BOSTON — The Red Sox bolstered their depleted outfield Wednesday, landing 31-year-old Alejandro De Aza in a trade with the Baltimore Orioles.
De Aza, who arrived at Fenway Park before Thursday’s matchup with the Minnesota Twins, provides the Red Sox a left-handed bat and the versatility to line up in left, center or right field, which will help Boston manage while outfielders Shane Victorino and Daniel Nava complete their respective stints on the disabled list.
“Well, he’s got versatility to play all three (outfield positions),” manager John Farrell said before Thursday’s game. “And for the most part, with three right-handed-hitting outfielders (Hanley Ramirez, Mookie Bettas and Rusney Castillo), we’ve got a chance to get him in the mix. He’ll come off the bench initially. We’ve got to get him back up to game speed; it’s been seven or eight days since he’s last seen live pitching. But (he’s) a guy with a pretty clear track record and one that will give us that versatility.”
The Orioles designated De Aza for assignment last week less than one year after acquiring him from the Chicago White Sox.
The Dominican native put up strong numbers after the trade, posting a .293/.341/.537 slash line with three home runs and 10 RBIs over the final 20 games of last season. He’s failed to replicate that production so far this season, however, as he batted just .214 in 30 games before being DFA’d.
“I think I know what I have to do,” De Aza said Thursday. “I’m here, and I’m going to try to do the same thing I did last year. … Try to stay more into the ball. Don’t pull off. I was pulling off a little bit too much in the past month or two months, and I started figuring it out.”
The Red Sox are De Aza’s fourth major league team, following stints with the Orioles, the White Sox and the then-Florida Marlins. He’s build relationships through the years with several current Red Sox players, which he says will help him quickly adjust to playing in Boston.
“It’s a little bit easier,” De Aza said, “because there’s a lot of guys that I’ve played with, like Hanley and Victorino when I was in the minors. And David (Ortiz), I’ve known him since I started playing baseball.”
De Aza said he wasn’t surprised when his tenure in Baltimore ended after just 50 games, and that it won’t be weird for him when the Red Sox visit Camden Yards next week for a three-game series. It’s all part of being a major leaguer, after all.
“It’s always a surprise, because you never know,” he said. “But I know it’s a business, and in this business, you never know what can happen.”
“It’s not going to be strange (going back to Baltimore), because it’s baseball, you know?” De Aza added. “I can be here today, tomorrow I can be somewhere else. I have to face the team I used to (play for) before, so it’s nothing different.”
Thumbnail photo via Reinhold Matay/USA TODAY Sports Images
