Did the Boston Red Sox have a secret weapon in the Trevor Story sweepstakes?
The two-time All-Star shortstop had plenty of suitors in free agency this offseason but chose to sign a six-year, $140 million deal with the Red Sox, despite the fact that he'll need to shift to second base to accommodate current Boston shortstop Xander Bogaerts.
So, why Boston? It sounds like Story may have been influenced by former Red Sox infielder Will Middlebrooks, who developed a relationship with the fellow Texas native when they worked out together following the 2011 offseason.
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Tomase: Why Red Sox fans shouldn't fret over Story's home-road splits
Middlebrooks shared part of his pitch to Story with The Boston Globe's Alex Speier, and it's pretty great.
"I said, ‘Look, New York smells like garbage and they have rats the size of Shetland ponies. You don’t want to go there," Middlebrooks recalled telling Story. "'You don’t want to go to California. The taxes are absurd. You’ll lose all your money there. In Houston, they have hurricanes. The perfect place to go is Boston.'"
All jokes about New York's sanitation shortcomings aside, Middlebrooks sold Story hard on the merits of Boston as a sports town.
Boston Red Sox
After spending his first three major league seasons with the Red Sox and winning a World Series with the club in 2013, Middlebrooks played for four other teams -- the San Diego Padres, Texas Rangers, Milwaukee Brewers and Philadelphia Phillies -- and said none compared to playing in Boston.
"I missed the pressure to win," Middlebrooks said of his post-Red Sox playing career. "I missed walking down the street the day after a game to go get breakfast and the guy asking me why I swung at the 2-2 slider in the dirt. I missed that, that passion.
"And I explained that to him just saying, ‘If you want the best experience, and you want to make some of the best memories you’ve ever made in your career, go play in Boston.'"
That pressure isn't for everyone, and several players haven't panned out in Boston while struggling with the heightened scrutiny from fans and the media. But Story sounds eager to join a winning franchise after the Rockies failed to win a postseason game during his six-year tenure in Colorado (0-4 over two playoff appearances).
"This is really a dream come true for me to play for an organization like Boston," Story said Wednesday in his introductory press conference. "At the end of the day, this comes down to winning. ... So looking forward to getting on the field and getting after a championship."
If the Red Sox end up winning a title with Story, they may owe Middlebrooks a thank you.