Tag Archives: Red Sox

The Greatest Designated Hitters in Red Sox History

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Designated hitter is the final position to cover for Red Sox all-time greats. This is a spot that has had a lot of turnover since it came into existence, aside from a certain lovable Papi. The DH did not come into existence until 1973. Many guys have only played for two to three years as the primary DH on the Sox as Big Papi took up about one-fourth of that time. Keeping with the theme of these articles, here are the five greatest in Red Sox history.

David Ortiz

We can thank the Twins for one of the greatest players in franchise history, and maybe the most influential. Ortiz had shown promise with the Twins, posting an .818 OPS over his last three seasons. He hit 20 home runs in 2002 while posting a .500 slugging percentage. I remember thinking it was strange when they let him go and I wanted the Red Sox to sign him. Of course, nobody could have predicted the levels of success yet to come.

There are too many feats to list them all, but Big Papi helped the Red Sox to their first three World Series Championships in 86 years. When finally elevated into the lineup in 2003 over the terrible Jeremy Giambi, (took you long enough Grady Little!) Ortiz raked, hitting .293 with 29 homers and a 1.010 OPS from June 1st on. With his clutch hitting he managed to enter the MVP race, ultimately finishing 5th. It was the first of five consecutive seasons in which Ortiz would place in the top five for the MVP. Ortiz finished in 2nd and 3rd place once and in 4th place twice. In 2006 he set the franchise single-season record by hitting 54 home runs.

Of course there was all the timely hitting. Ortiz had walk-off hits in both game 4 and game 5 of the 2004 ALCS. This came after Ortiz took Jarrod Washburn over the green monster to walk-off the Angels and complete the ALDS sweep. For a stretch there it seemed like whenever he came up with a chance to win the game, he would. I remember watching one game in particular against the Indians; my brother called for Ortiz to hit a home run for the walk-off. My response was, “come on, he’s not going to continue to hit a home run every time, it isn’t possible.” Ortiz promptly took Fausto Carmona over the center field wall to win the game. He was simply unreal, the most clutch player I have ever watched.

Ortiz batted .290 and hit 483 home runs as a member of the Red Sox. He drove in 1530 runs, bashed 524 doubles and had a .386/.570/.956 slash line. Ortiz made 10 All-Star Games and won seven Silver Sluggers. Of course, he went out on top of his game still, batting .315 with 38 home runs and a league leading 48 doubles at the age of 41. In the playoffs, Ortiz hit 17 home runs and had a .947 OPS. They say good pitching beats good hitting in the playoffs, but Ortiz’ postseason numbers are right in line with his regular season ones. He then stepped it up even further in the World Series, batting .455 with a 1.372 OPS over three separate World Series.

Reggie Jefferson

Jefferson came to the Red Sox without a true role. The Sox already had Mo Vaughn at first base and Jose Canseco at DH. Jefferson ended up forcing his way into the lineup by hitting line drives all over the yard. His emergence may have played a role in Canseco being shipped out-of-town after the 1996 season. That year, Jefferson batted .347 with 19 home runs and a .981 OPS! He had the 2nd highest batting average in the American League and the highest OPS on the Red Sox that season.

Jefferson batted .319 as the primary DH in 1997, hitting .352 against right-handers. He again batted over .300 in 1998 before a back injury shelved him for the remainder of the season in mid-July. In five seasons with the Red Sox, Jefferson batted .316 with a .363/.505/.868 slash line. He was even better in front of the home crowd, hitting .345 with a .928 OPS at Fenway Park. You can read more about him here.

Reggie Jefferson #18 of the Boston Red Sox bats during a game against the White Sox on July 1, 1997 at New Comiskey Park in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)

Jose Canseco

Canseco was a beast at the plate during his two years with the Red Sox; when healthy. Canseco only played in 102 and 96 games in his two seasons, battling injuries. In his time on the field, Canseco managed to bat .298 with 52 home runs and a .960 OPS. Of course, he had some added help, but those are some monster numbers. If he could have stayed healthy he would have threatened 40 home runs both years.

Canseco batted behind Mo Vaughn in the order, providing him with some lineup protection. Teams still walked Big Mo to get to Canseco occasionally, and it seemed like whenever they did Canseco hit one onto Landsdowne Street. I used to think he would get angry in the on-deck circle at the disrespect. He ultimately slots in third on this list since he was only with the team for two years, but they were two very good offensive seasons.

Jose Canseco of the Red Sox drives in a run in the first inning of Boston’s game against the Yankees at Fenway Park. Canseco also had a home run and a tie-breaking two-run double as the Red Sox beat the Yankees 7-4. (JOHN MOTTERN /AFP/Getty Images)

Mike Easler

Easler is another guy who only spent two seasons with the Red Sox. There really aren’t many primary designated hitters who lasted for a while with the team. Easler’s 337 base hits actually rank 5th among Red Sox designated hitters. He batted .288 with 43 home runs and 165 runs batted in on the strength of his first season with the team. In 1984 he was great, hitting .313 with 27 homers and 91 RBI. And that, oddly enough for a position dedicated to guys who can hit, is good enough to make the top five.

April 13, 1984: Mike Easler bats during the Red Sox home opener against the Detroit Tigers on April 13, 1984.
(Photo by Peter Travers/Boston Red Sox)

Cecil Cooper

Cooper is a guy who should have been with the team longer than he was. An upcoming prospect coming off two solid seasons, the Red Sox traded the 27-year-old Cooper to Milwaukee. Boston brought back two former Red Sox on the wrong side of 30 in George Scott and Bernie Carbo. Scott and Carbo both had one more good season, Cooper went on to bat .302 over 11 seasons with the Brewers.

Before he was traded, Cooper had batted .283 with 40 home runs and a .772 OPS. His best season with the Sox was definitely in 1975, batting .311 with an .899 OPS. He was one of the team’s hottest hitters that summer before taking a pitch to the face in September. Although he would become a Gold Glover in Milwaukee, he was not considered to be a good fielder in his younger days so he had been relegated to DH.

Honorable Mentions:

Carl Yastrzemski (.264 46 HR .764 OPS at DH), Don Baylor, Andre Dawson

 

 

The Yankees Became a Powerhouse

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Back in Time…

Remember in 2004  when Alex Rodriguez went to the Yankees? Everyone was saying the Red Sox would never win the World Series, but they did that year. The difference between the 2003 and 2018 Red Sox is they had power back then. The 2018 Red Sox have no power hitters and are now the Cleveland Browns of baseball. This Red Sox team just became the laughing stock of the American League East. An interesting stat: Stanton, Judge, and Sanchez had a combined 144 home runs last season. The entire Red Sox lineup hit 168 and got thrown out at the bases 70 times.

In Dave We Trust?

Dave Dombrowski now has to overspend on J.D. Martinez, who hit 45 home runs,104 RBI’s and had a .303 batting average last season. Derek Jeter gave his old team a discount to become a powerhouse while the Marlins are garbage and will have potentially give the Yankees control of the American League for years to come. Stanton wants to be on a winning team and the Red Sox didn’t want to give anyone up. New York makes sense for him, but the Red Sox really screwed themselves from being contenders in the American League East. They could’ve traded Bradley. You know that Dave wants to win in the short term, and they aren’t getting anywhere with this current Red Sox team.

Derek Jeter Just Made the Yankees a Powerhouse

The Yankees weren’t that much of a good team recently. But Derek Jeter just potentially made the Yankees a powerhouse for years to come, while Red Sox ownership just sits back and watches. I’ve been saying since Ortiz retired that the Red Sox need a bat. The Yankees have passed the Red Sox with this deal and it will show next season.  Dombrowski had the chance to make something happen. With Abreu not coming to Boston, the only option is J.D. Martinez. Enjoy baseball, Red Sox nation, because the only thing people will be singing at Fenway Park is Sweet Caroline in the eighth inning.

The Greatest Right Fielders in Red Sox History

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As I draw near the end of my series of articles on the greatest Red Sox at each position, I come to the right fielders. This group of five right fielders are the final defensive position left to cover. Following this article I will still have the designated hitters to go and a wrap up. There were not many competitors for the top five, yet the group is quite solid.

Dwight Evans

Dwight Evans is both the greatest offensive and greatest defensive right fielder in Red Sox history. Personally, I am a strong advocate of “Dewey” getting his number retired. Always underrated nationally, Dewey received frighteningly little support for the Hall of Fame and has not been brought up by any veteran’s committee for election. I believe if he had hit in the 70’s like he did during the 80’s he would probably be a Hall of Famer.

Evans batted .272 with 379 home runs, 1346 RBI and 2373 base hits as a Red Sox. He walked a lot, leading the league in walks three times. This helped him to a .369 on base percentage and .842 OPS. In Boston Red Sox history he ranks 5th in home runs, 4th in base hits, 4th in doubles, 5th in RBI, 3rd in runs scored and 3rd in walks. As I stated earlier, Dewey developed as a hitter over time and was a dangerous one at the plate in the 80’s. During that decade he hit 30 home runs three times and drove in over 100 runs four times. His average season was .280 with 26 home runs, 90 RBI and a .385/.497/.882. A great fielder who can put up numbers like that? How did he fall off the ballot after three years?

 

When it comes to fielding, Dwight Evans not only had a strong glove but a strongarm. He accumulated 155 assists from right field. He led the league in this category three times and in putouts four times. Evans had a career .987 fielding percentage in right field. All of this led to Dewey winning a total of eight Gold Gloves.

Evans twice finished in the top five for MVP votes. In 1981, a season shortened by a strike, Evans led the league in home runs, walks, OPS and WAR. He finished third in the MVP vote that year, but probably deserved better. Had he won the MVP like some statistics suggest he should have, maybe he would have garnered more respect from Hall of Fame voters. He was also batting .341 with a 1.031 OPS at the time of the strike on June 11th, so it interrupted a fantastic start to the season for him.

Jackie Jensen

I am giving Jackie Jensen the nod at number two given his dominance over a six-year stretch. Jensen spent seven years with the Sox after returning for one season following a short retirement. He batted .282 with the Red Sox, hitting 170 home runs. Jensen had an excellent .374/.478/.852 slash line.

During his first six seasons, 1954-59, Jensen batted .285 and averaged 26 home runs and 111 runs batted in per season. He had two 20-20 seasons and led the league in RBI three times in five seasons. The only season he didn’t reach 100 RBI was 1956, when he drove in 97 and led the league with 11 triples. He won the MVP in 1958 when he bashed 35 homers and drove in 122 runs. The next season he hit 28 home runs and won the Gold Glove Award.

Following the 1959 season Jackie Jensen abruptly retired. A large reason for his retirement during his prime and at the age of 32 was due to a fear of flying. The Major Leagues were expanding and new teams were popping up on the other side of the country. Flying was becoming more constant and Jensen could hardly bear it. The other reason was being away from his family so many months of the year, but I’m sure if he didn’t have to fly he would not have retired. Jensen came back in 1961 after a year off. However, following a year layoff he was only okay. Jensen batted .263 with 13 home runs and decided to retire for good.

Harry Hooper

Hooper played with the Red Sox for 12 seasons during the dead-ball era. He was a part of the “golden outfield” with Tris Speaker and Duffy Lewis. The three of them formed one of the greatest outfields in the early days. Hooper was considered a great defender, leading the league in putouts seven times and assists three times. He had 30 outfield assists in 1910.

At the plate, Hooper batted .272 with 1707 base hits. Having played in the dead-ball era, Hooper did not hit many home runs. However, Hooper did hit 130 triples as a Red Sox. Hooper also stole 300 bases during his 12 seasons with the team. He also came up with some clutch hits, batting .293 in World Series play. In 1915 he batted .350 and hit two homers during the series against the Phillies. Hooper won four World Series with the Red Sox.

Outfielder Harry Hooper of the Boston Red Sox bats before a game during the 1909 season at Huntington Avenue Grounds. (Photo by National Baseball Hall of Fame Library)

Tony Conigliaro

Everyone knows Tony C’s story. It is my belief had he not been hit by that pitch in the eye, Conigliaro would have hit 500 home runs and potentially threatened 600. It is practically a guarantee he would be at least number two on this list, if not first. As it stands, he is one of the biggest what-ifs in sports history. However, do not think he is only on here for what might have been. During the time he had with the Red Sox, Conigliaro hit 162 home runs. He hit 32 home runs at the age of 20 in 1965. He would then go on to become the youngest American Leaguer to ever reach 100 career home runs.

Conigliaro had 104 home runs at the time of his beaning. This came over the course of two full seasons and two partial seasons. He had averaged 35 home runs per 162 games played. In 1970, his second season back from the horrific beaning, Conigliaro hit a career high 36 home runs. Still just 25 years old, he seemed to have recuperated and be entering his prime. Unfortunately his eyesight took a turn for the worse in the offseason and he was never able to have success again. Despite the what-ifs, Tony C was still one of the bigger power hitters Fenway Park has seen.

Trot Nixon

The ultimate “dirt dog” rounds out the top five. Trot was seemingly a prospect forever, having been drafted seventh overall in 1993. Trot didn’t become a full-time Major Leaguer until 1999. He proceeded to have a few solid seasons and a couple excellent ones. Nixon was a .278 hitter in Boston with 133 home runs and 912 base hits. He had some very nice rate stats, hitting to a .366/.478/.845 slash line.

From 2001-2003, Nixon hit 79 home runs. 2003 was his best season, batting .306 with 28 home runs and a .975 OPS. He was also very good in 2004, when he was on the field. Nixon missed a lot of time that year but was able to contribute to the Red Sox breaking the curse. Thanks in part to his “all out” play, Nixon missed a lot of time over those next couple seasons with injuries.

Honorable Mentions:

One can expect a certain current Red Sox player to be joining these ranks in the not too distant future…

Mookie Betts, J.D. Drew, Tom Brunansky

 

Greatest Right-Handed Pitchers

Greatest Left-Handed Pitchers

Greatest Relief Pitchers

Greatest Catchers

Greatest First Basemen

Greatest Second Basemen

Greatest Third Basemen

Greatest Shortstops

Greatest Left Fielders

Greatest Center Fielders

 

 

John Farrell Opens Up About Being Fired

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John Farrell on MLB Network

John Farrell exits as Red Sox manager.

John Farrell was fired and Alex Cora was named the new Red Sox manager. On Wednesday’s Hot Stove Show on MLB Network, Farrell opened up about his firing. He admitted that it was hard for him to accept the firing after the success he had:

“In some ways, yes, because I felt we as a team, as an organization, as a coaching staff, we were proud of the number of accomplishments that we had there. Including as you saw in 2013 and back-to-back championships in the AL East the last couple of years”.

Farrell Respects The Firing

Boston Red Sox manager John Farrell speaks during a news conference, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017, before his team’s workout as they prepare for Sunday’s Game 3 of baseball’s American League Division Series against the Houston Astros in Boston. (AP Photo/Bill Sikes)

Farrell had a record of 432-378 in the regular season with the Red Sox. He also talked about how everything has a shelf life:

“But hey, every situation has a shelf life and a change was made. I respect the change that did take place.”

Farrell gave credit to Alex Cora and that championships matter in this city, not just winning the division.

“Coming out of five years in which there might have been the most scrutiny on a team. On an individual player or a manager, and that’s Boston. But that’s also what draws people to those places,” he said. “The expectation is high and the ability to win is there every single year. If that’s not in your DNA, if that’s not what you aspire to do. To win then maybe those places aren’t for you.”

Farrell Gives Advice to Alex Cora and Aaron Boone

He also talked about the scrutiny that Alex Cora now faces as the manager of the Red Sox. His advice also reached out to Aaron Boone, who is the manager of the Yankees.

“They need to understand it’s the seat in which they sit in, it’s not them individually and personally. Things are going to get thrown their way just because of the job that you have.”

Farrell also said he’s talked to other teams but will take some down time. A year ago today the Red Sox singed Chris Sale. A year later they have a new manager and are looking for a power hitter.

 

The Greatest Center Fielders in Red Sox History

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Center field is a position with a lot of competition. Picking the greatest Sox center fielder ever was easy. Selecting the next four, not so much. Two through four were obviously going to make the top five, but determining an order was difficult. Again, at number five there were a few guys vying for the one spot, so pay attention to the honorable mentions at the end.

Tris Speaker

Tris Speaker is not only the greatest center fielder in Red Sox history, he is one of the very best of all-time. Although he put up better numbers after being traded to Cleveland, Speaker was already one of the best players in baseball with the Red Sox. From his first full season in 1909 until he was traded following the 1915 season, Speaker batted .342 with a .909 OPS. During this time he averaged 34 doubles, 15 triples and 38 stolen bases per season.

Speaker’s best season with the Sox came in 1912, when he won the MVP Award. That season he batted .383, leading the league with 10 home runs and 53 doubles. Speaker had 222 base hits and stole 52 bases that season while scoring 136 runs. Always a huge extra base guy, Speaker followed that season with a .363 average and 22 triples in 1913. He put up a 55.5 WAR over his seven full seasons.

 

Rookie outfielder Tris Speaker of the Boston Red Sox poses for a photo in 1908. (Photo by Mark Rucker/Transcendental Graphics, Getty Images)

Dom DiMaggio

My choice for the second spot on the list goes to the underrated Dominic DiMaggio. Overshadowed his entire career by his big brother Joe, Dom was a great ballplayer. He was widely considered the best defensive center fielder in the game, running balls down 460 feet from home plate. In addition to his great reads off the bat and his range, DiMaggio had a cannon for an arm for such a small guy. DiMaggio averaged over 13 assists per season.

Overshadowed some by Ted Williams during his career as well, Williams realized how important DiMaggio was to the team. Williams trumpeted Dom DiMaggio’s Hall of Fame case until he died, even having a pamphlet available at his museum covering why he believed Dom should be in the Hall. When the greatest hitter of all-time believes so strongly in that, who is anyone else to argue? Part of what hurt DiMaggio’s case is that he missed three seasons to the war. He finished with just 1680 base hits, but if the war hadn’t happened that number would easily surpass 2000. Couple that with his great fielding and his .298 batting average, he certainly has a case.

DiMaggio was the catalyst atop some vaunted Red Sox lineups, scoring over 100 runs six times and leading the league in that category twice. He also led the league in triples and stolen bases in 1950, in what was an outstanding season. His career 162 game average came out to .298 with 10 home runs, 36 doubles, 195 base hits and a .383/.419/.802 triple slash. He made seven all-star teams in 10 seasons.

Year Tm AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS
1940 BOS 418 81 126 32 6 8 46 7 41 46 .301 .367 .464 .831
1941 BOS 584 117 165 37 6 8 58 13 90 57 .283 .385 .408 .792
1942 BOS 622 110 178 36 8 14 48 16 70 52 .286 .364 .437 .801
1943
1944
1945
1946 BOS 534 85 169 24 7 7 73 10 66 58 .316 .393 .427 .820
1947 BOS 513 75 145 21 5 8 71 10 74 62 .283 .376 .390 .766
1948 BOS 648 127 185 40 4 9 87 10 101 58 .285 .383 .401 .785
1949 BOS 605 126 186 34 5 8 60 9 96 55 .307 .404 .420 .824
1950 BOS 588 131 193 30 11 7 70 15 82 68 .328 .414 .452 .866
1951 BOS 639 113 189 34 4 12 72 4 73 53 .296 .370 .418 .788
1952 BOS 486 81 143 20 1 6 33 6 57 61 .294 .371 .377 .747
1953 BOS 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .333 .333 .333 .667
11 Y 11 Y 5640 1046 1680 308 57 87 618 100 750 571 .298 .383 .419 .802
162 162 653 121 195 36 7 10 72 12 87 66 .298 .383 .419 .802

Fred Lynn

Lynn should never have left the Red Sox. Fred Lynn spent the first six full seasons of his career in Boston and was on a Hall of Fame path. Fenway Park suited him perfectly. After leaving his production dropped off considerably. He was still a solid player, but no longer the potential Hall of Famer he had been.

Lynn came up late in 1974 and hinted at what was to come. He batted .419 with a 1.188 OPS in 43 at-bats. The next season he became the first player to ever win the Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player Awards in the same season. Lynn batted .331 that season and led the league with 47 doubles and a .967 OPS. His best season however was arguably in 1979. Lynn was a monster that season, leading the league in batting average, on base percentage, slugging percentage and OPS. In addition to that he hit 39 home runs and won the Gold Glove Award.

Fred Lynn batted .308 as a member of the Red Sox, hitting 124 home runs. He had 944 base hits and a slash line of .383/.520/.902. In addition to his Rookie of the Year and MVP, Lynn won four Gold Gloves and made six All-Star Games.

Fred Lynn of the Boston Red Sox bats against the New York Yankees during an MLB baseball game circa 1976 at Yankee Stadium. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images)

Reggie Smith

Another player who had his best seasons after leaving the Red Sox. The Red Sox made a mistake trading him as Smith went on to have two top five MVP finishes. Smith had plenty of good seasons in Boston though, hitting over 20 home runs in five consecutive seasons and batting over .300 during three of them. An underrated player, I have Smith as a top 20 center fielder of all-time.

While with the Red Sox, Smith batted .281 and hit 149 home runs out of 1064 base hits. Over his final five seasons with the team, Smith averaged a season of .294 with 24 home runs, 81 RBI and an .867 OPS. He also led the league in doubles in both 1968 and 1971. Smith made two All-Star Games and won a Gold Glove Award with the Red Sox.

Reggie Smith of the Boston Red Sox.

Jacoby Ellsbury

Ellsbury was always good with the Sox when he was healthy. Since leaving, he has continued to do a wonderful job by eating up a bunch of the Yankees money to be a below average player. What a guy! Ellsbury came up late in 2007 and showed very well down the stretch. He earned his way onto the playoff roster and batted .438 during the World Series. It was the first of two World Series he would win with the team.

2011 was far and away his best offensive season. Ellsbury had a huge second half of the year and probably would have won the MVP had the team not collapsed in September. He had 212 base hits that season, batting .321 with 32 home runs, 46 doubles and 39 stolen bases. He ended up the runner-up to Justin Verlander for the MVP Award.

Ellsbury was always a huge threat on the base paths, leading the league in steals three times. He had a career high 70 stolen bases in 2009. In 2013, his final year with the team, Ellsbury stole 52 bases while only being caught four times. Ellsbury made one all-star team, won a Gold Glove and a Silver Slugger Award.

Ellsbury slices a line drive the other way.

Honorable Mentions:

Ellis Burks, Johnny Damon, Chick Stahl, Ira Flagstead, Tony Armas, Jimmy Piersall

Addressing Baseball’s Pace of Play

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Baseball was once America’s pastime. Not anymore. Today, the NFL dominates professional team sports. Baseball, despite the unbelievable quality of the game, is quickly becoming the old guys sport. Why? Because the pace of play makes it “boring”.

At least that’s what most non-baseball fans believe. We live in a time of instant gratification. People care less and less about strategy, tactics, and the intricacies of a defensive shift or a pitching match-up. And, while they may still appreciate of the beauty of a well-turned double play, they don’t want to endure a fifteen pitch, four mound visit at bat to get there. Baseball is boring because baseball is slow.

The Problem at Hand

I am not trying to be the old guy yelling “get off my lawn”, but something has to be done about the pace of play. Countless pitching changes in an inning, lefty and right specialists who face a single batter, and catchers who walk to the mound so many times you think they’re trying to meet their daily Fitbit goal have driven the average game length to over three hours.

This season’s average was almost five minutes higher than 2016 and seven more than in 2000. Of course the average Red Sox game is higher, and the average Sox-Yankees affair is much higher. It is even worse in the playoffs.

Average Length of MLB Game 2017
REG SEASON BOS-NYY BOS-HOU ALDS WORLD SERIES
3:05 3:27 3:48 3:42

Part of this is to be expected. Deeper line-ups, runners on base, and higher-pressure games slow the pace of play. Pitchers and catchers strategize each at bat like it’s the Invasion of Normandy, while managers scroll through pages of data weighing match-ups and bullpen options.

Past Proposals

Major League Baseball recognized the problem years ago and has tried in vain to address it. The two biggest measures proposed by Commissioner Rob Manfred last year were a 20-second pitch clock and a limit on mound visits. The Players Union rejected both suggestions.

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The union argued that forcing pitchers to work more quickly could lead to more injuries. But, according to CBS Sports, the average time between pitches last season was 24.2 seconds. I’m not a doctor, so I can’t speak to the rehabilitative magic that an extra four seconds between pitches does for a throwing arm. But what I do know is that in a game with 300 cumulative pitches, those extra four seconds translates to 21 added minutes.

Options Moving Forward

Manfred was on the right path with his recommendations last year. There are plenty of ways to reduce the length of ball games. Here are a few:

Pitch clock.

Damn the union, the commissioner needs to exercise his “in the best interested of baseball” powers and implement the clock by fiat if necessary. If that means that, in order to prevent injuries, teams will need to lower pitch counts per start and carry more pitchers – then expand the rosters.

I do not believe that awarding a ball for each violation is a realistic punishment. That will alter the game too dramatically. Rather, I recommend that MLB impose a $100-500 fine to the team for every violation. The team can, if it chooses, pass that along to the pitcher or pay it outright.

Under this plan, a pitcher who throws 200 innings stands to lose about $40,000 a year if even just ten percent of their pitches violate the pitch clock. That’s motivation.

Eliminate the lefty-righty specialist.

What’s worse than watching Clay “Molasses” Buchholz pitch? Watching him get pulled for a lefty-specialist who faces one batter only to be pulled himself. The specialization of relief pitching may be supported by analytics, but pitching changes add tons of time to games.

Embed from Getty Images

The simple solution is to eliminate the one-out specialist. Not eliminate the roster spot, just require that every pitcher face not less than two batters. The only exceptions to this rule is injury or if the pitcher comes in and records the final out of the inning or game.

Limit Mound Visits.

As cute as it was to listen to Crash and Nuke discuss what to get Jimmy and Mille for their wedding, we need to cap mound visits so we can all get on with our lives.

As Matt Snyder noted, in Game 1 of the 2016 NLCS, the Dodgers had a mound visit before every single batter in the eighth inning. The Cubs had nine guys come to the plate that inning. How much time do you think that added? A lot. They scored five runs. How effective were those visits? Not very.

Under this proposal, there can be no more than one player mound visit per inning and it cannot exceed thirty seconds. Any subsequent player mound visit or any violation of time not related to injury would result in a $1,000 fine to the team.

A pitching coach or manager may visit the mound once per inning (not per pitcher) for not more than one minute. A managerial time violation would result in a $5,000 fine to the manager. Subsequent mound visits by the pitching coach or manager are allowed for pitching changes.

How Big an Impact

The total effect of these proposals would be revolutionary.

Games were 12-minutes shorter in AA and AAA ballparks with 20-second pitch clocks in 2015 than in 2014. Eliminate even one pitching change per team per game and you trim another 10-15 minutes. Keep catchers and managers from wearing out the grass to the mound with all those visits and it’s easily another eight to ten minutes per game.

I just cut the average baseball game down by 37 minutes from 3:05 to 2:28. You’re welcome.

The Greatest Shortstops in Red Sox History

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The Red Sox have had a rich history at the shortstop position. On this list are five Red Sox Hall of Famers and some worthy candidates in the honorable mention category. Placement of the players after the top couple was difficult, but one thing is for sure; I had no trouble finding five qualified candidates at this position.

Nomar Garciaparra

Nomah was the greatest shortstop to ever play at Fenway Pahk! Going to a Sox game in the late nineties and early 2000s one could hear “Nomaaahhhh” yelled all over the ballpark. The 12th overall pick in 1994, Nomar had no trouble climbing through the minors before debuting in 1996. He won the Rookie of the Year Award in 1997, then placed 2nd in the MVP vote in 1998. He proceeded to win the batting title in each of the next two seasons, batting .357 and .372. Nomar was getting better and better, spraying line drives all over the yard.

Then Al Reyes happened. A Reyes pitch hit Nomar on the wrist and would later require surgery. When Nomar returned he was still a good player, but wasn’t the same. He popped the ball up more, hitting a few less line drives. Hard to complain with a .310 average, 24 home runs and 56 doubles in 2002 followed by 28 home runs in 2003 though. For his Red Sox career Nomar batted .323 with 178 home runs and a .923 OPS. He was something else in his prime.

Year Tm AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BA OBP SLG OPS Awards
1996 BOS 87 11 21 2 3 4 16 5 .241 .272 .471 .743
1997 BOS 684 122 209 44 11 30 98 22 .306 .342 .534 .875 AS,MVP-8,RoY-1,SS
1998 BOS 604 111 195 37 8 35 122 12 .323 .362 .584 .946 MVP-2
1999 BOS 532 103 190 42 4 27 104 14 .357 .418 .603 1.022 AS,MVP-7
2000 BOS 529 104 197 51 3 21 96 5 .372 .434 .599 1.033 AS,MVP-9
2001 BOS 83 13 24 3 0 4 8 0 .289 .352 .470 .822
2002 BOS 635 101 197 56 5 24 120 5 .310 .352 .528 .880 AS,MVP-11
2003 BOS 658 120 198 37 13 28 105 19 .301 .345 .524 .870 AS,MVP-7
2004 BOS 156 24 50 7 3 5 21 2 .321 .367 .500 .867
BOS BOS 3968 709 1281 279 50 178 690 84 .323 .370 .553 .923

Joe Cronin

Joe Cronin was an extremely influential person in both Red Sox history and Major League Baseball history. He not only played for the Red Sox, he managed them and later became the General Manager. After his term as General Manager ended, Cronin became the President of the American League in 1959, a position he held for 15 years.

Cronin was a Hall of Fame ballplayer, and could have put up even bigger numbers had he not been managing. By 1942 he was a little used utility player while managing, despite the fact he was coming off a season during which he batted .311 with 16 homers and 95 RBI. He’d bat over .300 each of the next two seasons as well in limited playing time. For his Red Sox career Cronin was a .300 hitter, hitting 119 home runs and 1168 base hits. He had a beautiful slash line of .394/.484/.878. All three of those numbers rank second among Red Sox shortstops. Cronin made five All-Star Games while with the Red Sox.

Johnny Pesky

I think a lot of people remember Pesky as the lovable old man always hanging around the Red Sox dugout and don’t realize just how good of a player he was. Pesky led the league in hits during each of his first three seasons in the majors. He batted .331 during his rookie season, placing 3rd in the MVP vote. Following that, Pesky went to fight in the war and missed the next three seasons. When he came back he batted .335 and placed 4th in the MVP vote. The following year he again led the league in hits and batted .324. He was a great hitter and would have over 600 hits likely added to his career total had the war not occurred.

He was one of many guys who lost stats due to this time period that the Hall of Fame doesn’t seem to have taken into consideration. Had the war not happened, Pesky would be a shortstop who hit well over .300 with somewhere over 2000 career hits. Laughably, as an illustration to New York bias, Phil Rizzuto is in the Hall of Fame. Rizzuto batted .273 with a .351/.355/.706 triple slash playing the same position and during the exact same era as Pesky. Pesky batted .307 with a .394/.386/.780 slash line. Focusing on just his Red Sox career, Pesky batted .313 with 1277 hits and a .401 on base percentage. He twice finished in the top five for MVP voting.

Rico Petrocelli

Rico gets the nod fourth thanks to his counting numbers. He leads all Red Sox shortstop with 210 home runs and 1352 base hits. Of course, he moved to third base in the seventies so as just a shortstop he doesn’t rank first. While playing short, Petrocelli batted .259 while hitting 127 of his home runs. Rico made his first All-Star Game during the “Impossible Dream” season of 1967. He really broke out in 1969 though when he made his 2nd all-star team. That season Rico batted .297 with 40 home runs and a .992 OPS! Those 40 home runs stood as an American League shortstop record until 1998, when it took some foreign substances to likely surpass it.

Rico’s newfound power extended into the early seventies, hitting 29 home runs in 1970 and 28 in 1971. That gave him a three-year total of 97 home runs. His 39.1 career WAR places him second out of guys on this list behind only Nomar. He was also a part of two Red Sox pennant winning teams.

John Valentin

John Valentin was an excellent and underrated player prior to knee injuries that hobbled him and shortened his career after he turned 30. Valentin hit 121 home runs and collected 1042 base hits as a member of the Red Sox. He was their shortstop from 1992-96 before Nomar arrived. After a brief move to second base, he became their third baseman after Tim Naehring’s injury and remained there for a few years. As just a shortstop, Valentin batted .292 with a .375/.470/.845 triple slash line. He had an 11.8 dWAR with the Sox, 2nd among the guys on this list.

In 1995 Valentin really busted out, batting .298 with 27 home runs, 102 RBI and 20 stolen bases. He led all American Leaguers in WAR that season. From 1994-97 he averaged a season of .303 with 17 home runs, 35 doubles and an .876 OPS. He still hit 23 home runs in 1998 but his average dropped as his knees started causing him discomfort. Despite a mediocre season in 1999, Valentin had a huge postseason. A clutch player, Valentin batted .347 with 5 home runs and a 1.046 OPS during his postseason career. He drove in 12 runners in the 5 game ALDS versus Cleveland in 1999 and was one of the few Red Sox players to hit in the ALCS that year. His clutch play is one reason he slots into the top five.

John Valentin of the Boston Red Sox watches his two-run home run in the first inning against the Yankees during game three of the ALCS at Fenway Park. The Yankees have a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.  AFP PHOTO/Jeff HAYNES

Honorable Mentions

Vern Stephens, Rick Burleson, Heinie Wagner, Everett Scott

Should Roger Clemens Make the Hall of Fame?

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Scott’s Argument Supporting Clemens

Clemens clearly used after leaving the Red Sox so his stats and awards are greatly inflated by the help of foreign substances. Over his final four seasons with the Red Sox he had a 3.77 ERA and 8.7 k/9. In the next two seasons he had a 2.33 ERA and 10.2 k/9. He was 34 years old in 1997 and struck out a career high in batters. I mean, come on. There is no argument about what he did. The argument comes over what to do with him and the others. Honestly, there is no wrong answer, and that is the problem. It is an individual’s opinion over how to treat steroid users, and many people have differing opinions. As a result, guys like Clemens and Barry Bonds have been stuck in ballot purgatory.

Steroids

Steroids very clearly affect statistics in a huge way. Two people have ever hit 60 home runs in a season, and then it happened six times in four years during the height of the steroid era. It hasn’t been done since. The record book was left in shambles. It’s a shame. All of these players have better stats due to using, but some of them were Hall of Famers anyways, and that’s where my argument for Clemens (and some others) comes into play. I could care less about the character clause quite frankly. The Hall of Fame should be a place to celebrate the greatest players to play the game, everyone has faults.

Pre-Steroid Accomplishments

With 192 wins after 1996, Clemens’ win total wouldn’t have screamed Hall of Fame. At 34 he would have still pitched for a couple more seasons and gotten to maybe 220-230 wins? But that’s not the case for him. Clemens was already a three time Cy Young Award winner and an MVP winner by this time. Three Cy Young’s and an MVP get you in the Hall. He had led the league in wins twice, ERA four times, and strike outs three times. He also had two different games during which he had struck out 20 batters. No one else had ever accomplished this at the time. His career strikeout total still would have eclipsed 3000 and placed him in the top 15 of all-time in that category. If he had never touched anything and just played out what was left of his career naturally, he’d be enshrined. That is why I would vote for him.

 

Mike’s Argument Against Clemens

Roger Clemens is the greatest pitcher in Red Sox history. He should not, however, be in the Hall of Fame. Clemens is, as much as Mark McGwire or Barry Bonds, the poster child for the steroid era of baseball.

It is commonly accepted that the Rocket began taking steroids after leaving the Red Sox following the 1996 season. He was so offended by then-GM Dan Duquette’s “twilight of his career” speech that he committed himself to proving everyone wrong.

Like Bonds, many people will argue that the Rocket was a hall of fame pitcher before he left Boston. His 13 seasons with the Sox were indeed excellent and at least borderline for the hall. He finished with 192 wins, an ERA of 3.06, 2,590 Ks, three Cy Young awards and a league MVP.

In 11 seasons after leaving Boston, between the ages of 34 and 44, Roger compiled 162 wins, 73 losses, a 2.91 ERA, 2,082 Ks, and four more Cy Young Awards. A 2.91 ERA. Most telling about the immediate positive impact that steroids had on Clemens is the fact that in his final year in Boston he was 10-13 with a 3.63 ERA and 257 Ks. In his two seasons in Toronto, he went 41-13 with an ERA of 2.33 and averaged 281 Ks. He won the Cy Young both years.

Great Pitcher, Bad Guy

Source for the picture: https://sportanalyst.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/gal_front_12_14-745624.jpg

Clemens was more than just a juicer. He was a bad guy who in the second half of his career folded like a lawn chair in some of the biggest moments. In The Yankee Years, Joe Torre explained in detail Roger’s diva nature, his feigning of injuries when he was getting shelled in games, and his relationship with Brian McNamee.

Clemens not only took steroids for the better half of his career, he lied to Congress about it. The Rocket’s defenders argue that Clemens was found not guilty of perjury and that McNamee was a slime-ball witness trying to become famous. But nobody with any intellectual integrity believes that Clemens competed clean.

Roger Clemens was a great pitcher. He was a better science experiment. Everyone recognizes that this rocket was fueled by HGH, Winstrol, and litany of chemicals to extend and enhance his career. The question for Cooperstown voters is simply: do you care?

I believe that they do not. Clemens will eventually be elected to the Hall of Fame. That said, you cannot allow Roger Clemens and others like him in the Hall without opening the doors to guys like McGwire, Manny, A-Rod, and others. Voters cannot hide behind the façade of the Hall’s “character clause” to exclude players they don’t like while inducting cheaters like Roger Clemens.

Anyone interested in the real Roger Clemens, beyond the impressive stat line, should read American Icon: The Fall of Roger Clemens and the Rise of Steroids in America’s Pastime. This well-documented book by the New York Daily News Sports Investigative Team, published in 2009, puts his career and the entire steroid era into the proper perspective.

Red Sox Greatest Third Basemen of All-Time

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Making the way around the infield, my next installment in the series comes at the hot corner. Making the top five there will be a couple mainstays, a couple players from a century ago, and one I think you all will remember watching play. There were a couple options for the last spot, guys who weren’t with the team a real long time but made a big impact. But that’s what the honorable mention section is for at the end.

Wade Boggs

Wade Boggs is by far the greatest third baseman in franchise history. He leads the team at the position in almost every offensive category. Wade burst onto the scene in 1982 by batting .349. Over the next six seasons he only batted below .357 once, leading the league in hitting five times. Over his first seven seasons Boggs batted .356 while averaging 220 hits and 103 walks per 162 games played. He was the best hitter in baseball during the 80’s, seemingly able to foul off pitch after pitch until he got the one he wanted.

Boggs set a Major League record while with the Red Sox by collecting 200 hits in seven consecutive seasons. Not only that, they were the first seven full seasons of his career. Even with all the base hits, Boggs managed to walk over 100 times each season from 1986-89. Over the course of his Red Sox career, Boggs walked 1004 times, more than twice as often as he struck out. They just don’t make them like they used to.

Year Tm AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS
1982 BOS 338 51 118 14 1 5 44 35 21 .349 .406 .441 .847
1983 BOS 582 100 210 44 7 5 74 92 36 .361 .444 .486 .931
1984 BOS 625 109 203 31 4 6 55 89 44 .325 .407 .416 .823
1985 BOS 653 107 240 42 3 8 78 96 61 .368 .450 .478 .928
1986 BOS 580 107 207 47 2 8 71 105 44 .357 .453 .486 .939
1987 BOS 551 108 200 40 6 24 89 105 48 .363 .461 .588 1.049
1988 BOS 584 128 214 45 6 5 58 125 34 .366 .476 .490 .965
1989 BOS 621 113 205 51 7 3 54 107 51 .330 .430 .449 .879
1990 BOS 619 89 187 44 5 6 63 87 68 .302 .386 .418 .804
1991 BOS 546 93 181 42 2 8 51 89 32 .332 .421 .460 .881
1992 BOS 514 62 133 22 4 7 50 74 31 .259 .353 .358 .711
BOS BOS 6213 1067 2098 422 47 85 687 1004 470 .338 .428 .462 .890

Frank Malzone

Malzone spent almost his whole career with the Red Sox, going to California for his final season in 1966. He batted .276 while picking up 1454 base hits. His 131 home runs and 716 runs batted in are tops at the position for the Red Sox. His heyday lasted eight seasons, from 1957-64. During those years he batted .281 with an average of 16 home runs and 84 RBI. He made eight all-star teams during those seasons, thanks to two All-Star Games in 1959 and 1960.

Malzone was also an excellent fielder, winning the first three Gold Gloves ever awarded to third basemen. In 1957, he led the league in errors made, but also in putouts, assists and double plays turned. He would lead the league in double plays for five consecutive seasons.

After his playing days were over Malzone came back to the organization. He would spend over three decades as a Red Sox scout. After scouting for years he would serve as a player development consultant for the team. Frank Malzone meant a lot to the Boston Red Sox organization.

Frank Malzone shown at batting practice before game with Cleveland at Fenway Park in Boston, July 28, 1957. (AP Photo/Frank C. Curtin)

Jimmy Collins

Collins was already well regarded before joining the Boston Americans in 1901. The franchise was known as the Americans during his entire stint with the team, not becoming named the Red Sox until 1908. Collins’ play remained well above average after switching leagues and he was often regarded as the best third baseman in baseball. On top of that, Collins was also the manager until part way through 1906. He led the team to the first ever World Series Championship in 1903. The following season he led them to a second consecutive pennant, but the Giants refused to play the World Series.

Collins batted .296 while picking up 881 base hits during his time with the organization. He was also a great defender, redefining the position. Before Collins, shortstops were the ones to field bunts. Collins became known for his ability to field bunts and the job eventually shifted to the third baseman. He is still second all-time at the position for putouts recorded. Collins was part of the seventh Hall of Fame class ever with his induction in 1945.

Larry Gardner

Gardner is the other one on the list who played a century ago. He first appeared with the team in 1908 and was the main third baseman from 1910-1917. During that time he collected 1106 base hits while batting .282. His 30.5 WAR is second only to Wade Boggs at the position.

During his stay in Boston, Gardner won three World Series championships. Despite only hitting 16 home runs over eight seasons, Gardner hit three home runs in 18 World Series games with the Red Sox. Despite a low batting average in series play, he made his presence felt.

William Larry Gardner of the Boston Red Sox swinging a bat in 1916. (Photo by Sporting News and Rogers Photo Archive)

Mike Lowell

Mike Lowell was acquired from the Marlins in a deal where Josh Beckett was the headliner. Lowell made his impact in Boston though, putting up fine offensive numbers, playing a rock solid third base and winning the 2007 World Series. That 2007 season was possibly the best of Lowell’s career, batting a career high .324 with 21 home runs and 120 runs batted in. Then in the postseason he batted .353 and drove in 15 runners. His .400 batting average in the World Series helped to net him the MVP Award for the series.

Before a hip problem slowed him in 2010, Lowell averaged a season of .295 19 87 over his first four seasons with the team. He made the All-Star Game in 2007 and finished fifth in the MVP vote. His .814 OPS with the team is 2nd among the guys included in the top five. In the field, Lowell only made six errors during his first season with the team. He is 2nd all-time at the position in career fielding percentage. A well liked player, it will be nice to have him back in the organization for this coming season.

Honorable Mentions:

Bill Mueller, Jim Tabor, Tim Naehring, John Valentin, Johnny Pesky, Rico Petrocelli, Butch Hobson

 

Greatest Starting Right Handed Pitchers

Greatest Starting Left Handed Pitchers

Greatest Relief Pitchers

Greatest Catchers

Greatest First Basemen

Greatest Second Basemen

 

Red Sox Greatest Second Basemen

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Red Sox Greatest Second Basemen

The keystone position is next on the agenda for my series of Red Sox articles. Unfortunately, the top player has just passed away. At the age of 99, Bobby Doerr passed away on Tuesday. He was the oldest living Hall of Famer. Doerr played against Lou Gehrig, and faced A’s teams managed by Connie Mack, who was born in 1862. RIP to the great Bobby Doerr.

Bobby Doerr

Doerr spent 14 seasons with the Red Sox, which spanned his entire career. He missed the 1945 season, while serving his country in the war. He then was forced into an early retirement at the age of 33, due to a bad back. Even still, Doerr managed to collect over 2000 base hits, and swat 223 home runs. His 1247 runs batted in are far and away the tops at the position. About the only category he doesn’t lead in is stolen bases. He was a career .288 hitter, and posted an .823 OPS.

Doerr was just as good in the field as he was at the plate. In 1948, he set a record for second basemen, by handling 414 consecutive chances without making an error. This record lasted for nearly 60 years, until it was broken in 2007. He also turned more double plays than any second baseman in Major League history, until 1963. His .980 fielding percentage came at a time when gloves were rudimentary. His fielding percentage only dipped below .980 once over the final eight seasons of his career.

Bobby Doerr was also known as a clutch hitter, driving in over 100 runs, in six different seasons. He accomplished this feat in three straight seasons, before his final season. Doerr also batted .409 during the 1946 World Series. It’s unfortunate he had to retire when he did, Doerr was still a very good ballplayer. In fact, he had been improving. Over his final four seasons, Doerr batted .294, while averaging 21 home runs, and 103 RBI per season. Doerr made nine All-Star Games during his career.

Bobby Doerr’s glove, which he managed to post a .980 career fielding % with and set records which stood for decades.

Dustin Pedroia

Pedroia has been aiming for Doerr’s mantle, but isn’t there yet. If he can put together a couple more good seasons, maybe. Pedroia is a career .300 hitter, banging out 1802 base hits at this point in his career. Over a 162 game schedule, Pedroia has averaged 15 home runs, 15 stolen bases and 42 doubles during his career.

Pedroia, of course, is an excellent fielder as well. He is routinely going all out in the field, making diving stops, and throwing out the runner. This has helped him net four Gold Glove Awards thus far. His .991 fielding percentage shows how steady he is in the field, but you’d have to watch him to know how much he flashes his leather around.

Pedroia started off his career by winning the Rookie of the Year Award in 2007. He followed that up by leading the league in hits (213), doubles (54) and winning the MVP Award in 2008. He used to be sneaky on the base paths too, stealing 20 bags that year while only being caught once. Pedroia might not steal many bags anymore, but this was the first of four seasons in which he stole 20 bases. Pedroia has made four All-Star Games, in addition to his previously mentioned accolades.

Pete Runnels

Pete Runnels wasn’t with the Red Sox nearly as long as the guys above him on this list, but he sure made an impact while in Boston. Runnels spent five seasons with the team, and batted over .300 in all five. He had a cumulative batting average of .320, and an on-base percentage of .408. He didn’t hit for power, only totaling 29 home runs over those five seasons. But with a .320 average, who cares? Second basemen were rarely power hitters in those days.

Runnels did play primarily first base his final two years with the Red Sox, but he played more games at second during his tenure with the Sox. According to Baseball Reference, Runnels had a 20.3 WAR over his five seasons in Boston. In his first season with the Red Sox, in 1958, he finished runner up for the batting title, losing to teammate Ted Williams. After finishing third in 1959, Runnels won his first batting title in 1960. He would go on to win his second batting title in his final season with the team in 1962. Runnels also made three all-star teams while with the Red Sox.

Billy Goodman

Goodman was a valuable utility man for the Red Sox. He had some years he played exclusively at second, some entirely at first, and others where he played all over the diamond. That versatility made him even more valuable than just his numbers. He played second more than anywhere though, and was usually at the keystone position over the final five seasons he was with the team.

Goodman didn’t have power, topping out with a career high of four home runs, but he was a fine hitter. Goodman batted over .300 five times, and never finished below .293 during a full season (he had a combined 27 at-bats between his first and last seasons). His .354 batting average in 1950 led the Major Leagues, and he finished runner-up for the MVP Award. A player mostly forgotten by time, Goodman deserves to be remembered with all of these accomplishments. He could easily be ahead of Runnels for third on this list. Goodman made two All-Star Games.

September 1950: Boston Red Sox player Billy Goodman watching the action of a game from the dugout. (Photo by Francis Miller/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images)

Jody Reed

Standing at a listed height of 5’9″, Jody Reed was well liked for his scrappy, all out style of play. Despite his small stature, Jody Reed was a doubles machine in Boston. He was very adept at using the Green Monster to his advantage, and averaged 41 doubles per 162 games played with the Red Sox. His lifetime average of .280 as a Red Sox is good, but is a little misleading since he only batted below that number once. Reed was a career .288 hitter, before falling off at the plate in 1992.

Reed came up with the Red Sox as a shortstop, replacing Spike Owen at the position when Joe Morgan took the helm in 1988. He was one of the new guys inserted into the lineup by Morgan that led to their magical run in the second half of the season. By the next season, Reed was splitting his time between the middle infield positions, and eventually became the starting second baseman. He was a fine defender at the position too, though he did get better at it after leaving Boston. It was a tough call for the fifth place Second Basemen position, between Reed and Marty Barrett, but I gave Reed the nod due to his better ratios.

Hey, I think this guy used to deliver Schwan’s ice cream to my house.

Honorable Mentions:

Marty Barrett, Jerry Remy, Mike Andrews, Jeff Frye