BOSTON -- Imagine Kiké Hernández stuck in a Cleveland hotel room for 10 days, but still wearing his Red Sox uniform for just about every game.

This really happened, Hernández explained on Tuesday, the day he was cleared to be reinstated from the COVID-19 injured list.

Clubhouse manager Tommy McLaughlin made this possible by sending Hernández his equipment bag.

“Tommy, he sent me my bag with some of my gear in case I had to spend more than 10 days in Cleveland to find somewhere to go hit or whatever,” said Hernández. “Didn't end up happening because I left at Day 10.

“But I just pretended like I was at the game. I’d put on my pants, put on my top, my hat, and I’d wear a mask just as if I was in the dugout. And I would start FaceTiming [other] guys [on the COVID IL], try to lighten up the mood. It was cool to see how engaged everybody was watching the games, you know, they weren't just shutting it down and doing their own thing. Everybody was engaged. As not cool as it was, it was kind of cool.”

Hernández tested positive on Aug. 27. Little did he know that 10 other Red Sox players would join him on the COVID-19 IL over the next nine days, all but two of them testing positive.

“I just felt [bad],” Hernandez said. “I guess you can call me Patient Zero on the team. I just felt [lousy], whether I was the first one or not, I was the first one that actually tested positive, and after that, we lost, like, 40 percent of our team.

“Really proud of what they did while we were out. We still have a lot of guys out, but the fact that they went out there, won the series in Cleveland, split in [St. Petersburg], and won against the Indians here, they showed a lot of grit, a lot of battle. It says a lot about those guys.”

Fortunately for Hernández, who is vaccinated, his symptoms were short-lived.

“The first day and a half was pretty miserable, and then after that the symptoms kind of drifted away,” Hernández said. “I guess I’m glad that I was vaccinated, because this thing got me pretty good for a day and a half. ... I guess I got lucky on that side.”

So what does someone do when they are stuck in a Cleveland hotel room for 10 days?

“I would brush my teeth. I would order breakfast. I would order a coffee. I would take a long shower. Sometimes I would take a bath, watch a Netflix show here and there, then I would take another shower, another bath to pass time,” said Hernández. “And then I would play some games on my phone to entertain myself. And then waiting for 7 o'clock, for the game to start, and then went on Amazon, ordered a cable to hook up my iPad to the TV and watch the games on TV.”

Iggy thrilled to be back
José Iglesias, who was originally signed by the Red Sox in 2008 after he defected from Cuba, is thrilled to be back in a Boston uniform -- especially in the middle of a pennant race. Iglesias was traded during a pennant race in 2013, as the Sox landed Jake Peavy from the White Sox while Iglesias went to the Tigers as part of the three-team trade.

The veteran shortstop signed with the Sox on Monday and quickly came up with an RBI single in the bottom of the 10th inning after entering the game as a defensive replacement.

“It’s special,” Iglesias said. “I’m very [happy] to be back where I call home. [This is] the organization that got me to where I’m at today. I’m just here to help the team any way I can.”

As for his abrupt departure from the Angels, who released him on Sept. 3, the 31-year-old Iglesias called it a mutual decision.

“It was a mutual agreement between the Angels and I,” Iglesias said. “It was time for me to go and help someone else and get at-bats. I feel great. I’m in the best moment of my career. I feel like I can help someone else.”

Iglesias got the start at shortstop on Tuesday and will get the bulk of the playing time there until Xander Bogaerts returns from the COVID-19 IL.

Always renowned for his athleticism on defense, the metrics have not been kind to Iglesias so far this season. Per FanGraphs, he had minus-22 defensive runs saved for the Angels.

“The numbers are not there. Not to find excuses, but energy has a lot to do with it,” Iglesias said. “For me, I’m not concerned at all. Zero [percent] concerned about my defense or my stats on defense. It’s something I definitely have to improve number-wise. But I know it’s all about energy for me.”

How will he get more energy in his return to Boston?

“Just be in the moment. Feel connected and play for something. I like to play for something,” Iglesias said.

Defensive alignments
The return of Hernández and the addition of Iglesias should help manager Alex Cora fix his team’s biggest flaw this season: Defense.

Hernández is going to get the bulk of his playing time for the final few weeks of the season in center field, a position he has excelled at all season. This will allow Alex Verdugo to go back to left, where he is far more comfortable.

When Bogaerts returns, Iglesias will slide over to second base, which should give the Red Sox a solid middle infield. Christian Arroyo has been stellar at second when healthy, but he’s been having a tough time recovering from COVID-19 and it’s unclear when he will be back.

J.D. Martinez can mainly stick as the designated hitter going forward after playing his share of left field in recent weeks. Kyle Schwarber will play a lot of first base against righties, and Bobby Dalbec will get all the time there against lefties and against certain righties. Look for Schwarber to spell Verdugo in left against lefties at times.