The MLB season is a long one, and it can certainly be a grind for relief pitchers who can pitch upwards of 70 games in a single year.
The Boston Red Sox's bullpen has been up and down this season with some really great runs and some horrible streaks.
However, the group has one way of breaking up the monotony of a 162-game season - celebrating each game with a toast.
It's a tradition that's been going on for a few years, but a few members of Boston's bullpen as well as bullpen coach Kevin Walker recently spoke about the toast for a video on the team's YouTube channel.
"The bullpen toast probably started maybe three years ago, and it wasn't really anything. It kind of built up organically," Walker said. "It was more so just a chance for everybody down in the bullpen to kind of get together before first pitch and remind every guy how good they are and how important they are to our success. Go out and do your job to the best of your ability. Execute your pitches. Pass the baton to the next guy.
"Then it kind of morphed into when we win the game, the guy keeps the toast, and you're hoping that guy keeps the toast for a long time. If, for some reason, we lose the game, at the meeting with the toast, the guy passes it on to the next guy or whoever he wants. They kind of have their own rendition of the toast."
Even a guy like Lucas Sims, who was acquired at the trade deadline, has joined in on the tradition.
At first, obviously, I didn't know what to expect," Sims said. "After a couple of days, I realized it was part of the routine, and I kind of started getting the hang of it."
Josh Winckowski, who has moved back and forth between the rotation and the bullpen during his time with Boston, recalled a nine or 10-game streak of toasts in 2023.
"Ever since I've been in the bullpen, I've really enjoyed being in the bullpen," "I think even some of the games even when I was starting, I would still go down to the bullpen just because I enjoy it so much. It's a really good group of guys down there. It's a lot of fun."
Walker explained that the real motivation of the toast is to focus on the task at hand.
"The group that's out there that's not a part of the group... To get where we want to go to which is the World Series, this group down there is a big part of it," Walker said. "For me, I think a big thing is just to remind these guys, if we're going good, if we're going bad, you guys are really good at what you do. You're one of the best in the world at what you do. Today is all that matters. Go out and do the best you can. Execute the best you can. Pass the baton to the next guy. That's kind of the theme of the bullpen toasts."
Boston's bullpen is coming off of two strong, scoreless efforts in a row, so the vibes during the toasts will probably be pretty high in Friday's series opener against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Fenway Park.
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