It was a welcome break, despite the hundreds of questions in front of him, not long before yesterday's spring training game against the Pirates, in which Drew had a hit and a walk in his two plate appearances, driving in one run and scoring another. Though he was sitting alone at that moment, just his presence in the clubhouse was something new for Drew.
Instead of the slumping phantom, rarely seen in the clubhouse, Drew has spent more time interacting with his teammates, more time in front of his locker, this spring. Still not quite David Ortiz, but it's progress for him.
"I was walking through the clubhouse and he was in there just crushing [Dustin] Pedroia," manager Terry Francona said, not long after the position players had reported. "I remember thinking, 'This wouldn't have been this way last year.' He was just wearing him out. I remember thinking, 'Good. He's a little more comfortable.' "
He wasn't comfortable last year. Not in the clubhouse. Not on the field. Though he finished the season at .270, with 11 home runs and 64 RBIs, that was partially a product of a rebound in September (.393 from Sept. 7 on, with 4 home runs and 15 RBIs), and yet, it still didn't measure up to his billing or his contract. A career .284 hitter with 20- to 30-home run power, Drew was signed to take care of right field, both defensively and as a key hitter in the lineup, in the No. 5 spot, where he would protect Manny Ramírez.
He didn't. Until Game 6 of the American League Championship Series. With the bases loaded in the first inning, both Ramírez and Lowell made outs. That brought up Drew, who had doubled and walked in his two plate appearances in Game 5.
"I came in late in that game and hit a big double for me, just to get me going," Drew said. "Then the very next at-bat was the at-bat I hit the grand slam. I contributed so little during the year in big situations that that was the one that I felt like kind of helped turn my season around and really pick guys up.
