Gray hears it from one of his favorite former batterymates

This story was excerpted from Ian Browne’s Red Sox Beat newsletter. This week's edition was written by Henry Palattella. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

CLEVELAND -- On Saturday afternoon, Sonny Gray ran on to the mound to face the Guardians at Progressive Field and heard a familiar voice in his ear.

On 45 occasions throughout Gray’s MLB career, Stephen Vogt was behind the dish helping guide him through his start.

This time, Vogt -- now serving as Cleveland's manager -- was on the top step of the third-base home dugout chirping Gray as he walked out onto the mound. And Gray responded with six brilliant innings in a blowout Boston win.

“I appreciated it,” Gray said after the game with a chuckle.

While this isn’t the first time Gray has faced Vogt as a manager (he tossed a one-hit shutout in Cleveland last July 27 with the Cardinals), it was still a moment that both of them cherished.

“It’s just fun to see him,” Vogt said before the start. “Obviously we go way back, and he’s somebody who is special and a good friend. I’d prefer if we missed him, but it’ll be fun to watch him pitch.”

There’s perhaps no one on the planet who knows Gray’s exploits on the diamond better than Vogt, as their 45 times working together represent the most Gray has with one catcher.

But that doesn’t mean that Gray is the same pitcher now that he was then. Far from it, actually.

When the two of them were shooting up through Oakland’s system over a decade ago, Gray had a blistering fastball and relied on his curveball and slider.

On Saturday he threw six different pitches and kept hitters off balance with a sweeper, a changeup and a curveball.

“He just keeps getting smarter,” Vogt said. “He’s learned to evolve, and that’s the way you survive 13 years in the bigs. He’s just a lot smarter and experienced.”

The highlight of their time together came in 2013, when Gray tossed eight scoreless innings against the Tigers in Game 2 of the ALDS before Vogt won the game in the bottom of the ninth with a walk-off single.

That game was the first time the larger MLB world got a chance to see Gray’s calm demeanor on the mound. And it’s still there now, nearly 13 years later.

“It was just that calm, cool, collected demeanor,” Vogt said. “It’s super important. You don’t see him speed up. He’s never rattled out there and always calm. That’s something you learn over time. That may be more natural for some people, but it’s something you learn as time goes on.”

But even if Vogt and Gray’s relationship on the field has changed from teammates to opponents, they still both stressed how important their friendship is.

“He’s a good friend, no secret,” Gray said. “One of my good friends in this game. We came up together. He’s got a good thing going over there, and I’m happy for him.”