Red Sox outfielder Alex Verdugo ranks high on a surprising list
By Sean Penney
Red Sox outfielder Alex Verdugo has joined the elite at his position
MLB Network has been producing a series that ranks the top-10 players at each position. Alex Verdugo made the cut following his impressive first season with the Boston Red Sox but which list he landed on is a bit unexpected.
Verdugo comes in at No. 4 of the list of the “Top 10 Center Fielders Right Now!” Those who watched Verdugo play can attest to the 24-year-old belonging in esteemed company. The surprising part is that he’s listed at a position he barely played last year.
The Red Sox utilized Verdugo at all three outfield positions but he was the primary starter in right field, appearing in 31 games at the position while logging 22 appearances in left. Verdugo only started one game in center field last season.
We may not have seen Verdugo patrol center field much in Boston but he has plenty of experience at the position from parts of three seasons he spent with the Los Angeles Dodgers. He has the versatility to play anywhere in the outfield but he has still started and appeared in more career games as a center fielder than he has at either corner spot.
The Red Sox didn’t need to use Verdugo in center with former Gold Glove award-winner Jackie Bradley Jr. locking down the position. With JBJ hitting free agency this winter, Verdugo is currently Boston’s best option to fill the void in center.
Verdugo has the chops to handle center field but his bat is also a significant reason for his lofty ranking. In 53 games during the abbreviated 2020 season, Verdugo hit .308 with an .844 OPS, six home runs and four stolen bases. His 62 hits tied him for 10th in the American League and he was 12th with 36 runs scored.
"“I think people will be surprised where I have him on my list,” analyst Mark DeRosa said Wednesday evening on MLB Network. “I look at a guy who’s gonna hit in the middle of any order he’s on. Listen, he was playing center field pretty much every day before he went down in 2018-19 and then Cody Bellinger kind of took over there and the rest is history. He gets traded for Mookie Betts. But a guy who owns his at-bats, kind of knows he’s a darn good ballplayer and acts accordingly.”"
Mike Trout topped the list of center fielders ranked by MLB Network. No surprise there considering the Los Angeles Angeles star has been the best player in baseball for nearly a decade.
Former NL MVP Cody Bellinger was the runner-up. As great as he’s been in his young career, Bellinger is closer to George Springer, No. 3 in these rankings, than he is to Trout.
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Springer has been a rumored free-agent target of the Red Sox. The New England native seems all but certain to be on his way out of Houston and his connection to Alex Cora could help lure him to Boston. He’ll be among the most expensive options on the market though and with Chaim Bloom’s reluctance to sacrifice a draft pick to sign players who declined a qualifying offer, Springer might be wishful thinking.
If they do splurge on Springer, Boston will boast two of the top-four center fielders in the game. The Red Sox essentially need two center fielders with one of them being tasked with Fenway Park’s notoriously difficult right field. The spacious ground to cover and quirky dimensions are a challenge that Verdugo handled admirably in his first year in Boston.
MLB Network included Verdugo on the center field list because that’s where he belongs “right now” based on the current construction of the Red Sox roster but that could change as the slow-moving free-agent market unfolds.
Regardless of which position he plays, it’s clear that Verdugo is on the verge of joining the elite tier. His high ranking on this list is a testament to his rising production and long-term upside.
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Mookie Betts undoubtedly leads the list of right fielders as one of the game’s best all-around players. His departure in last year’s blockbuster trade with the Dodgers still stings but the realization that the package the Red Sox received was highlighted by one of the best center fielders in baseball helps ease the pain.