Fact Check: Did Yankees' Alex Verdugo pay for Tommy DeVito meet and greet? Exploring truth behind viral social media claim

Alex Verdugo has already taken to the New York lifestyle, as claimed by a parody fan account that says that the new Yankees outfielder was spotted in a meet and greet session with New York Giants quarterback Tommy DeVito.

Verdugo moved from the Boston Red Sox to the Yankees in a big trade that cemented his position in the outfield alongside Aaron Judge. The trade sent three prospects to Boston, who got in a replacement for Verdugo from the St. Louis Cardinals, Tyler O'Neill.

As claimed by New York Porch Sports, there were many spectators lined up in New Jersey's Walgreens area for a special meet and greet session with NFL player Tommy DeVito. One of the fans to meet the New York Giants quarterback was Verdugo himself.

However, New York Porch Sports is a satire and parody sports page for the New York media run by Joe Randazzo. So the post about Alex Verdugo was obviously a parody post and an attempted joke at poking the newbie in Bronx.

"Alex Verdugo one of 1,400 fans who met Tommy DeVito in New Jersey Walgreens. The Yankees slugger paid $800 for meet-and-greet."

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Alex Verdugo's record with the Boston Red Sox

The 27-year-old outfielder had been with the Red Sox since the start of the shortened 2020 season. Verdugo started his career with the LA Dodgers and moved eastwards after a solid 2019 season, which saw him finish with an average of .294 from 106 games.

At Boston, he almost maintained that average with .281 in four seasons. He hit 37 home runs for the franchise during this period and was a regular feature in their starting lineup.

On defense, he was a strong right fielder, saving at least +11 runs in 2023. Despite his solid form at the start of the season, there were talks about him getting traded after a slump in the second half. But outfield has been a big losing point in the Yankees lineup, so it will be interesting to see how he performs for the Bombers.