Christian Arroyo might have been the unluckiest man in Major League Baseball in 2021.
After emerging as a bright spot with an otherwise underwhelming 2020 Boston Red Sox team, Arroyo carved out regular playing time for himself last season. But his campaign was marred after he not once, but twice got hit by a pitch on his left hand within a 10-day stretch.
Injuries happen, but Arroyo was the victim of bad luck few have seen – and those weren’t his only ailments last season, either – but he somehow managed to avoid letting that completely railroad his season.
“With the freak stuff that had happened, getting hit in the hand a couple of times, I could have been down on myself,” Arroyo said on Audacy’s “Inside the Monster” podcast. “Every single time it happened my mom would text me, and talking to my wife and stuff it was like yeah I’m trying to play, getting better, then here we go again.
“In my mind I was wondering if I should back up off the plate. I’m looking at it and I was like, they’re just trying to throw me in."
After such a tumultuous season, Arroyo, understandably, finds himself unwilling to gamble on pitchers no long running pitches too far in on him.
“I think this year I’m rolling with the hand pad all year, I’m not taking any chances,” Arroyo said. “I always wear the shin guard, so I’m not really worried about that. But it was just one of those things, it stunk. Over time it was like as soon as I start feeling really good and get the groove rolling, a guy let’s a heater go – and obviously none of it was malicious or anything. It’s baseball, it is what it is.”
Arroyo finished last season with a .268 average and six home runs over 57 appearances. He had the inside track to Boston’s starting second baseman job this season up until the signing of Trevor Story. Now, Arroyo likely will serve a utility role for the Red Sox and is in the process of learning to play the outfield.
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