Dave Magadan knows Fenway Park cold.
As a player with the Oakland A's for two seasons, he made a handful of visits to the ballpark. Then, for six years, from 2007-2012, he was the Red Sox hitting coach, helping Manny Ramirez, David Ortiz, Jason Varitek, Dustin Pedroia and others.
For the past three seasons, he's served in the same capacity with the Colorado Rockies, and worked with new Red Sox second baseman Trevor Story.
Magadan knows Story's swing, his approach, and his work habits like few others in the game. And he has little doubt that Story will fit Fenway perfectly.
"Trevor is such a talent that he's going to fit right in at Fenway,'' said Magadan. "He does have power to all fields, but I think he's going to enjoy hitting in Fenway. He does hit some line-drive homers that might end up being doubles because of the height of the wall, but I think he's going to have a lot of success. He's a really good hitter. I know a lot has been made about him hitting at Coors (Field), but kind of like what happened with D.J. LeMahieu when he went to the Yankees ... when you're talented you're going to hit anywhere and he's certainly talented.''
The thin air of Coors Field, of course, has been known to inflate some offensive numbers, and Story is no different, with a career .972 OPS at home and a more modest .752 OPS on the road. But Magadan points out that those numbers can be misleading.
"It's a real thing, what these players have to deal with -- playing at (high) altitude and then moving to sea level. It's real,'' said Magadan. "I feel it as a coach, the way it affects my body and I don't do anything. Playing at Coors, over a 10-game homestand, our games tend to be longer because there's a lot of runs scored and you're on your feet four hours. You go through a homestand like that and then all of a sudden, the first game of a road trip, you feel like you weigh 40 pounds more. It really does affect you. You look at the history of the Rockies and there's a huge discrepancy between what they did at Coors and what they did on the road.
"So I think, a little more normalcy, it's less of an adjustment they need to make with their body. Not to mention the difference in the way a ball breaks at Coors compared to elsewhere. It's a real thing and I think it can be quantified. There's a different break with the breaking ball. Hitter use their eyes, and when a breaking ball rolls at Coors and then somewhere else, it snaps off the table, it can make (the adjustment) tough.''
Though Story is primarily a pull hitter, Magadan believes that Story is at his best when he uses more of the entire field.
"Certainly, his big power is to the pull size,'' said Magadan. "But when he's swinging at strikes and using the field with his approach, most of the damage is going to be from center to the left-field line. He tends to use the other way depending on the situation -- with runners in scoring position, he'll take a base hit the other way. I saw him hit home runs to right-center, too -- not only at Coors, but on the road. You guys are going to enjoy him.''
Apart from being a quality hitter, Magadan has nothing but good things to say about Story as a person.
"He's pretty special,'' he said. "He's a great teammate. He's high character, takes care of himself and he'll come to play together. He's built to play together. He shows up at the park every day and he's ready to play. I never saw him come into the cage where he was sucking the air out of the room or complaining about this or that. He did whatever he needed to prepare to play that day. He showed up, ready to do his work. He's a pro. He's going to be taking care of his body and showing up to work.''
Having spent a number of years on the Red Sox coaching staff, Magadan saw some players who weren't cut out for Boston. But while Story is somewhat quiet and private, Magadan believes he'll be able to make the adjustment to playing for a big market, high-visibility franchise.
"He'll respond to it in a positive way,'' he said. "Here in Colorado, he was looked to as the main guy to talk to after games. He was one of our leaders, so he was a point guy. He had to stand up in front of the cameras when we weren't playing well and had to answer the questions. He's put up with it to a certain extent, so it's prepared him a little bit for what's in store for him. Going into a situation like Boston, I don't see him being surprised by anything.''
Story has only been to the postseason twice in his six years in Denver, where the Red Sox have been to the playoffs more regularly. Magadan believes being in a competitive environment will be good for the infielder, but adds that the effort and commitment won't change, regardless of the standings.
"He's the type of player where, even when we weren't playing well, he always played the game to win,'' said Magadan. "He did whatever it took, whether it was playing well on defense, stealing a base, having a good at-bat to drive in a big run. It didn't matter if we were 10 games over or 10 games under .500, he played the same way, always at 100 percent. Every player dreams of, being in the battle and knowing that you've got a good chance to win out every night out. But I think he's going to continue to be himself because being himself is enough.''
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The NFL has become a Quarterback League. If you don't have an elite one, you aren't going to win.
That's why the recent free agency period in the NFL centered mostly on one position. Sure, other positions attracted attention, but everybody first wanted to know where Aaron Rodgers, Russell Wilson and Deshaun Watson were going to end up. Once they landed, the other pieces fell into place.
The best teams in the league all feature elite signal-callers. It's as though the rest of the roster is almost an afterthought.
In baseball, it's getting to be like that with shortstops. You need a great one to anchor your infield; after that, you can fill in the rest of your lineup.
No matter what, this offseason's free agent swap meet was going to be led by shortstops, since so many good ones were available: Story, Carlos Correa, Corey Seager, Marcus Semien and Javier Baez. (A sixth, Francisco Lindor, would have joined them, improving the class further, until he was traded in the previous winter and signed a landmark 10-year, $341-million deal with the New York Mets).
Seager and Semien came off the board first, and signed as a tandem with Texas. For a cool half-billion dollars, the Rangers re-made the middle of their infield, with Semien chosen to play second base, as he did last year in Toronto. Next came Baez (Detroit Tigers), Correa (Minnesota Twins) and, finally, Story with the Red Sox. Story, of course, will play second base in 2022. After that, it will depend on whether Xander Bogaerts remains with the club or exercises his opt-out and goes elsewhere.
Beyond the free agent machinations, there were also some trades. Isiah Kiner-Falefa went from Texas to Minnesota - but only temporarily. The Twins soon re-directed him to the Yankees (along with Josh Donaldson) in order to clear payroll space for the signing of Correa.
We can debate whether the current crop of shortstops in the AL is as good as the one in the early 2000s, when Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter, Miguel Tejada, Nomar Garciaparra and Omar Vizquel -- among others -- played the position. But there's no denying the position has plenty of star power.
Take a look at some of the best teams in the American League and -- to borrow another phrase from the NFL -- their "shortstop room.''
RED SOX: Xander Bogaerts. However limited his range, Bogaerts is clearly one of the best hitting shortstops in the game. He has the highest OPS of anyone at the position starting in 2018. Behind him sits Story, ready to slide back to his natural position if it becomes necessary. And on the horizon, you can spot Marcelo Mayer, the No. 4 overall pick from last summer's draft and viewed as the team's shortstop of the future.
TAMPA BAY RAYS: Wander Franco. Franco made a sudden impact when he was promoted in June, and despite his late start, earned consideration for AL Rookie of the Year, finishing third in the balloting. Franco showed uncommon maturity and poise and astounding athleticism as a 20-year old, and tied a record for consecutive games reaching base for a player 20 or younger, doing so in 43 straight games. The Rays, hardly known as big spenders, gave Franco the biggest contract in franchise history, signing him to an 11-year, $182 million contract extension. After a little more than half a season, the Rays were convinced.
TORONTO BLUE JAYS: Bo Bichette broke out in his third season, slashing .298/.343/.484 with 29 homers, 25 steals and a 121 runs scored. Bichette isn't eligible for free agency until after 2025, but the Blue Jays should start saving now. He just turned 24 and is already a fantastic player.
YANKEES: Kiner-Falefa isn't in the class of some of the others here, and in fact, is more of a place-holder. The Yankees kicked the tired on both Correa and Story, but in the end, didn't spend, in part because they're waiting for Anthony Volpe, 20, whom ESPN ranked as the No. 6 prospect in the game. If that doesn't pan out, the Yankees have another prospect, Oswald Peraza, who's ranked No. 25. Kiner-Falefa, then, is a short-term bridge, but he's also an upgrade over Gleyber Torres, who filled the position last year.
CHICAGO WHITE SOX: Tim Anderson might lack the pop of Bogaerts, Story and others in this category -- he's only reached the 20-homer plateau once in his career -- but he's no offensive slouch, with an .844 OPS over the last three seasons, to go with his athletic play at shortstop. He won a batting title in 2019 and hit .309 or better in each of his last three seasons. Why Anderson is not a bigger star remains a mystery.
MINNESOTA TWINS: The Twins were arguably the most disappointing team in either league last year, going from two straight AL Central titles to a last-place finish. They need a lot of things to go right to challenge the White Sox, but surely, landing Correa, arguably the best of this winter's shortstop bunch, will go a long way in addressing that. Correa has opt-outs after this year and next, so his "three-year'' deal may result in a short stay in Minnesota. But as long as he's there, he's bound to have a huge impact.
KANSAS CITY: It's premature to pronounce the Royals as contenders, but it's probably not too early to hail Bobby Witt Jr., who is expected to be the team's shortstop -- if not on Opening Day, then soon after. The son of Canton, Mass. native Bobby Witt, who pitched 16 seasons in the big leagues, Witt is being hailed by some as the best prospect since Mike Trout. He'll be the centerpiece of the Royals for years to come.
DETROIT TIGERS: The Tigers are building toward the future. Last year, following a brutal April, they had a winning record the rest of the way. They added Eduardo Rodriguez to a rotation that is full of promising arms and have one of the game's top prospects in Spencer Torkelson, a 1-1 pick from 2020. But Baez at short will be their key player this year, and likely, for some time.
HOUSTON ASTROS: The Astros have won the AL West four of the last five seasons, and even with the loss of Correa, don't bet against them finishing on top again. Their shortstop replacement is Providence native (and former University of Maine) standout Jeremy Pena, who is raw, but wildly talented.
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The Red Sox spent a total of $173 million on free agents this year, and as befits a big market team, will have a payroll in excess of $230 million, one of the five biggest in Major League Baseball.
Why, then, did the team appear so petty when it came to determining Tanner Houck's salary for 2022?
Houck has just 100 days of service time, and as such, is nowhere near eligible for salary arbitration. Players need either three or more years of service time, or to be among the top 20 percent of players with service time between two and three big league seasons. Houck, of course, had neither and thus, little leverage.
In that regard, Houck was among 19 players in this category, some of whom, while on the 40-man roster, have yet to play so much as an inning in the big leagues. The Sox came to terms with all 19 -- from Ronaldo Hernandez to Bobby Dalbec -- this past Wednesday. Of the 19, 18 agreed to terms; Houck, meanwhile, was "renewed.''
That means that Houck didn't agree to the proposed salary from the Red Sox, but was without any leverage, was powerless to do much about it. So, the Sox essentially imposed a salary of $716,000 for 2022. That's $16,000 above the major league minimum of $700,000, agreed upon in the recent CBA negotiations.
By contrast, Garrett Whitlock, who spent the entire 2021 season in the majors, received $720,000.
In essence, Houck was penalized by the fact that the Red Sox used him as a human yo-yo for much of the season. Recall that there were numerous times that Houck would be summoned by the Sox from the Worcester roster, make a start, then optioned back to Triple-A for a bit before being recalled for another start in 10 days.
This gave the Red Sox additional roster flexibility, since they got to use Houck's roster spot on someone else while he was optioned. But here's the thing: the "options'' were mere paperwork, and there were times when Houck never reported back to Worcester, but instead, physically remained with the team though he wasn't eligible or on the 26-man roster.
Never once did Houck complain about being yanked back-and-forth. More than once, manager Alex Cora saluted him for his attitude and willingness to do what was asked of him.
Had Houck not been optioned seven times last year for the Red Sox' convenience, he would have accrued far more service time and been eligible for a higher salary.
Or, the Red Sox could have recognized the sacrifices he made and rewarded him with a higher base salary for 2022, reflecting the commitment he showed.
Instead, they oped to take a more hard line with him, and Houck (and his representatives) balked at the salary proposed. When they failed to sign off on the $716K figure, the Sox, as is technically their right, imposed their salary on him.
I've never understood why organizations alienate their own players in this fashion. (The Red Sox are not alone in this practice).
Teams will counter with this logic: players have the hammer when they become eligible for salary arbitration, and then free agency. The system in place rewards them. Conversely, when the team has the hammer (in the first two or three years), it's their time to take advantage.
But there were special circumstances at work here, and the Red Sox should have recognized them. Sure, it's a business, but would giving Houck another $25,000 in recognition of his sacrifices have been so difficult. Instead, the Sox come off looking like a penny-pinching Pittsburgh Pirates.
If it's any consolation, this type of thing is unlikely to happen again. In the new CBA, teams can only option a player back to the minors five times beginning in 2022.
Not that that's helping out Houck.