Donnelly: Pablo Reyes shining for Red Sox since trade

Chances are a lot of folks at Fenway Park the last five days were asking, 'Who?' when Pablo Reyes' name was announced. 

The Red Sox acquired the minor league utility infielder from the Oakland A's for cash on Friday. It would have been easy for anyone to miss the news of the move. The 29-year-old made his Boston debut on Saturday, thrust into the starting lineup. For the casual rooters in attendance, he was presumably the stock call-up from Triple-A Worcester to fill an injury hole. 

Reyes has been anything but that in his first five games with the Sox. He hasn't looked back since his debut.

"He's a good player, a player that we felt where we were roster-wise and the situation we were in with [Christian] Arroyo, he could come in and produce against lefties," Alex Cora said. "He has a good swing."

It came to a head in Wednesday's 12-3 beatdown of the Seattle Mariners to take the series, 2-1, and cap a forgetful homestand on a high note after Boston had lost the first four games, including a blowout in the opener to Seattle and a sweep at the hands of the St. Louis Cardinals, which included blown leads and the wrong end of another beatdown. 

Reyes remained scorching at the plate, going 2-for-5 with a pair of doubles. He set a career-high with four runs batted in and matched one with his pair of extra-base hits. 

"Very happy since I came here," Reyes said via an interpreter. "Everybody welcomed me with open arms from the get-go. They gave me the confidence to let me play my ball the way that I know how to play it, and that's been the key for me, just the confidence and how the team has welcomed me with open arms."

His double in the first inning was a crucial piece of hitting early on in the lopsided win. With a full count and two away, Reyes obliterated a double off the Green Monster with a 109 mph exit velocity to score two runs and make it 3-0. It was important insurance when Brayan Bello found himself in a jam in the top of the second with two runners on and a flyout for Taylor Trammell that would have finished five rows deep if not for the wind. 

In the bottom of the second, Reyes helped put an exclamation point on an offensive explosion for Boston when his two-out double scored another two runs to blow the game wide open at 8-0. 

He now has a hit in all five games since the trade, including three two-hit outings. 

"I prepare myself mentally and physically to be able to help the team in any place that they need me, if it's running, hitting or on defense," Reyes said. "For me, I focus myself on being able to prepare myself and being able to help the team. That's what's been, for me, my big key. Since I came here, I've been with a mentality to take advantage of an opportunity that I had. And for me, it is very important to be able to do that, right off the bat. So I feel of course very happy."

The journeyman has also been a contributor defensively, putting out a strong showing in his first three games at shortstop as he made some diving plays on balls up the middle. Reyes was solid at second base too, particularly on Wednesday, and continued to showcase his versatility, finishing the game at third. He executed a tough play sprinting to his left on a hard grounder before finishing the throw across his body to Justin Turner at first for the putout to help Bello out of a bases-loaded jam on the top of the fifth.

He's essentially done it all for Boston, taking one for the team and pitching the ninth inning in Monday's blowout loss when the Sox' struggles boiled over. After all, who needs Shohei Ohtani when Pablo Reyes can take the ball on the bump in the top of the ninth then hit a single in the bottom of the ninth?

“I think he faced [Justin Turner] at some point two years ago. … He was like, ‘He did [the 34 mph pitch] to me then he’d go fastball at 75,’” Cora said Monday. “It sucks, man. That’s the worst feeling as a manager. You don’t want that kid to get hurt, but that’s where we were in the game. Obviously, we were banged up in the bullpen. Tip your hat to him. He took one for the team, and we really appreciate it.”

Since arriving in Boston for essentially nothing, Chaim Bloom's latest bargain bin addition has made the Chief Baseball Officer look good. 

"Yeah, [the trade] caught me off guard and even more being traded to this team, which is a team that at some point earlier in my life I had a dream to play for," Reyes said. "I feel happy to be here right now, and glad that the trade happened."

It certainly helps that the skipper was already somewhat familiar with him. While Cora's brother, Joey, was still coaching in the Pirates organization, he overlapped with Reyes in Double-A Altoona. Reyes had two stints with the Curve, the largest coming in 2017. In 420 at-bats, the then-23-year-old hit .274 with 10 home runs, 50 RBI with a .356 OBP and a .410 slugging. He added 21 stolen bases.

"We talked a little bit about him," Cora said. "It really feels like he can hit. He took some good at-bats today. Played some good defense. He's been really good for us."

Reyes is batting .421 (8-for-19) with a .450 OBP and .579 slugging for a 1.029 OPS in the five games with Boston. His batting average on balls in play is .533. It's the best of any of his previous runs in the majors with Milwaukee and Pittsburgh, by far, albeit in a very limited sample size. 

It's hard not to imagine Bloom or any of Boston's scouts or executives essentially reenacting the 'He gets on base' scene from "Moneyball" when they went thrift shopping for Reyes.