Alex Verdugo talks his season and his future
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Let's get this out of the way: There are no participation trophies being handed out this time of season. The intensity of Alex Cora's postgame words after his team's 8-6, walk-off loss the Rays should have reminded everyone of that.
"It’s good, but we’re not here to teach them how to play the game," said Cora of the youngsters getting their first taste of the big leagues. "We’re here to win games. We look around, we know what’s going on, and we have a chance. A lot of people don’t feel that way, but if you win and look around, it was a wasted — quote unquote — opportunity tonight because we know what’s going on in other places. It is what it is, we just have to keep going, keep playing hard, and we’re going to be OK."
The Red Sox needed this one and they didn't get it. Flat-out. They sit five games out of the final Wild Card spot, having squandered a chance to gain a tasty half-game in the postseason chance.
The entire 11-inning affair was really a microcosm of this Red Sox season, chock full of defensive miscues, and plays - such as Adam Duvall gunning down the game-winning run in the 10th - to keep the hope alive.
But if we're going to truly look at the long-term impact of Tuesday night at Tropicana Field, one should look no further than the corners of the visitors' clubhouse. At one end was Kenley Jansen. The other saw Justin Turner.
Ceddanne Rafaela. Enmanuel Valdez. Wilyer Abreu. Luis Urias. Connor Wong. Take your pick of pitchers. And even Triston Casas. They should all should have taken notice.
These two were examples of how players become winning players.
The presence of Turner hasn't been hard to find from the get-go. But night's like this one offer the entire package in one three-hour, 57-minute sitting. Still doing his best to hide his hobble, the designated hitter came away with two more RBI, tying Rafael Devers for the team lead. All the while roaming up and down the front of the Sox' dugout, doing his best to will this win.
Then there was Jansen.
For starters, the closer did what any good closer does - particularly while wearing a Boston uniform: He was accountable. He was the one that allowed the walk-off three-run homer to Brandon Lowe, a pitch and a moment he owned after the game.
"That’s a tough one. Definitely a tough one," Jansen said. "Didn't get the job done. You know, we just have to move on from this. It's just a tough one but got to keep our head up. Got plenty of more games to play. I’ll be back out there tomorrow."
Jansen later added, "It just didn’t go my way. I’m not going to lose my confidence for that. I’ve been doing this for a long time. Ain’t no time to cry about it. Time to get back out there, get on the horse and dominate and help this team to get to the playoffs."
But what those aspiring everyday big leaguers in that clubhouse should have taken note of was the entire package that Jansen presented. Few would notice - unless truly paying attention to his slight limp - but the reliever's hamstring is far from healed, a far from ideal situation especially considering this would be the first time all year the closer was called upon for a third straight game.
This time of year, choices aren't really an option. Jansen knows that, which is why he continues to remind those newbies in the clubhouse of that by his actions. Same goes for Turner. You can also put Alex Cora in that bucket, with the manager needing to push his relief-pitching chips to the middle of table while playing a hand that included his bullpen needing to get 22 outs before even hitting the 11th.
The hope for this next wave of Red Sox is that they get past the just-happy-to-be-here stage and understand these intricacies that players like Jansen and Turner are trying to spell out with their actions.
Welcome to the sometimes painful world of learning what it takes to survive this time of year. And, despite that one final pitch to Lowe, this was a night at least some of those lessons should have been learned.
"I mean, we were all in," Cora said. "It doesn’t matter. We’re trying to win games. I don’t care what people think, four and a half, five and a half, it doesn’t matter. Win that game, we win the series and we move on."
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