Former Red Sox All-Star Enters Boston Series On Hot Streak

The Boston Red Sox will see an old friend when visiting the West Coast this weekend.

Boston begins a three-game series against the San Diego Padres on Friday night. Former Red Sox pitcher Nick Pivetta will start the first game for the Friars, but he’s not the only familiar face playing great baseball.

Xander Bogaerts enters the interleague series on a hot streak. The longtime Red Sox star has banger a home run in each of his last two games, giving him a .971 OPS to start August.

The four-time All-Star is batting .291/.321/.519 since the break and .297/.353/.521 since the start of June. That’s much more like the Bogaerts that Red Sox fans remember, rather than the one who ended May with a .241/.326/.335 slash line.

Bogaerts tallied 1,410 hits, 156 home runs and 74 stolen bases during his decade in Boston. The shortstop received five Silver Slugger awards and won two World Series titles in 2013 and 2018.

His decorated Red Sox tenure ended when San Diego signed him to an 11-year, $280 million contract after the 2022 season. The discount takes Bogaerts into his age-40 season, a particularly risky investment for a contact-oriented hitter.

Bogaerts began his Padres career with a 4.6 WAR in 2023, but he then registered his lowest OPS (.688) since 2014. Those struggles coincided with the Aruba native playing second base for the first time in his career.

The Padres moved Bogaerts back to shortstop this season. After some early doldrums, the 32-year-old has kicked back into high gear in time to face his former team.

Friday’s game between the Red Sox and Padres starts at 9:40 p.m. ET.