Detroit — The last time former Detroit Tiger Matthew Boyd sat in a dugout at Comerica Park, talking to reporters, was about 11 months ago.
It was his last day physically with the Tigers. He was leaving that night, flying to Dallas to have his flexor tendon surgically repaired by Dr. Keith Meister.
“I kind of look at this like the intermission for Act Two of my career,” he said.
Guess where the curtain officially opens for Act Two?
Boyd sat in the visitors’ dugout on Tuesday, wearing a green Seattle Mariners practice jersey, brimming with enthusiasm and optimism in anticipation of being activated off the injured list Thursday.
“It is odd,” he said, of the full-circle irony of this particular part of his journey. “But exciting. I’m just so grateful to be part of this Mariners ball club. It’s such a special clubhouse. The guys are awesome. But, yeah, it is weird. The last time I was here, I was leaving to go get surgery.
“Now I’m back. Detroit is my second home; it always will be. But now I get to play for my hometown team.”
You know the feeling you get when an old friend leaves and then comes back happier, healthier and in a much better place? That bittersweet kind of envy? That’s how it felt listening to Boyd talk on Tuesday.
He’s been through so much: the surgery, being non-tendered and cast free by the Tigers, signing a one-year $5.2 million deal with the Giants, having his rehab stopped and delayed. And then, finally, out of nowhere, he got traded to Seattle — the team he grew up rooting for, a team that is in the thick of the wild-card chase.
The smile never left his face during his chat with the media.
Boyd, 31, is from Mercer Island, Wash., and he also went to college out west at Oregon State.
“This is just unreal,” he said. “I dreamed about putting on this uniform. I’m getting chills thinking about it. I get to come to an amazing ballclub, with an amazing staff and players. I get to be a small part of this winning organization right now. I’m really thankful for that.”
Zing. Going into the game Tuesday, which the Mariners won, 9-3, the two teams had mirrored records — 70-58 for the M’s, 58-70 for the Tigers.
“It was shocking, first of all,” Boyd said of his initial reaction to being traded to Seattle. “I thought there was a zero-percent chance that someone who hadn’t pitched all year was going to get traded. It was emotional for me. It was emotional for my wife and for my parents. Honestly, it was a dream come true.”
The Mariners plan to use Boyd out of the bullpen this season. He made just six, two-inning rehab outings at Triple-A Tacoma, so he’s not built up to start. He made four relief appearances in his seven seasons with the Tigers, none since 2017.
“Getting outs is the name of the game, right?” he said. “That’s my role. Just to get outs whenever they ask me to do it, whether it’s the first inning, the ninth inning or anything in between. I’ll go do whatever I’m asked and as the days go on, I will get better at it.”
He’s already picked the brains of two of his rotation mates in Detroit who have transitioned to the bullpen — Michael Fulmer and Daniel Norris.
“I got good advice from them,” he said. “They’re pretty good at it. But it’s just about getting outs and I feel like I’m equipped to do that.”
The important thing is that he’s healthy. The injury, the surgery, the countless mechanical tweaks he made in those last two years in Detroit while he was pitching through or protecting soreness in his groin — all of that is in the rearview.
“Now, I can just go out and compete,” he said. “And that’s awesome. It’s a long process and it’s not linear. That was my first time on the IL like that, my first time having that experience. The rehab process has its ups and downs, and that was unique.
“It takes patience and that produces perseverance, right? And that is staying strong.”
That is part of the message Boyd has delivered to Tigers lefty Tarik Skubal, who is recovering from essentially the same surgery that Boyd had, a surgery performed by the same doctor, Meister.
“We talked about it,” Boyd said. “Tarik is awesome. Him and Casey (Mize, who had Tommy John surgery), they are professionals. And you know they are going at it and they’re attacking it the right way. They’re going to give everything they’ve got every single day.
“Tarik is hungry, man. Talking to him that night after surgery, he was already going guns a blazing. We will be in touch more as he goes through it, but I know both he and Casey are going to do everything they can to put themselves in a great position.”
Just as Boyd has done. His initial hope was to be pitching in June. His first rehab outing was Aug. 13. But even with the disappointments, the dark days of the rehab and the setbacks, Boyd said he wouldn’t change a thing.
“I don’t question why because everything that’s come from it has been a blessing,” he said. “In the year we had our third and fourth kids (twins born last November), I got to rehab in San Francisco and stay home every day. I got to be home with the twins and my two older kids at a time that I missed with the two older ones.
“That was really special.”
And now he’s pitching for his hometown Mariners, trying to help them get into the playoffs for the first time since he was 10 years old and putting up posters of Randy Johnson and Ken Griffey, Jr., on his bedroom wall.
“You want to let your mind go there,” he said. “But we have tonight. We have tomorrow and other days after that. There’s still a ton of baseball that needs to be played. Everyone knows how special that would be, especially being from the Northwest.
“But we have to take care of business today and tomorrow. My goal is just to be a small part of this big machine that’s going on here. I’m really grateful.”
Enjoy Act Two, Matthew Boyd.
Twitter@cmccosky