Why the Yankees' Alex Verdugo has extra World Series motivation

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Alex Verdugo got nostalgic as he thought back to his time as a Dodger.

From breaking into the Major Leagues in 2017 to winning 106 games in 2019, one of the most successful seasons of his career to that point, Verdugo loved playing in Los Angeles.

That's why it bothered him so much when he was sent to the Red Sox after that season as part of the Mookie Betts deal.

“I was upset. It was pretty clear to me that I didn’t want to go anywhere,” Verdugo said Thursday, on the eve of the World Series. “I understood it from a business perspective and all, but it hurt me quite a bit.”

At this point, the only motivation is to win a World Series championship, but a win against his old team would bring something special to Verdugo.

“You want to win and kind of show them, 'Hey, you got rid of me and maybe it wasn't the right decision,'” he said.

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Verdugo has played against the Dodgers a few times since the trade, but this is his first time back at Dodger Stadium. Admittedly, there were mixed feelings about the Yankees' starting left tackle.

“It’s special to finally come back here and play in front of this crowd,” he said. “This fan base has shown me nothing but love. … It will feel good to come here and play in front of the Dodgers crowd again. Just feel that atmosphere, that was one thing about playing here.”

He added: “I'm going through this in my head a few times. Part of me wants to be a little bit like, 'Hey man, welcome back,' and then he's like, 'Okay, it's the World Series, we're going to boo you.' We'll see. At the end of the day, I still love this palace. Nothing will change that – the feeling when I was here.”

After four seasons with the Red Sox, Verdugo was traded for the second time this offseason.

He started hot but then cooled off significantly, so there was a period in September when it looked like top outfield prospect Jasson Dominguez might replace Verdugo in the starting lineup.

But manager Aaron Boone chose Verdugo over Dominguez, and he had a solid October, playing well on defense and scoring a few big goals.

“Of course I thought it was the right decision,” said the 28-year-old Verdugo. “It was important to me that (Boone) stayed loyal to his guys and brought their experience with him. He gave me the confidence I needed to come through, get a few big hits here and there and a few key RBIs.”