December 13, 2018 1:03 AM PST
The Boston Red Sox placed third basemanRafael Devers on the
10-day disabled list Sunday with a hamstring injury.In a corresponding
move [url=http://www.washingtonredskinsteamonline.com/alex-smith-jersey]Authentic
Alex Smith Jersey[/url] , infielderTzu-Wei Lin has been recalled from Triple-A
Pawtucket.Devers, 21, went down in Saturday's win over the Minnesota Twins. He
left the game in the eighth inning after hobbling to third base on aEduardo
Nunez double.One of the most touted Red Sox prospects in recent memory,Devershas
struggled a bit to live up to the hype in his first full MLB season. He's
slashing .245/.295/.425 with 15 home runs and 52 runs batted in through 96 games
played, striking out 97 times in 367 at-bats. After a promising June,Devershit
.214 and only went deep once in the month of July."I've been a little bit
surprised," Red Sox third base coach CarlosFeblessaid, perAlexSpeierof theBoston
Globe. "This is a guy who, it was easy for him to get out of a slump [in the
minors] because of his ability to hit the ball the other way. He's not doing
that. We all know what he can do when he does hit the ball the other way."To me,
it's something you've got to remind him, 'Devers, go the other way. You're good
at it.' That's what he needs to do, get back to basics."Deverspreviously spent
time on the disabled list earlier this month with a shoulder injury.Lin has hit
.182 without a home run and has one run batted in during his 19 games in the
bigs this season Ortiz hooked up Severino with Pedro in 2016, during Big Papi's
final season. It was a disappointing year for Severino, who started in the New
York rotation, was banished to the bullpen and finished 3-8 with a 5.83 ERA in
22 games (11 starts).Severino was among Pedro's legion of distant admirers. And
the admiration was mutual: Martinez, who appreciates good pitching as much as a
foodie enjoys an excellent restaurant recommendation, watched Severino on
television and in person. Like many others, he couldn't square Severino's 100
mph heat and filthy slider with the poor results."Big Papi 鈥?told me, 'I can see
what he's doing. I can see the ball. He's exposing the ball,'" Martinez said.
"Big Papi said, 'I want you to help this kid. I've gotten to know him, and he's
a good kid.'"One thing led to another. Martinez reached out, and he and Severino
agreed to meet in the Dominican during the winter of 2016-17."I told him to be
at the stadium at 1 p.m.," Martinez recalled. "And he was there at 11 a.m.
because he didn't want to miss the appointment."Having watched Severino closely
on video, Martinez decided he could fix some of the things Severino did
incorrectly. Pedro told Severino to move his hands closer to his body to conceal
the ball longer in his delivery. He was pushing them out too far. Then they went
to work on his changeup and other facets of his game."He taught me to hit the
[catcher's] glove
more [url=http://www.washingtonredskinsteamonline.com/alex-smith-jersey]Alex
Smith Jersey Elite[/url] , have better command of my fastball and secondary
pitches," Severino said.Martinez found his student to be a willing learner. "He
was brave enough to take my advice, do what I wanted and maybe without
authorization of the Yankees," Martinez said. "Sometimes, you just have to take
chances.Luis Severino LuisSeverino94Un placer haber compartido con
45PedroMartinez KEvXD67qwI"I was so concerned with him feeling comfortable, not
getting hurt, but we needed to do some work. I said, 'With all due respect to
the Yankees, I need to switch you to some things I think can help.'"The two
developed a rapport that now reaches into genuine friendship. Who would have
guessed that: a Yankee and a Red Sox, after the overheated American League
Championship Series battles in 2003 and 2004?"He's a great man," Severino said.
"Agreatman. I feel like I can talk with him for hours. Not even about baseball.
About everything. If I have an issue, I will go to him and he will always have a
great answer."In some ways, baseball was merely the icebreaker for the bond that
has grown between the two."We keep in touch. His wife and my wife actually have
become friends as well. During the offseason, he lives in an area I love, really
close to where my mom grew up [in the Dominican]. Everything points toward
having a great friendship between the two of us. I love fishing. He loves
fishing. That's what we do. We pretty much have the same habits, look out for
each other. It is a perfect friendship."Martinez isn't the only player for whom
Severino has shown such respect, as Ortiz experienced when he met him.Ortiz had
learned of Severino from a friend in the Dominican Republic who lives in the
area in which the big right-hander grew up."He told me one day, 'Hey, this kid
that's in the minor leagues with the Yankees, he's a Christian kid, he's a
homeboy, he comes from a really decent family. He's going to get called up at
some point,'" Ortiz recalled.Signed in December 2011 as an international free
agent, Severino finally reached the bigs in August 2015. His debut, a start,
came against鈥ou guessed
it [url=http://www.washingtonredskinsteamonline.com/alex-smith-jersey]http://www.washingtonredskinsteamonline.com/alex-smith-jersey[/url] ,
Boston. He pitched well, holding the Red Sox to one earned run and two hits in
five innings before suffering the loss. The one earned run? An Ortiz home run in
the fourth.Luis Severinos first meeting with David Ortiz was a memorable one, as
the Red Sox slugger hit a home run in a Boston victory.Kathy Willens/Associated
Press/Associated Press/Associated PressThat was it for Severino against Boston
until '16, and after one of those appearances, the next day the kid approached
Ortiz."He said, 'Hi,' really respectful," Ortiz said. "I really appreciated
that. Because in baseball, it's like in the military: That respect is always
there. That's how it goes."I've had some people criticizing Pedro for doing what
he did. If I'm Pedro, I would do that 100 more times. Because that's how you get
the game better."In 2017, his first summer after working with Martinez, Severino
posted a breakout season for the Yankees, going 14-6 with a 2.98 ERA over 31
starts. He posted 230 strikeouts against only 51 walks.Severino, 24, earned his
second consecutive All-Star nod this year and, after a nifty catch of New York
teammate Aaron Judge's home run while warming up in the Nationals Park bullpen
in the top of the second, he zipped through a scoreless bottom of the second.
Severino surrendered a leadoff double to Matt Kemp then whiffed Bryce Harper,
induced a fly ball from Nick Markakis and whiffed Brandon Crawford. It was his
second All-Star Game, and against the powerful National League lineup, he had a
plan."I feel like everyone's got more than 20 home runs," he said. "So don't
throw the fastball. Throw something else."Last year, Severino became just the
second American League pitcher since Roger Clemens in 1977 to post an ERA of
below 3.00 with 225 or more strikeouts in his age-23 season. Clemens did it in
1986, when he was with鈥oston."He's as good of a man as he is a pitcher,"
Martinez said. "The last person I referred to like that was Mariano Rivera.
鈥?That's a statement. I know Mariano as a person. Severino is equally as humble
and lovable. He's very accountable, very responsible, very hard-working. There
are not enough [good] words to say about him."Even the Red
Sox [url=http://www.washingtonredskinsteamonline.com/matthew-ioannidis-jersey]Authentic
Matt Ioannidis Jersey[/url] , who, ahem, employ Martinez as a special assistant
to president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski, understand."They're
Dominican, you know?" Boston shortstop Xander Bogaerts said of Severino and
Martinez. "He looked up to Pedro when he was younger. He has some of the same
stuff Pedro had at that age.Severino led the American League in wins at the
All-Star break while ranking in the top 10 in strikeouts and ERA.Tom
Szczerbowski/Getty Images"Why wouldn't you want to learn from the best? You
can't fault him for wanting to go to Pedro for advice."From what he had heard of
Martinez, Severino said it seemed natural to work with him."I wasn't surprised,"
Severino said. "He was helping somebody else. He wasn't looking at me as a
rivalry. I'm happy that he did."Always a pitcher/philosopher in his soul,
anyway, Pedro says he's gotten no pushback."Everybody in the Red Sox
organization is very respectful of what I'm doing," he said. "They know me
really well, and they know that my heart is big enough to be shared with
different players. The thing that makes it unique is, it's when I'm not working.
It's my time off."Severino isn't Martinez's only project. Over the past few
years, he's also worked with Ervin Santana, Jeurys Familia, Hansel Robles,
Edinson Volquez, Rubby De La Rosa and Jose Veras, among others.All of this
because he shares a philosophy with Ortiz: Pay it forward."I feel as a former
player, as a Hall of Famer, my duty is to make the game better, to pass it along
to the next generation," Martinez said. "I'm not going to keep the knowledge
within me. Not only is it my duty, but it's a duty for everyone who plays the
game."The fact that it's showing up in Severino more than anybody else鈥攜ou can
give him all the credit in the world. I only give him suggestions. He's the one
who's done it."Scott Miller covers Major League Baseball as a national columnist
for Bleacher Report. Follow Scotton Twitterand talk baseball.
The Boston Red Sox placed third basemanRafael Devers on the
10-day disabled list Sunday with a hamstring injury.In a corresponding
move [url=http://www.washingtonredskinsteamonline.com/alex-smith-jersey]Authentic
Alex Smith Jersey[/url] , infielderTzu-Wei Lin has been recalled from Triple-A
Pawtucket.Devers, 21, went down in Saturday's win over the Minnesota Twins. He
left the game in the eighth inning after hobbling to third base on aEduardo
Nunez double.One of the most touted Red Sox prospects in recent memory,Devershas
struggled a bit to live up to the hype in his first full MLB season. He's
slashing .245/.295/.425 with 15 home runs and 52 runs batted in through 96 games
played, striking out 97 times in 367 at-bats. After a promising June,Devershit
.214 and only went deep once in the month of July."I've been a little bit
surprised," Red Sox third base coach CarlosFeblessaid, perAlexSpeierof theBoston
Globe. "This is a guy who, it was easy for him to get out of a slump [in the
minors] because of his ability to hit the ball the other way. He's not doing
that. We all know what he can do when he does hit the ball the other way."To me,
it's something you've got to remind him, 'Devers, go the other way. You're good
at it.' That's what he needs to do, get back to basics."Deverspreviously spent
time on the disabled list earlier this month with a shoulder injury.Lin has hit
.182 without a home run and has one run batted in during his 19 games in the
bigs this season Ortiz hooked up Severino with Pedro in 2016, during Big Papi's
final season. It was a disappointing year for Severino, who started in the New
York rotation, was banished to the bullpen and finished 3-8 with a 5.83 ERA in
22 games (11 starts).Severino was among Pedro's legion of distant admirers. And
the admiration was mutual: Martinez, who appreciates good pitching as much as a
foodie enjoys an excellent restaurant recommendation, watched Severino on
television and in person. Like many others, he couldn't square Severino's 100
mph heat and filthy slider with the poor results."Big Papi 鈥?told me, 'I can see
what he's doing. I can see the ball. He's exposing the ball,'" Martinez said.
"Big Papi said, 'I want you to help this kid. I've gotten to know him, and he's
a good kid.'"One thing led to another. Martinez reached out, and he and Severino
agreed to meet in the Dominican during the winter of 2016-17."I told him to be
at the stadium at 1 p.m.," Martinez recalled. "And he was there at 11 a.m.
because he didn't want to miss the appointment."Having watched Severino closely
on video, Martinez decided he could fix some of the things Severino did
incorrectly. Pedro told Severino to move his hands closer to his body to conceal
the ball longer in his delivery. He was pushing them out too far. Then they went
to work on his changeup and other facets of his game."He taught me to hit the
[catcher's] glove
more [url=http://www.washingtonredskinsteamonline.com/alex-smith-jersey]Alex
Smith Jersey Elite[/url] , have better command of my fastball and secondary
pitches," Severino said.Martinez found his student to be a willing learner. "He
was brave enough to take my advice, do what I wanted and maybe without
authorization of the Yankees," Martinez said. "Sometimes, you just have to take
chances.Luis Severino LuisSeverino94Un placer haber compartido con
45PedroMartinez KEvXD67qwI"I was so concerned with him feeling comfortable, not
getting hurt, but we needed to do some work. I said, 'With all due respect to
the Yankees, I need to switch you to some things I think can help.'"The two
developed a rapport that now reaches into genuine friendship. Who would have
guessed that: a Yankee and a Red Sox, after the overheated American League
Championship Series battles in 2003 and 2004?"He's a great man," Severino said.
"Agreatman. I feel like I can talk with him for hours. Not even about baseball.
About everything. If I have an issue, I will go to him and he will always have a
great answer."In some ways, baseball was merely the icebreaker for the bond that
has grown between the two."We keep in touch. His wife and my wife actually have
become friends as well. During the offseason, he lives in an area I love, really
close to where my mom grew up [in the Dominican]. Everything points toward
having a great friendship between the two of us. I love fishing. He loves
fishing. That's what we do. We pretty much have the same habits, look out for
each other. It is a perfect friendship."Martinez isn't the only player for whom
Severino has shown such respect, as Ortiz experienced when he met him.Ortiz had
learned of Severino from a friend in the Dominican Republic who lives in the
area in which the big right-hander grew up."He told me one day, 'Hey, this kid
that's in the minor leagues with the Yankees, he's a Christian kid, he's a
homeboy, he comes from a really decent family. He's going to get called up at
some point,'" Ortiz recalled.Signed in December 2011 as an international free
agent, Severino finally reached the bigs in August 2015. His debut, a start,
came against鈥ou guessed
it [url=http://www.washingtonredskinsteamonline.com/alex-smith-jersey]http://www.washingtonredskinsteamonline.com/alex-smith-jersey[/url] ,
Boston. He pitched well, holding the Red Sox to one earned run and two hits in
five innings before suffering the loss. The one earned run? An Ortiz home run in
the fourth.Luis Severinos first meeting with David Ortiz was a memorable one, as
the Red Sox slugger hit a home run in a Boston victory.Kathy Willens/Associated
Press/Associated Press/Associated PressThat was it for Severino against Boston
until '16, and after one of those appearances, the next day the kid approached
Ortiz."He said, 'Hi,' really respectful," Ortiz said. "I really appreciated
that. Because in baseball, it's like in the military: That respect is always
there. That's how it goes."I've had some people criticizing Pedro for doing what
he did. If I'm Pedro, I would do that 100 more times. Because that's how you get
the game better."In 2017, his first summer after working with Martinez, Severino
posted a breakout season for the Yankees, going 14-6 with a 2.98 ERA over 31
starts. He posted 230 strikeouts against only 51 walks.Severino, 24, earned his
second consecutive All-Star nod this year and, after a nifty catch of New York
teammate Aaron Judge's home run while warming up in the Nationals Park bullpen
in the top of the second, he zipped through a scoreless bottom of the second.
Severino surrendered a leadoff double to Matt Kemp then whiffed Bryce Harper,
induced a fly ball from Nick Markakis and whiffed Brandon Crawford. It was his
second All-Star Game, and against the powerful National League lineup, he had a
plan."I feel like everyone's got more than 20 home runs," he said. "So don't
throw the fastball. Throw something else."Last year, Severino became just the
second American League pitcher since Roger Clemens in 1977 to post an ERA of
below 3.00 with 225 or more strikeouts in his age-23 season. Clemens did it in
1986, when he was with鈥oston."He's as good of a man as he is a pitcher,"
Martinez said. "The last person I referred to like that was Mariano Rivera.
鈥?That's a statement. I know Mariano as a person. Severino is equally as humble
and lovable. He's very accountable, very responsible, very hard-working. There
are not enough [good] words to say about him."Even the Red
Sox [url=http://www.washingtonredskinsteamonline.com/matthew-ioannidis-jersey]Authentic
Matt Ioannidis Jersey[/url] , who, ahem, employ Martinez as a special assistant
to president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski, understand."They're
Dominican, you know?" Boston shortstop Xander Bogaerts said of Severino and
Martinez. "He looked up to Pedro when he was younger. He has some of the same
stuff Pedro had at that age.Severino led the American League in wins at the
All-Star break while ranking in the top 10 in strikeouts and ERA.Tom
Szczerbowski/Getty Images"Why wouldn't you want to learn from the best? You
can't fault him for wanting to go to Pedro for advice."From what he had heard of
Martinez, Severino said it seemed natural to work with him."I wasn't surprised,"
Severino said. "He was helping somebody else. He wasn't looking at me as a
rivalry. I'm happy that he did."Always a pitcher/philosopher in his soul,
anyway, Pedro says he's gotten no pushback."Everybody in the Red Sox
organization is very respectful of what I'm doing," he said. "They know me
really well, and they know that my heart is big enough to be shared with
different players. The thing that makes it unique is, it's when I'm not working.
It's my time off."Severino isn't Martinez's only project. Over the past few
years, he's also worked with Ervin Santana, Jeurys Familia, Hansel Robles,
Edinson Volquez, Rubby De La Rosa and Jose Veras, among others.All of this
because he shares a philosophy with Ortiz: Pay it forward."I feel as a former
player, as a Hall of Famer, my duty is to make the game better, to pass it along
to the next generation," Martinez said. "I'm not going to keep the knowledge
within me. Not only is it my duty, but it's a duty for everyone who plays the
game."The fact that it's showing up in Severino more than anybody else鈥攜ou can
give him all the credit in the world. I only give him suggestions. He's the one
who's done it."Scott Miller covers Major League Baseball as a national columnist
for Bleacher Report. Follow Scotton Twitterand talk baseball.