Adam Ottavino’s path to the Red Sox was one that’s rarely been travelled in the history of the franchise.
As the Yankees looked to cut costs, New York traded Ottavino to Boston in early January. It marked the first deal between the longtime rivals since 2014. Prior to that, the Yanks and Sox hadn’t traded together since 1997.
Understanding how uncommon it is for the two storied organizations to do business with each other, Ottavino was a bit irked by the trade that brought him to Boston.
“I mean, a little bit, yeah. For sure,” Ottavino said when asked if he has extra motivation when facing the Yankees, as seen on NESN’s broadcast of the WEEI/NESN Jimmy Fund Radio-Telethon. “I think mostly just because — I was kind of not surprised I got traded, seeing as what they wanted to do. But to trade me to their rival team, I thought was a little bit, you know, a little bit of saying I’m not a threat to them. So, to me, that was the thing that kind of bothered me about the whole situation. It’s nothing against any of the players individually, but just overall I want to put my best foot forward against them which I think is kind of the right attitude no matter what.”
Ottavino will have to wait a bit for his next shot at the Bronx Bombers. The American League East foes aren’t slated to meet again until Sept. 24 when they open a three-game set at Fenway Park.
