Garrett Whitlock didn’t relish within the irony, and if he felt it, refused to provide himself away. This, he stated, was merely a coincidence.
But it surely should have been a fairly satisfying one.
Whitlock, the Pink Sox right-hander who burst onto the scene final 12 months with a 1.96 ERA, was sitting in Yankee Stadium’s media room behind a podium on Sunday afternoon, Boston supervisor Alex Cora to his proper, president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom to his left and a bunch of teammates sitting behind the room. They had been there as a result of he had simply inked a four-year extension for $18.75 million assured, with membership choices for 2027 and 2028 along with escalators that might improve the entire to $44.5 million over six seasons.
The irony was as a result of Whitlock so simply may have been pitching for the crew that resides down the corridor. The Yankees drafted Whitlock in 2017, and left him unprotected within the 2020 Rule 5 draft following Tommy John surgical procedure in 2019. Enter Boston.
“This can be a nice day,” Bloom stated.
Nobody will say the Yankees essentially want one other bullpen arm, however it might be good to have Whitlock, who has established himself as a beloved member of the Pink Sox group over the previous 12 months, recording a 1.96 ERA over 73 ¹/₃ innings in 2021. The Pink Sox don’t see the bullpen as a ceiling for the 25-year-old both.
Bloom stated they started discussing an extension previous to the lockout, with talks ramping up over the previous month earlier than culminating in a deal on Friday. Later that day, Whitlock recorded a blown save, giving up a run within the eighth inning in a recreation the Yankees later received, 6-5.
On this chapter of the rivalry, although, it appears to be like like Boston has the final snigger.
“You all know the expertise that Garrett has that’s been on show from Day 1 in Fort Myers final 12 months, all the way in which up by means of October,” Bloom stated. “I feel a number of you additionally know the person who he's — and once you make the sort of dedication, that’s simply as essential. He works laborious. He competes. He’s a very good teammate. He’s humble. He desires to study. He respects everybody.”
Whitlock harkened again to 2 years in the past, when he was working two jobs attempting to make ends meet through the throes of the pandemic. Cora introduced up Boston’s crew airplane rides, the place Whitlock is understood to deliver beer alongside for teammates.
“For me, I simply wish to have a servant’s coronary heart,” Whitlock, a Birmingham, Ala. native, stated. “That’s the largest factor. I grew up and my dad, mother, drilled it in my head that it’s all about different folks. For me, I wish to serve folks as a lot as I can.”
So you possibly can see why the teammates behind the room felt it applicable to applaud when the press convention completed.
And why the Yankees, whether or not they want one other arm or not, will really feel like they’ve missed out.
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