Christian Vazquez was traded by the Boston Red Sox to the Houston Astros but is still looking out for his ex-teammates.
It didn’t take long after the MLB trade deadline for Christian Vazquez to see many of his former Boston Red Sox teammates. Traded a few days ago from Boston to the Houston Astros, the two clubs battled this week in Vazquez’s new home ballpark.
During rookie Brayan Bello’s appearance on Aug. 3 against Houston, it was Vazquez who signaled from the Astros dugout that something wasn’t right with the Red Sox pitcher.
Red Sox skipper Alex Cora saw the same thing so it’s not as if Vazquez forgot what uniform he’s wearing. As a catcher with a great reputation as a game-caller and teammate, it seems that maybe a reunion with Boston for the soon-to-be-free agent could always happen this offseason.
Former Red Sox catcher is looking out for his teammates while with the Astros
Cora seemed to appreciate his former player looking out for the young Boston pitcher. Even if he did have plans of ruining Cora’s day with a Red Sox loss, he certainly doesn’t want to see an ex-teammate get hurt because he believes he can get through one more hitter.
Vazquez is already missed by Boston. One teammate, in particular, seems to be missing him a lot.
“I don’t want to say in particular [the Red Sox waved] the white flag, but it was a big move,” Xander Bogaerts told reporters on Tuesday. “[Vázquez] was a big piece of the team, but it was at least trending that direction.”
Bogaerts and Vazquez debuted with the Red Sox in consecutive seasons. It was in 2013 when Bogaerts got his first taste of MLB action. Vazquez was first called up in 2014. For several years, he was mostly a backup or platoon player while Bogaerts cemented himself as one of the best shortstops in the league. As the team’s backstop, however, Vazquez was able to be a general for the team on the field and seems to have the same tendencies with his new club.
In the last few days, Vazquez has gone from a team stuck in the middle, likely too far away from making a late run at a playoff spot to an organization with an easy road to the postseason.
It’s actions like these that can help the Astros in small ways. His ability to recognize Bello was hurt even after having only seen him pitch a small number of times can do wonders for Houston. Vazquez is operating on a different level than some ballplayers. Catchers are often regarded as some of the smartest players in the sport. His attention to detail in this situation is something you won’t find on the back of any baseball card.
For the Red Sox, this moment is a reminder that he is a free agent and probably very open to returning in 2023.