At the 2022 MLB trade deadline, the Boston Red Sox decided not to move starting pitcher Nathan Eovaldi, allowing him to become a free agent and sign a two-year, $34 million deal with the Texas Rangers that offseason.
Since then, Eovaldi has posted a 3.52 ERA (3.88 FIP) and a 1.094 WHIP in his two seasons with Texas. He made two starts against Boston during the 2023 season, allowing seven total runs on nine hits and eight walks while striking out six over 10 1/3 innings.
Now, on Sunday, he's set to face his former team for the third time, and he's not surprised with how well they've been playing in 2024.
"Yeah, a lot of the guys have changed, but I mean [the way they've been playing] is no surprise to me," Eovaldi said on NESN. "The way A.C. (Alex Cora) is able to manage the team and everything like that, I think they're a young team, but it's a lot of fun over there, right? Guys are running the bases aggressively. You've got a lot of guys swinging good bats right now. You've got (Rafael) Devers still in the lineup. It's possible that (Trevor) Story's coming back soon. They've got a lot of guys doing it. It'll be tough for me tomorrow. Got to make sure I go out there and throw strike one, try to keep them at bay."
There's clearly still a lot of respect there from the player's side for his former teammates and manager.
In this matchup, he'll be taking on Nick Pivetta, one of the few players left on the roster from his final season with Boston, and whichever team earns the win will take the series, setting them up for when the two teams meet again in about a week.
