Alex Verdugo felt a bit worn out this season, so he decided to hire a personal chef.
Thanks to his new diet, Verdugo hit a go-ahead single in the seventh inning and made an important sliding catch along the left-field line, helping the New York Yankees defeat the Kansas City Royals 6-5 on Saturday night in their AL Division Series opener.
He credited some of his improvement to his nutrition. “It’s made me feel a lot better, a lot more energized on a day-to-day basis and recovering a little bit better, less lethargic,” he said.
New York won the first postseason game with five lead changes, according to the Elias Sports Bureau, thanks to Verdugo’s contributions both at bat and in the field.
This was his first season with the Yankees after being acquired from Boston. The 28-year-old outfielder, known for his friendly personality and mood lamp in his locker, had a batting average of .266 on June 14 but then struggled as the Yankees went through a tough stretch with a 39-38 record.
From that point until the end of August, Verdugo hit just .197. After the Yankees called up rookie outfielder Jasson Domínguez on September 9, Verdugo started only 11 more games. He ended the season with a .233 average, which is his lowest in a full season, along with 13 home runs and 61 RBIs.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone wanted Verdugo in left field against Kansas City partly because of his strong defensive skills.
“Just trusting that he’s going to be ready for the moment and his experience and his track record,” Boone said. “I know it’s been a little bit of an up-and-down tough second half for him offensively, but the guy is a good hitter.”
When the Yankees were down 3-2, Verdugo made a sliding catch on Michael Massey’s fly ball in the fourth inning to keep two runners from scoring. The ball hit the heel of Verdugo’s glove, bounced off his chest, and he managed to grab it with his bare hand.
“Thank goodness it popped over to the left hand, so it all worked out,” he said at the postgame press conference, wearing a sweatshirt with the name of his hometown Tucson and sparkling diamonds in each ear.
From the dugout, Boone didn’t see Verdugo’s juggling catch.
“That’s as tough a chance as you’re going to have with a left fielder with that ball slicing like that on the run,” Boone said. “That’s easy to get handcuffed and mess that play up.”
Verdugo, who was struggling with a 3-for-25 slump, stepped up to bat with one out in the seventh inning of a tied 5-5 game.
Jazz Chisholm Jr. was on second base after getting a leadoff single and a stolen base, which the video review confirmed even though Royals manager Matt Quatraro thought it should have been overturned.
Verdugo hit a cutter into left field, bringing Chisholm home easily. As he moved to second base on the throw, Verdugo raised his arms in celebration.
“When the lights are brightest, that’s when we want to play,” he said. “There’s finally a finish line, and when you see that, it’s basically full sprint.” He acknowledged that Domínguez’s arrival was tough for him.
“I was obviously a little bit upset, but I understood what went into it,” he said. “I just started eating better, started kind of doing some stuff to address certain things that were bothering me throughout the year while I was having some more days off than I would have liked.
And I feel like that’s really benefitted me now into feeling fresh and feeling ready to go and ready to run through a wall now.” He didn’t focus on any specific food.
“I’m eating stuff that I didn’t even know you could throw into a plate,” Verdugo said. “It’s way over my head.”
