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Essentially the leader of the Jays player development initiatives, Cherington is tasked to do the exact thing he stressed with Boston, the fruits of which filled the Red Sox dugout on Tuesday.

Of the starting nine the home side fielded in pursuit of win No. 99, four important Boston players had varying ties to Cherington with several other key pieces also connected.

The guts of this Red Sox team, which has a serious shot at setting the club record of 105 wins, came from the 2011 draft overseen by then-GM Theo Epstein and his assistant at the time,Cherington.

That haul has proven to be a bountiful one, given that Jackie Bradley Jr. and Mookie Betts were both selected that year and form the cornerstone of the team’s outfield today.

Cherington was largely behind the international singing of Xander Boegarts in 2009, also while an assistant. As the GM, he drafted left fielder Andrew Benintendi in the first round, acquired infielder Rafael Devers as an international signee in 2013 and traded for eventual 22-game winner Rick Porcello in 2014.

Cherington had a voice in the Epstein drafts and overall operation, of course, but when he took over as GM he forcefully emphasized the player development side of the business.

That comes as no surprise to Atkins, who has seen it first hand in the collaborative effort that is the Jays front office.

“Ben would make an impact in any organization, just being available to bounce ideas off of and get input on decisions,” Atkins said. “But he’s so much more than that for the Jays. He has rolled up his sleeves to diligently drive innovation in our player development process in a respectful and efficient way.”