Alex Verdugo having a hard time adjusting to Aaron Boone's rule about wearing chains

BOSTON -- The grass is not always greener on the other side. Especially when you can't wear all your jewelry.

Alex Verdugo is learning that lesson as he tries to adapt to life as a member of the New York Yankees. Not only does Verdugo have to abide by the club's longstanding ban on beards, but he also has to follow a rule put in place by manager Aaron Boone that limits the number of chains Verdugo can wear during games.

For the 27-year-old outfielder, making the adjustment has not been easy.

"It's kind of been hard, man, because usually I'm used to wearing like three of four," Verdugo said, per The Associated Press' Kristie Rieken.

The rule limits Verdugo to wearing just one chain per game, a major shift from his normal routine of wearing several chains around his neck.

The report says that Verdugo packs "at least six" chains for each road trip but he wore the same chain in each of the Yankees' season-opening games in Houston.

It's an interesting development, as Verdugo -- who seemed to have taken a veiled shot at Red Sox manager Alex Cora after the trade -- had expressed some real excitement about playing for Boone.

"I'm very, very excited to work with Aaron. I've seen the way he's had his players' backs," Verdugo said in December. "That's something I want to see out of my head coach, man. I want to see some fire, some fight for the guys. I think just instead of airing people out, have their backs."

Verdugo is off to a slow start at the plate, as he's hitting just .160 with a .494 OPS in his first 28 plate appearances. Yet he made a nice sliding catch in left field to record the final out of a Yankees win in Houston on Sunday. Perhaps it was the lack of clutter around his neck that made the play possible.