Looking for a reason to go to Fenway Park on Wednesday night?
The product on the field hasn't been very good of late. The Boston Red Sox have lost eight of their last 10 games, including a lackluster 9-3 defeat to the last-place Kansas City Royals at home Tuesday night.
Giveaways are always a good way to get fans into the building, and the Red Sox will be handing out a special bobblehead to the first 7,500 fans who show up for Wednesday's matchup versus the Royals.
It's a World Baseball Classic-themed Kiké Hernández bobblehead.
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That might result in some awkwardness because the Red Sox traded Hernández to the Los Angeles Dodgers before the Aug. 1 trade deadline. So they will be giving out a bobblehead for a player who doesn't play for the team anymore. It should be noted that the bobblehead will feature Hernández in a Puerto Rico jersey, not a Red Sox one.
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What went into the decision to go ahead with the bobblehead giveaway as planned despite the recent trade?
“We touched base with him after he was traded to tell him we’ve got this coming up,” Red Sox chief marketing officer Adam Grossman told MassLive's Chris Cotillo. “We were inclined to give it away and continue to go through with it as long as he was comfortable with it. He was comfortable.
“For his time here, he had a close relationship with fans. I think fans felt similarly. So we felt like, for all those reasons, why not give it out to the fans?”
Hernández struggled mightily for the Red Sox before the trade. He batted .222 with six home runs, 31 RBI, 68 strikeouts and a .279 on-base percentage in 86 games. He's been great for the Dodgers so far, hitting .317 with one homer, eight RBI, two walks, six doubles and five runs scored in 12 games.
Red Sox fans who want a chance to pay tribute to Hernández will be able to see him at Fenway Park later this month when the Dodgers come to Boston for a three-game weekend series beginning Friday, Aug. 25.
