On an early Sunday morning in the cramped visiting clubhouse at Fenway Park, representatives of Franklin Sports, the baseball brand company, grabbed the players they supply to check in on them and their stock. The players were all seemingly in a rush, spending only a moment with the reps.

In a dull moment between check-ins, they noticed Maverick Handley chilling in the corner by himself and approached him. Handley looked shocked — he’s never had a sponsor before, and he was thrilled someone even wanted to talk to him, let alone to offer him free bats and gloves

“It was the first time someone was like, ‘You’re a major league player. What do you need?’” Handley said. “It’s weird. I was never like a super uber prospect, especially since I didn’t start pro ball off on fire. It was cool to get some gear.”

While his teammates such as Gunnar Henderson and Adley Rutschman are accustomed to this treatment, this is all new to Handley. His journey to get here was long and treacherous, and there was never a guarantee, as with top prospects, that he would even make it to Baltimore.

A 2019 draft pick, Handley was selected in the same year as Rutschman. While Rutschman surged through the levels and debuted in 2022, Handley slogged through the minors and became content with a life of loading his own bags onto the bus and eating sandwiches with just one piece of ham and cheese on them to get by.

He began to wonder if he would ever make it, or if he would need to use his backup plan — his biochemistry pre-med degree from Stanford. He was brought up on the taxi squad a few times in recent years, which gave him hope that the time would be coming for him to experience the perks of being a major leaguer. But he didn’t get the full treatment until April 29, the day he finally made his debut.

And, boy, has major league life taken getting used to. After his first game, he started walking around the clubhouse and asking teammates to sign the lineup card to document the day. A veteran told him to get a clubbie (clubhouse attendant) to do that for him. That’s what they are there for.

“It’s weird to have people constantly picking up after you,” he said. “Like in high school, it’s this is your gear. College, this is your gear. You tamp the plate; you take care of the field. Here we’re getting catered to 24/7. It’s weird to get used to. It’s very weird.”

Now don’t get him wrong; he’s loving every second of this. The sauna in the bathroom, the gourmet food spread, the fancy hotels and the private planes are all among the perks of major league life.

“I don’t even put on my seat belt,” he remarked.

Handley knows that his time in the majors won’t last forever. He has only three hits and, with Gary Sánchez on the mend and doing baseball activities, he’ll likely be optioned soon. But, even if this is his only chance to be a big leaguer, he’ll forever be able to say that he did it and that he took full advantage of all that comes with that title.

“It’s definitely fulfilling to stay with it this long and finally achieve it,” Handley said. “Obviously I want to stay up here as long as possible, but I’ll feel content.”