Few are going to argue the merits of the Red Sox' trade for Craig Kimbrel. But Manuel Margot has offered a pretty big dose of what-might-have-been during Game 2 of the American League Championship Series Monday afternoon.
Margot, who the Rays traded for from the Padres prior to the 2020 season, left the Red Sox as part of the trade that sent Kimbrel to Boston from San Diego on Nov. 13, 2015.
After finishing sixth in the National League Rookie of the Year voting in 2017, Margot struggled offensively with the Padres while still emerging as one of the game's better defenders.
And while his bat still seems to be a work in process -- hitting .269 with .679 OPS during the 2020 regular season -- the 26-year-old certainly put it all together at his old ballpark when it counted the most.
First came the three-run homer in the third inning to give the Rays an early lead ...
Then there was one of the better catches you're going to see ...