Pedro Grifol remembers making a cease within the visiting clubhouse at Kauffman Stadium as soon as throughout his 10 seasons teaching with the Kansas City Royals.
“It was late after a game. I said, ‘You know what, let me just go see what it looks like,’” Grifol mentioned Monday.
Grifol was again on the ballpark he known as residence for the primary time because the Chicago White Sox supervisor because the staff started a four-game sequence towards the Royals.
“This is a special place for me,” Grifol mentioned. “We had some great runs and magical moments here. Just to come back to this place, look at the field and see some of the people that I have great relationships with, it’s a special moment.”
Grifol was a particular project coach for the Royals in 2013, the hitting coach in 2013-14, the catching coach from 2014-17 — working with seven-time All-Star Salvador Perez — and the standard management/catching coach in 2018-19 earlier than turning into the bench coach in 2020.
He was in that function for 3 seasons earlier than being launched because the Sox supervisor in November.
“I got to that organization as a rookie ball coach,” Grifol mentioned. “Two months later, I’m within the massive leagues with George Brett (who was the hitting coach). In over 10 years, folks simply come and go and also you begin constructing relationships and it turns into a house.
“That’s what Kansas City is to me. It’s a home full of beautiful relationships that will never go away. Always going to be here. It’s a special place for me.”
Grifol mirrored on the “selflessness” of the 2015 Royals, who beat the New York Mets to win the World Series.
“Just that unbelievable will to win a baseball game at all costs, no matter what,” Grifol mentioned. “It was that selfless perspective that that staff had that was particular, and I don’t suppose it would ever be duplicated. It was really 25 guys coming on the market day-after-day for one factor and one factor solely, and that was to win a baseball recreation.
“That happened for probably 2½, three years, which is truly special. They didn’t care about themselves, they just cared about us winning. They figured out quickly that our successes were tied together and they knew that if we won, everybody would do well for themselves.”
That staff included Perez, one of many gamers he reconnected with Monday.
“He came and saw me (Monday) early on, gave me one of those big bear hugs, picked me up off the ground,” Grifol mentioned. “I felt like a little rag doll. It was pretty cool seeing him.”
Grifol didn’t foresee any points balancing the feelings of the day.
“When we’re having meetings I don’t think about it,” he mentioned. “When we’re getting ready I don’t give it some thought. At (first pitch) I’m not going to consider it. But in between these occasions, clearly I stay up for seeing a few of the guys, the Nicky Lopezes of the world, and giving them an enormous hug and a few of the entrance workplace that’s right here.
“It’s pretty cool but I’m not going to have a problem separating it, I promise.”
Grifol is concentrated on getting the Sox rotated after a tough April. They began May on a great notice, profitable two of three of their first two sequence of the month towards the Minnesota Twins and Cincinnati Reds.
“I’ve got a good staff, I’ve got a good front office,” Grifol mentioned when requested about how was it operating the present. “Got some good gamers. We bumped into a troublesome stretch, we dug ourselves a gap, however we’re working and we’re not going to cease working.
“How is it? I’ve got a good staff. They make it easy on me.”
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Source: www.bostonherald.com
