ARLINGTON -- Wilyer Abreu was up against the clock in Spring Training, trying to prove his readiness for Opening Day after missing several weeks with a gastrointestinal virus.
Despite a 1-for-20 performance in Grapefruit League action, the Red Sox trusted their right fielder and put him on the roster.
Abreu rewarded that trust with two big homers, the latter of which snapped a tie with one out in the top of the ninth and delivered a rewarding 5-2 victory over the Rangers in Game 1 of 162 on Thursday afternoon at Globe Life Field.
The left-handed hitter is often below the radar because of his lack of flash. But Abreu¡¯s skills were evident on offense and defense (Gold Glove Award) throughout his rookie year.
And if his first game of ¡®25 is any indication, Abreu¡¯s sophomore year could be better.
¡°Jarren [Duran] was like, ¡®Oh, you don't need Spring Training,¡± manager Alex Cora said. "I was saying, ¡®Actually, he probably got more at-bats than you because he was getting seven and eight every single day [on the back fields] since he came back.¡¯ He's such a good player. Dynamic.¡±
What is it about Abreu and Globe Life Field?
On Aug. 4 of last season, grieving over the death of his grandmother, Abreu hammered two homers to pace Boston¡¯s 7-2 triumph.
Abreu dedicated those home runs to his grandmother. This time, he paid tribute to his recently-born twin sons, hitting a homer for each. Cora also has twin sons, so he could relate.
¡°You can¡¯t go [just] one,¡± Cora said. ¡°For twins, you¡¯ve got to get two.¡±
After weeks of being idled while his teammates went through Spring Training drills, Abreu was thrilled to be out there for the first game that counted.
¡°It was a very special moment for me, even better when you can start the season with a win like this,¡± Abreu said. ¡°It was very nice and a big game for us.¡±
While Abreu took center stage, his decisive three-run knock against Rangers righty Luke Jackson was set up on a walk by Trevor Story and an infield hit by Kristian Campbell.
It was Campbell¡¯s first MLB hit, a hot shot that went off the glove of Rangers third baseman Josh Jung. Ultimately, it was up to the official scorer to determine if Campbell would have to wait another day to get his first hit.
¡°I didn¡¯t know how I was going to get it, but I¡¯m glad I got it,¡± Campbell said. ¡°The first knock is the first knock. So I¡¯m happy to get it out of the way and keep going.¡±
Abreu¡¯s go-ahead shot left his bat at an exit velocity of 110.7 mph and traveled a projected distance of 394 feet, per Statcast.
It had been a decade since a Red Sox player cleared the wall twice on Opening Day. You¡¯d have to go back to Dustin Pedroia and Hanley Ramirez, who both left the yard twice in the first game of the 2015 season in Philadelphia.
In the lengthy history of the Sox, only seven players have hit a pair of homers on Opening Day. The other four? Ted Lepico (1955), Lenny Green (¡®65), Carl Yastrzemski (¡®68) and Carlton Fisk (¡®73).
Abreu took his first clutch swing in the fifth, belting a game-tying solo homer off Nathan Eovaldi.
That one went a projected distance of 415 feet and would have been a homer in all 30 MLB ballparks.
It was a big performance for a player who did everything he could to be there for his team at the start of the season.
There was one point earlier in March when Cora started plotting a roster in his mind with someone else replacing Abreu until he recovered fully.
¡°At one point, yeah, I was very worried about the whole situation,¡± Cora said. ¡°But thank God nothing [bad] happened, and he was able to get his at-bats and get his strength back. He's still down a little bit, his weight is down. But he's a good player. I'm happy that he's here.¡±
Even during the days Cora was skeptical about his right fielder making it back in time, Abreu continually told reporters he¡¯d be ready. It turns out that wasn¡¯t wishful thinking.
¡°Not really, I never had that doubt in my mind,¡± Abreu said. ¡°I knew I was going to be ready for Opening Day and I worked very hard to be able to do that.¡±