A second chance to make a first impression. (Closer).

On Thursday, June 26, I didn't go to the park. I was out of work. I flew back to Denver from Pittsburgh, and my wife and I packed our entire apartment into our truck and shipped out of Denver.

This is where wives don't get enough credit. You may think all they do is get their nails done and watch Oprah, but most wives are the backbone for any player. My wife has moved our family 26 times in 10 years, so she has it down to a science.

I was feeling sorry for myself when the wheels hit the ground in Denver, but when we got to the apartment my wife said, "Grab a broom, and let's clean up." She drove our truck, loaded down with our whole apartment, from Denver to Birmingham, Ala., in 25 hours.

I got to Alabama on Saturday, and Michelle got home on Sunday at 10 a.m. Then I sat, 1 sat and I sat. It was kind of like hurry up and wait. I couldn't leave until Wednesday because that was when I cleared waivers. Thankfully, a few teams were interested. Out of the teams that showed interest, the Red Sox were the team I wanted to be with. I went from hurry up and wait to hurry up and get on a flight. I cleared waivers at 1 p.m. and was on a plane by 1:25.

When I got to the park, I was fired up--heck, I hadn't been to one in six days. The guys treated me great. They said ...