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“A lot of nerves, a lot of anxiousness, a lot of excitement,’’ Hoffman recalls. “I was a different person then. I was a kid, hadn’t grown into my own yet.’’

He was wound tighter than a two-dollar watch but he was a precious pc28¹ÙÍøasset, a strapping six-foot-five right-hander, a 2014 first-round pick (ninth overall) despite undergoing Tommy John surgery mere weeks before the draft.

The future looked bright and Blue, until he was suddenly traded to the Rockies in 2015 as part of a blockbuster package for stud shortstop Troy Tulowitzki.

“Didn’t want to go to Colorado and deal with all that s—-’’ he says, apologizing for the mild cuss. “It’s hard to pitch there.’’ Meaning the thin dry air and altitude that makes Coors Field a hitters’ paradise. “It was a crazy time.’’

Now, a decade after his launch, after seasons struggling as a starter, after blossoming as an all-star reliever, Hoffman is back where he began, in Blue Jays threads, designated their closer. Marquee stuff. A lot of miles and gaining of wisdom in between.

“I’ve learned to chill out a little bit. For me, less is more. It took me a while to realize that. I was always a guy that thought more work on the field, more work in the gym, was going to be better for me. But in reality, when I started doing less I started getting more healthy, just better overall.’’

The 32-year-old signed with pc28¹ÙÍøas the replacement, and an alleged upgrade, for the non-tendered Jordan Romano. Hoffman came this-away from Philadelphia, Romano went that-away to Philadelphia. Kind of like wife-swapping.

“Pretty weird,’’ Hoffman agrees.

He is a cool cucumber, calm under pressure. A relaxing tactic was imparted by Navy SEALs, the American elite special operations force.

“Learned some cool tricks of the trade from them. They talk about box-breathing, which is part of their training. It’s a four-step technique: four-second inhale, four-second hold, four-second exhale, four-second hold, over and over. It’s a really good way to regulate your heartbeat.’’

It was only in the last couple of years that Hoffman began to visualize himself as a closer, itching for the glamorama gig. Last year, he closed just 24 games with the Phillies, posting 10 saves, while taking the bump 34 times in the eighth inning. He had a 2.17 ERA and 89 strikeouts over 66 1/3 innings.

Closers are a distinct breed, the knockout punch in a bullpen. “If I were to characterize it, obviously you need intensity. And you need to slow your heart rate in the most important parts, when it’s the hardest to do that, When stadiums are going crazy or you’re in a hostile stadium. You have to find a way to quiet the noise while staying intense. So I think you kind of have be a little bipolar.’’

He’s also described it, for himself, as finding “comfort in the chaos.’’

It’s not a stress that can be replicated in the easy lope of spring training.

“It’s a hard environment to play out if you’re not in a stadium filled with people. You can’t really practise that. And it’s different from stadium to stadium, depending on how rowdy the crowd gets. For me, it becomes a game of just blocking out noise and really trying to lock myself in my own head. That’s like a sensory thing. I feel like I’m at the point now where I can shut it off and only hear my thoughts. When I do that, I’m in my happy zone.’’

He’ll take the ball of urgency from a retooled bullpen that had a 4.82 ERA last season, second-worst in the majors. For that, the Jays inked him to a three-year, $33-million (U.S.) deal. The Jays brain trust liked his filthy mix of pitches: four-seam and two-seam fastballs, a splitter and a slider.

“My goal, for the most part, is to not allow the hitter to eliminate any of my pitches. I like having multiple plans.’’

Eyebrows were raised when both Baltimore and Atlanta were on the verge of signing the 32-year-old but backed away on the advice of medical staff who didn’t like what they saw in his MRI profile. Concerns were flagged about his pitching shoulder. But two failed physicals didn’t discourage the Jays.

“I don’t think it was necessarily something that’s in there now, as opposed to risk moving forward, which to me is silly. Everybody has risk moving forward.’’

That MRI imaging, he stresses, was from a while ago — an impingement in 2021, forearm stiffness in 2022. “I haven’t had shoulder stuff in years. When they said that, I almost fell off my chair. Like, what are you talking about?’’

New clubhouse, new teammates, new closer role.

“That means you’ve reached the top of being a relief pitcher. That’s what you strive for.’’