Haverhill Native Carlos Pena Jumps Networks to NESN for 2019 Red Sox Coverage

Carlos Pena appears during Haverhill's 2017 Athletic Hall of Fame Induction ceremony at Hunking School. (WHAV News file photograph)

City son Carlos Pena is gearing up for a new baseball season—and a new job—when the Red Sox begin Grapefruit League play this week in Fort Myers, Fla. The Haverhill native plans to offer color commentary alongside Jarrod Saltalamacchia for NESN during select spring training and regular season games, his new network announced this week.

Pena makes his debut Friday when the Sox play his alma mater Northeastern University.

Hall of Famers Jerry Remy, Dennis Eckersley and play-by-play announcer Dave O’Brien round out the network’s broadcast roster. The trio is expected to kick off their coverage during April 9’s home opener against the Toronto Blue Jays at Fenway Park.

Pena’s decision to move to NESN comes after a five-year stint as a studio analyst for the MLB Network. A Haverhill High School and Northeastern University graduate, Pena was a first-round draft pick in 1998 and played 14 seasons in the major leagues on teams including the Detroit Tigers and Tampa Bay Rays.

His NESN gig is a homecoming of sorts for the Boston-bred slugger, having served as a fill-in color analyst in 2017.

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