BOSTON -- In Fenway Park's tiny visitors' clubhouse before the Blue Jays' 4-3 win over the Red Sox on Monday, an attendant delivered a package to Chris Colabello. He instantly knew who it was from.
It was a gift from Red Sox pitcher Steven Wright to make amends for hitting Colabello in the helmet with an 87-mph fastball on Sunday.
"He's a great guy," Colabello said. "I told him yesterday I know there wasn't any intent on his part. Him and I have played against each other for a long time. We've had a relationship to the point where we go out of our way to say hello to each other any time we're playing against each other.
"So certainly a kind gesture on his part, completely unnecessary. I sent [former teammate] David Price a text message and told him to say thank you for me. [Wright] didn't have to do that, but that's the kind of kid he is.
"I saw the way he was standing around home plate. I knew nobody felt worse than him. I felt bad that I was down on the ground as long as I was because I wanted to reassure him that I was OK. As I was going down to first, he said something to me and I was like, 'Dude, I know. Don't worry.' And then he made it a point when the inning ended and I was coming around the bases to come over and I patted him on the back and said, 'Listen, trust me, I know. Just let it go.' There was not an after-effect for me or anything, so he can put his head down and rest easy."
Someone who might not have rested so easy after the incident was Colabello's mother, who was at the game.
"Yeah, if I had to guess, she probably cried for three or four innings, knowing her," Colabello said. "With injuries on the field for me and one like that, she really doesn't know. But I would have liked to think that the fact that I got up and went to first base reassured her.
"But that's not how moms are, especially Italian moms of only children."
Colabello, who grew up in Milford, Mass., had a large group of friends and family at each game. But he's learned to manage to the ticket requests.
"I think I left like six," he said. "I've made it pretty clear to everyone that I'm not getting into a war of who I say yes and who I say no to. So it's my mom, my dad, my aunt and my fiancée. My friends are pretty good about being understanding about it."