Anthony Rizzo makes beer-fueled Bronx return, sends 2-word message on reuniting with Gleyber Torres

The New York Yankees welcomed former second baseman Gleyber Torres to Yankee Stadium during the series opener against the Detroit Tigers. However, Torres wasn't the only former Yankee at the ballpark as his former infield partner, Anthony Rizzo, enjoyed Tuesday's game from the stands.

Gleyber Torres walked into free agency at the end of last season, ending his seven-year tenure with the Yankees. He signed a $15 million deal with the Tigers in the offseason and returned to Yankee Stadium this week for the first time since his move to Detroit.

Rizzo also became a free agent at the end of the 2024 season after the Yankees declined a $17 million option for 2025. The former Yankees first baseman was in the stands for Tuesday's series opener and even chugged a can of beer to commemorate his return with his wife Emily sitting beside him.

Rizzo, who shared the infield with Torres during his time with the Yankees, reunited with the infielder ahead of the game. He shared a two-word message for his former teammate on Instagram:

"My boy!"

Torres' Tigers defeated his former team 12-2 after the Yankees bullpen imploded in the series opener.

Yankees fans show love to former infielder Gleyber Torres

Gleyber Torres was greeted with a lund ovation before his first at-bat at Yankee Stadium in a Tigers uniform. The former Yankees star also received a video tribute and Torres stepped out of the dugout to acknowledge the crowd in the second inning.

Torres earned his second All-Star selection this season, first since 2019 and shared that the aggressive base running in Detroit has made him thrive.

“You know [third base coach Joey] Cora, how they run the bases,” Torres said. “Those type of situations, always aggressive on the bases. We really create more opportunities to score runs. In the first inning or the last inning, we never change our approach to running on the bases aggressive. That’s a huge part I’ve learned and tried to be on the same page with.”

He is batting .259 with a .758 OPS in 128 games and has been a big part of the Tigers' postseason push.

About the author

Chaitanya Prakash is an editor who covers US Sports at Sportskeeda. His first brush with sportswriting was in 2012 when the greatest football manager of all time, Sir Alex Ferguson, bid farewell to the beautiful game.

Although having started out professionally as a cricket writer in 2022, Chaitanya's curiosity and indiscriminate interest in all sports in general eventually introduced him to America's favorite pastime.

While Chaitanya's favorite player from the current crop is the dynamic Venezuelan Ronald Acuna Jr., his all-time favorite, however, is Pedro Martinez, for his self-belief and consistency. He also rates Jose Bautista's iconic bat flip in 2015 as his favorite moment in baseball history.

Chaitanya specializes in reporting on technical aspects of the game or analyzing patterns behind specific plays. He also likes pondering over players' self-assessments following the conclusion of a game as it helps him get an idea of how they think about the sport in general.

When not cheering for his favorites across sports, Chaitanya likes being transported to the past through a good war documentary or a historical documentary in general.

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Edited by Chaitanya Prakash