Ryan Hanigan’s holiday season is full of cheer.
Hanigan, a native of Andover, Mass., grew up a huge Red Sox fan, even maintaining some fandom in 2004 as Boston won its first World Series in 86 years while the catcher made his way through the Cincinnati Reds’ system. The 34-year-old couldn’t help but be excited over the weekend after learning the Red Sox acquired him from the San Diego Padres in exchange for third baseman Will Middlebrooks.
“I’m pumped,” Hanigan told reporters during a conference call Saturday. “It’s going to be a little bit crazy, I’m sure, with friends and family around here. But at the same time, it’s definitely a comfortable place for me to be.”
Hanigan graduated from Andover High School in 1999 — the last time Fenway Park hosted the Major League Baseball All-Star Game — and subsequently attended Rollins College in Florida. He initially went undrafted, but the Reds gave him an opportunity, which Hanigan ultimately parlayed into a seven-year stint with the organization from 2007 through 2013.
The last 12 months have lacked the same stability. Hanigan was traded to the Tampa Bay Rays last offseason and to the Padres this offseason before being shipped to the Red Sox on Friday. The trade to Boston in some ways brings Hanigan’s baseball career full circle, and the veteran backstop is eager to toss on his hometown threads.
“I grew up watching the Red Sox, you can’t around here not. That’s the team, we’re die-hard growing up,” Hanigan said. “All my nieces and nephews were a little bit jaded throughout the years wearing Cincinnati and Tampa Bay uniforms, and now they’re pumped they can rock the Red Sox stuff with pride. I’m looking forward to it. It’s a prideful thing for me to be in the area to play for this team and it’s a great opportunity.”
Hanigan will back up catcher Christian Vazquez, who drew rave reviews down the stretch in 2004 after making his major league debut in July. The Red Sox explored the possibility of bringing back David Ross, but he signed with the Chicago Cubs, and Boston saw the opportunity to add Hanigan as too good to pass up
“If you look at all the criteria we look for in a catcher, Ryan checks all the boxes,” Red Sox general manager Ben Cherington said Saturday, acknowledging that Hanigan long has been on Boston’s radar. “Very good defender and game-caller, well-respected, a tough at-bat, capable of playing a lot — that’s a nice bonus. Once we thought we had a chance to get Ryan, it came together fairly quickly.”
Hanigan, who was a big Mo Vaughn guy back in the day, said his cell phone was “going nuts” after news of his trade to the Red Sox broke. The euphoria probably hasn’t subsided just yet, either for him or his family, but it won’t be long before reality sets in and it’s time to get to work.
“It’s home. It’s part of my history,” Hanigan said. “Now I want to bring another ring back to this team.”
Thumbnail photo via Kim Klement/USA TODAY Sports Images
