.663, which would be a career-best for him.
Of course, there are a number of issues for either. Would the Sox want to derail Dalbec's confidence by making him a secondary piece or the final two months? How would they handle Matt Barnes, who has done a good job closing? If Kimbrel were given his old job of closer, what would that mean for re-signing Barnes?
And then there's the matter of how costly acquiring two of the best "rentals'' on the market. It helps that, in recent year, the asking price for players on expiring deals has dipped precipitously. Teams simply stopped giving up top prospects in exchange for 60 or so games from players who might or might not make a difference to their postseason chances.
The Sox could get really ambitious, and agree to take a big contract off the Cubs' hands, which would in return lessen what they'd have to surrender for Kimbrel and/or Rizzo. Outfielder Jason Heyward has been chewing up a big chunk of the Cubs payroll and has approximately $51 million remaining ($7 million for the final two months of 2021; $22 million each for both 2022 and 2023).
Taking Heyward's money (or a good portion of it, anyway) would absolve the Sox of having to give much at all in terms of prospects. That would mean that the Sox would blow past the CBT and send them well over the luxury tax threshold.
Given the team's emphasis on sustainability, that's probably a non-starter.
Also, one MLB talent evaluator in touch with the Red Sox said recently that "it didn't seem big-name acquisitions was a thing the Sox would do,'' at the upcoming deadline, with an eye toward more complementary moves.
Still, it's fun to think about it.
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The Red Sox No. 4 pick is the highest the Red Sox have had since 1966, the second year of the draft's existence.
Twice, the Sox had a Top 10 pick this decade, hitting on one (Andrew Benintendi in 2015) and completely whiffing on another (Trey Ball in 2013) - a reminder of the draft's inexact science. No amount of preparation and looks can guard against a bust.
But if you're looking for historical precedent, there have been some terrific picks in the industry in the No. 4 spot over the years.
Among them: Thurman Munson (1968); Dave Winfield (1973), Barry Larkin (1985), Kevin Brown (1986), Kerry Wood (1995). Ryan Zimmerman (2005) and Kyle Schwarber (2015).
Of course, as a reminder that there are no sure things, maybe you remember Corey Myers (1999), Bryan Oelker (1982), Brad Lincoln (2006) and Dillon Tate (2015)?
No? As we noted, this thing is ultimately a crap shoot.