Red Sox reliever Adam Ottavino will wear No. 00 in second-stint with club
Ottavino also shares one of the reasons why he wanted to return to the Red Sox
If you’re walking around the backfields of Fenway South returning Red Sox reliever Adam Ottavino will be easy to spot. The veteran reliever will be wearing a brand new number and one not many have worn in the past.
Ottavino will wear the No. 00 since No. 0, the number he wore during his 2021 stint with the Red Sox since new starter Walker Buehler is in possession of it for this season.
“He’s here, and it’s his number, so it’s all good... We’re gonna give the people what they want,” Ottavino said.
The 39-year-old has worn No. 0 with the Yankees, Rockies, Mets, and Red Sox in his career. He became the first Yankees player to wear the number. He first started to wear the number with the Rockies and liked the number and continued to wear it in his other stops around the league.
Ottavino is one of two players to have worn No. 0 with the Red Sox. Brandon Phillips wore the number when he was with the Sox during the 2018 season. Once Buehler makes his team debut, he will be the third player to wear the number.
What was one of the reasons why Ottavino joined the Red Sox?
One of the reasons that Ottavino had for coming back to the Red Sox was familiarity with manager Alex Cora and the organization as a whole.
“It helps that I’ve been here before and I know A.C., the trainers, and a lot of people in the organization,” Ottavino said. “From a situation of making a club, I’ll be given a little more grace initially.
“Also, the upside of the team is really good. I like the moves they made, and it’s a place I love playing, so it was kind of a no-brainer once I felt like I had a decent shot.”
In Ottavino’s one season with the Red Sox, he pitched in 69 games in 2021, appearing in 69 games, the most out of any reliever on the team that season. The righty posted a 7-3 record and a 4.21 ERA while also converting 11 saves, which was a career high for him at the time.
The Red Sox and Ottavino stayed in touch a lot this winter. The veteran spent the offseason trying to secure a major league deal, and it wasn’t until he was open to a minor league pact that included a non-roster invite that got the Sox interested in him again.
“I talked to Boston for a long time. It was a long process,” Ottavino said. “Once I was open to the NRI situations, I got a lot of offers really fast after that. I was parsing through that, trying to figure out what move to make. I had one MLB offer, but I didn’t want to take it in that location. I just kept doing my research and talking to the teams, then made this decision last night.”
If Ottavino fails to make the Red Sox Opening Day roster, he can opt out of his deal and become a free agent again and pursue a new opportunity.
