The questions about how Red Sox Nation would receive Andrew Benintendi upon his return to Fenway Park as a member of the New York Yankees were in full force Friday, the day the latest rivalry series was due to begin.
The Boston crowd has a long history of booing former players who return in pinstripes: Johnny Damon returned to Fenway Park after signing a four-year, $52 million contract with the Yankees and was promptly met by boobirds and signs that called him a traitor and fans calling him Judas Damon — despite him tipping his cap to the fans and the Red Sox dugout.
When Jacoby Ellsbury came back to Boston, it also was to boos, after he signed a seven-year, $153 million contract with the Bronx Bombers.
So by Friday morning, when former Red Sox fan favorite Brock Holt posted a photo on Instagram of the two during their days in Boston — with the hashtag #BooBenny — it was fair to wonder.