No Dugie Nooo!!
As some of you may now, rumors have turned to reality. Alex Verdugo has been traded to the Boston Red Sox in return for Mookie Betts and David Price. That’s not a bad trade.. we had to get Minnesota involved and all but still.. not bad. Lose Maeda and Dugie for a top 5 player in the league and David Price who isn’t the trash can he’s been made out to be either, when healthy he’s a stud and has pitched well in the World Series. Not bad right? All of that is SUPPOSED to make me feel good about losing Dugie.. trading for the 2018 AL MVP and when healthy a perennial Cy Young candidate, I should be happy about this.. I’m not.
Not since Fernando Valenzuela has a player captivated the Mexican community like we’ve seen with Verdugo. In 106 games played in 2019 Verdugo slashed .294/.342/.475 with 12 dingers and 44 RBI to go with top defense and a stellar arm. He was a stud to put it simply. With his playing style and youthful exuberance he was a fan favorite, but walking out to Vicente Fernandez’s “Volver Volver”, that, endeared him to our hearts. When he was asked about his choice of walk out song he said; “That is something I like to listen to. My father growing up every time I am in the car with him, anytime I am cleaning the house, he would be playing Vicente and all these other artists. It is just something I grew up listening to. Being Mexican, we like to dance and we get emotional so when they listen, they love to hear it.” This hurts, and understanding why doesn’t make it any easier.
The Dodgers needed to make a move. They have been getting crushed by the fans for their perceived inactivity during the off-season. So when the opportunity came to land a MVP and superstar in Mookie Betts they took it. The best part is when you think about what they gave up and were able to retain it’s actually quite remarkable, no top prospects lost at all and Boston is paying half of David Price’s contract. This was some “Art of the Deal” level negotiations Friedman and Co. put out there and guess what… I still dont like it.
Even though it was only for one year, a new generation of Mexicans got to relive a little bit of what “FernandoMania” must have been like in the 80’s. I’ll always remember that epic series with the Rockies where history was made. It was June 22 and Verdugo had 4 hits with 2 HR and he helped complete history being the third dodger rookie to hit a walk-off in three straight games, forever making his mark in Dodger lore. I know I’m not supposed to but I’ll keep rooting for his continued success and I don’t think I’ll be alone, Boston just got one hell of a player.
¡La Mejor de las suertes en tu nueva etapa!
This was great. I’m definitely going to miss Verdugo, and the impact he has on the Latino community.