Xander and J.D. check in
LOS ANGELES - The nickname has stuck and so have the memories.
Sitting at the media availability for this year's All-Star Game, Phillies slugger Kyle Schwarber offered a message to all the Red Sox fans he left an impression of during his three-month stay in Boston.
"Thank you guys," he told WEEI.com. "I appreciate all the support and love. They still give me the love today. Kyle from Waltham says, ‘Thank you and I appreciate all the support.’"
The smile Schwarber relayed when referencing the nickname spawned by the Section 10 Podcast was all too familiar for those watching the lefty hitter help propel the Red Sox the American League Championship Series last season.
But, alas, Schwarber's time as a Red Sox is just a different memory now, having signed a four-year, $79 million deal with the Phillies.
While Schwarber wouldn't offer any details in regards to any interest shown by the Red Sox in bringing him back, he did drop an interesting nugget when it came to the approach after the MLB lockout ended.
"I loved my time in Boston. I enjoyed it a lot," said Schwarber, who signed with the Phillies two weeks into spring training. "In the offseason, I didn’t hear much after the lockout. But it is what it is. There are no hard feelings. I ended up in a place I wanted to be. The time in Boston was fantastic. It sucks we didn’t go past the championship series. I thought this was a team that could go out there and do it all. It’s a great organization and fan base. It was a lot of fun and I really enjoyed playing there.
"It is what it is, right? It’s the baseball business side of things. There have to be ways teams approach things and the way players approach things. It just didn’t line up and it is what it is. I have been non-tendered before and been on different teams. It is what it is."
Schwarber currently leads the National League with 29 home runs while carrying an .820 OPS.
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