It certainly wasn’t a blockbuster deal when the Boston Red Sox acquired Tommy Pham at the trade deadline from the Cincinnati Reds.
But the 34-year-old outfielder has jumped right into Boston’s starting lineup, wasting no time by making an impact with his bat.
Pham, who has already earned the trust of Alex Cora with the manager putting him in the leadoff spot, homered for the third consecutive game Wednesday night against the Atlanta Braves — belting a three-run shot to center field in the Red Sox’s 8-4 loss at Fenway Park.
“The thing with Tommy is he stays in the zone. He doesn’t expand,” Cora said as seen on NESN postgame coverage. “His strikeouts in Kansas City were looking, but at the edge of the zone. When he gets pitches in the zone, he puts (on) good swings. He’s a different at-bat, and for him to stay up the middle and drive the ball to center, it’s a good sign.”
Pham tried to be the catalyst to Boston’s comeback bid in the series finale against the Braves. He brought a four-run deficit down to a single run in the bottom of the seventh when he drove a pitch from Atlanta reliever Dylan Lee 412 feet to dead-center for the round-tripper.
Pham has now registered a hit and scored at least one run in six of his eight games with Boston, and while Cora praised his efforts, the outfielder was more critical of his performance due to the 11 strikeouts he’s recorded since joining the Red Sox.
“Barreling up the ball a little bit more consistently,” Pham said of his homers as seen on NESN postgame coverage. “But striking out too much. I’m not getting on base as much as I need to, especially with guys like (Rafael) Devers and (Xander) Bogaerts behind me.”
While Pham sees room for improvement, his immediate contributions, whether on the field or in the locker room as a veteran presence, haven’t been lost on his new teammates.
“I think Tommy has helped out a ton,” Red Sox pitcher Nick Pivetta told reporters, as seen on NESN postgame coverage. “I love the energy he brings every single day, the confidence. He puts together competitive ABs. He’s helped us out a ton since he’s been here. Just a good pick up and a great guy to have on your team.”
