The Red Sox and the Yankees made a rare trade Tuesday with outfielder Alex Verdugo heading from Boston to the rivals in New York.
During his four years with the Red Sox, the 27-year-old seemed to constantly deliver against the Yankees in clutch situations. Verdugo had a knack for finding himself in the spotlight against New York, which could create for an interesting tradition as he heads to his new team.
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Here are four memorable Alex Verdugo moments against the Yankees from his tenure with the Red Sox:
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1. Walk-off single — July 16, 2022
Verdugo was right in the middle of the comeback in one of Boston’s best wins of the season. Trailing by a run in the eighth inning, the lefty slapped a base-hit off of Clay Holmes that brought home Jeter Downs to tie the game.
The game went to extra innings, where the Red Sox trailed by two runs in the home half of the 10th inning. Against Wandy Peralta, Verdugo roped a two-run single to right field to lift Boston to a 6-5 victory.
Verdugo finished the night with three hits, including the walk-off winner and a trio of RBIs.
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2. Clutch Hits With Three RBIs in AL Wild Card Game — Oct. 5, 2021
Boston hosted New York at Fenway Park in a highly anticipated one-game playoff in the 2021 American League Wild Card Game. After Xander Bogaerts and Kyle Schwarber homered early to set the tone, Verdugo lifted the lineup for key insurance runs in the later frames.
Verdugo hooked a double into the right field corner, scoring Bogaerts in the sixth inning against Luis Severino.
One inning later, the Boston outfielder delivered a massive blow to New York, driving in two more runs on a hit to left center off Chad Green to give the Red Sox some breathing room.
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Verdugo accounted for half of the offensive production as the Red Sox eliminated the Yankees with a 6-2 win.
3. Interactions With Fans At Yankee Stadium
This part may take some getting used to, both for Verdugo and for the home fans at Yankee Stadium.
Over the years, the sides have seen good times and bad. The Boston outfielder enjoyed friendly banter with fans in the bleachers while playing on the road.
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Other times, dangerous situations have come up with fans throwing objects at Verdugo during the game, leading to standoffs on the field.
The relationship between Verdugo and his new hometown fans will be something to keep an eye on as the 2024 season rolls around.
4. Game-Tying Three-Run Homer Off Gerrit Cole — Sept. 23, 2022
This moment could be forgotten given the nature of this game. The Yankees were postseason bound while the Red Sox trailed a meaningless game as they rounded out a last-place season.
Even still, Verdugo delivered another big moment to quiet the New York crowd. Trailing by three in the sixth inning of this 2022 contest, Verdugo blasted a game-tying, three-run home run off of Yankees ace Gerrit Cole to tie the game at four at Yankee Stadium.
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Cole had been furious about a non-strike call earlier in the count against Verdugo. He was ejected along with New York manager Aaron Boone at the end of that inning.
Featured image via Bob DeChiara/USA TODAY Sports Images
