In many of those instances, Reddick was merely an injury replacement, as has been the case in his two call-ups this season. However, in 2010, when the injuries were piled high among outfielders, he actually had legitimate chances to claim a job and run with it.
It did not happen.
Reddick struggled after some of those promotions and remained simply an intriguing, but not-quite-there hitter who needed more seasoning. Instead, Darnell McDonald, Daniel Nava and Ryan Kalish received regular duty down the stretch.
This time around, perhaps Reddick's hot bat will give the organization pause before sending him back down once Carl Crawford returns from the DL. And, perhaps, he will begin to force manager Terry Francona's hand in other areas — namely a regular spot in the currently unproductive right field.
The company line has always been that if Reddick is on the bench in Boston, then he's losing valuable at-bats at the Triple-A level. However, it could be time to start giving him regular at-bats at the major league level, even at the expense of veterans J.D. Drew and Mike Cameron. As it stands, he is completely outshining McDonald, with whom he has been in a virtual platoon in left with Crawford out.
Reddick, who homered and singled in a 6-4 loss to Pittsburgh on Saturday night, is now batting .462 (12-for-26) with five extra-base hits and eight RBIs in his 11 games. Several of the hits have been absolute ropes (anyone who witnessed his double off the top of the center-field wall at Fenway earlier this week against San Diego will remember it as one of the harder hits at the park all season).
Additionally, Reddick is 4-for-6 against left-handers. The sample sizes are not massive, but compared to his colleagues the numbers are out of this world.
McDonald has three hits vs. southpaws. In 28 at-bats. Sounds like a rather one-sided platoon. The timeshare in right? Drew and Cameron are a combined 16-for-94 (.170) against lefties, and not much better from the other side.
Additionally, Reddick has drawn four walks this year. He had a total of three in his previous 56 games as a major leaguer. All of these are signs that Reddick has made that leap and may be worth keeping around.
"It's been against lefties and righties. It's impressive," Francona said of Reddick's recent surge. "It's given us a lift. With Carl out, we're looking for someone to give us a lift and he's done a terrific job."
That lift becomes even more notable due to the aforementioned meager outputs for those in competition with Reddick for playing time.
The one glaring hole in the Red Sox lineup this year has been the outfield, aside from Jacoby Ellsbury. While Crawford has struggled, right field in Boston has been the least productive in all of baseball in many categories. Entering Saturday, the .225 average at that position ranked dead last, while the .651 OPS was 29th. The organization still has the option of trading Reddick, who has to be drawing loads of interest, or demoting him and giving him more time at Triple-A. However, it should at least consider handing the keys to the youngster.
Certainly, a hefty contract for Drew and a sizable one for Cameron come into play, as do their veteran statuses. That's an issue for the front office. As long as Reddick is on the active roster, Francona can do what he sees fit. Right now, the answer is obvious.
"We'll play him again tomorrow," Francona said Saturday night. "He deserves to play."
Indeed he does.
