Kyle Schwarber is hopeful that Friday night wasn’t his last chance to wear a Red Sox uniform.
The complicated contract Schwarber signed with the Nationals last winter includes an $11.5 million mutual option -- or $3 million buyout -- that has to be decided on shortly after the World Series. A mutual option has to be picked up by both the team and the player. So while the Red Sox would take Schwarber back at that price, it’s almost certain he will decline his side and become an unrestricted free agent.
When he does hit the open market, Schwarber will likely face a robust market considering the season he had. He hopes the Red Sox will be involved in the bidding.
“This is definitely a clubhouse that I could see myself wanting to stay in,” Schwarber said after the Red Sox were eliminated with a 5-0 loss to the Astros in Game 6 of the ALCS. “These guys are amazing. I said this, it’s two World Series teams going at it. This is a World Series clubhouse, and I would love to hopefully see if that opportunity comes back.”
After the Nationals traded Schwarber to the Red Sox for pitching prospect Aldo Ramirez, a hamstring injury cost the slugger his first two weeks with his new organization. After debuting Aug. 13, he hit the ground running and finished with a .291 average, seven homers and .957 OPS in 41 regular season games with the Red Sox. In total, he hit .266 with a .928 OPS and 32 homers in 113 games split between Washington and Boston.
In addition to producing on the field, Schwarber became a clubhouse leader and fan favorite in fewer than three months with the Red Sox. Multiple teammates and coaches have cited him with changing the team’s entire offensive approach after being activated. Positionally, he is an imperfect fit to re-sign, especially if J.D. Martinez opts in and returns as the everyday designated hitter. But the match between the player and city makes the situation one worth monitoring in the coming weeks.
Late Friday night, Schwarber looked back on his first -- and potentially only -- three months in Boston.
“I just want to say thank you to the whole group,” he said. “Being the new guy coming in, it’s not easy, right? The thing is I never played with any one of these guys before. No previous experience. These guys made it so easy on me just to be able to come in. And me being hurt, like, they could all look at me sideways and think why did we trade for a guy that’s hurt, right?
“Starting from (Alex Cora) to the coaching staff to the players, to the front office that they all let me be myself,” Schwarber said. “That’s the biggest thing. You’re coming into a really good situation and you just kind of want to mold right in. You don’t want to be a roadblock or an obstacle. You don’t want to feel like the whole group needs to get to know you. It’s like I just want to kind of mold in and go from there.”
Related links:
Boston Red Sox’s Kyle Schwarber: ‘I guess my hometown is Waltham now. So go Hawks’
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