Tag Archives: Tony C

Get Noah Syndergaard On The Red Sox

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The Mets are a little off their rocker, the Winter Meetings are coming up, and the Cardinals have stolen some National League thunder with the Paul Goldschmidt trade.  Nathan Eovaldi is back!  Now is the time for the Red Sox to strike.  Bring Noah Syndergaard to Boston.  A quick reminder:

The Mets

The Mets are in win-now mode with their strange reliance on 36 year old, recently PED suspended, Robinson Cano.  They also got Edwin Diaz in the deal.  He’s a young closer who’s only done it in the relative obscurity of the Pacific Northwest.  Those guys are often inconsistent.  They’re also reportedly looking into trading for Corey Kluber, which is kind of nuts.  Kluber has been one of the best pitchers in baseball the last few years.  But the reason he’s available from the Indians is because he is 33 and on the verge of a big payday.  His contract escalates, from $10 million to $17.5 million and beyond, the next few years.

When news of a Syndergaard trade first surfaced, the Mets were said to be looking to upgrade their farm system with a trade.  And why wouldn’t they?  Syndergaard will be the best bargain Ace in the game the next few years.  His injuries are overblown and his September was one to remember.

But something happened on the road to a competitive team and stacked farm system.  Potential trades aren’t bearing the kind of fruit the Mets thought they would get.  Let’s take a deep dive on some rumored deals.

The Padres

The most recent rumor from the MLB Network was a package of Manny Margot, Austin Hedges, and Mackenzie Gore.

Margot, whom the Red Sox gave to the Padres in the Craig Kimbrel trade, has been a classic good defense, no-so-good offense, center fielder.  In 2017 he hit .263 with a .721 OPS.  In 2018, after the league had a look at him, he hit .245 with a .675 OPS.  Think Jackie Bradley Jr without the hot streaks and superior defense.

Austin Hedges is a catcher with slightly above average power, and little else.  In 2017 he hit .214 with a .660 OPS, 2018 it was .231/.711.

Mackenzie Gore is a highly rated young pitcher who gets a lot of strikeouts.  He also walks a lot of people.  Because of this, he had a middling 4.45 ERA in single A ball last year.

The Rockies

The Rockies have a lot of young pitching.  It may be just for show, but Assistant GM Zack Rosenthal told the MLB Network on Tuesday 12/4 that the Rockies are built on that young pitching and defense.  This is a team that hits missile after missile into the glorious Rocky Mountain air.  The team is also about to spend a record amount in arbitration on MVP candidate Nolan Arenado.  Arenado is not making that kind of money for his gold glove defense at third base.  He hit .297 with 36 Home Runs last year.

So what does this mean?  The Rockies may be deluding themselves into thinking their MVP candidates don’t matter and it’s all about the pitching.  More likely, they’re negotiating in the media to reduce their arbitration cases with their hitters.  But because of the money going to their hitters, they’re likely to keep the young starters they have.  The Red Sox don’t have that kind of young pitching.

The Red Sox

Rafael Devers is better than anyone the Padres or Rockies can or will throw at the Mets.

Margot is 24, Hedges is 26.  Devers is still the tender age of 22.  This precious youngster hit .284 with 10 home runs and a .819 OPS in part time play as a 20 year old in 2017, then .240 with 21 home runs and a .731 OPS last year.  Furthermore, Devers  hit .311 in the Postseason over his first 2 years, including 3 home runs and a .884 OPS in 45 at bats.

That’s special.  But he’s no Tony Conigliaro.  The beloved Tony C hit .290 with 24 home runs and an .883 OPS as a 19 year old, then .269 with 32 home runs and an .850 OPS as a 20 year old, then .265 with 28 home runs and an .817 OPS as a 21 year old.

Devers will be worth holding on to, but not transcendent.  That is why he’s worth giving up for the rare young, cost controlled monster, like Noah Syndergaard, who becomes available.

What’s more, the Mets need a catcher.  The Red Sox have a plethora.  Putting Christian Vazquez, whose Postseason success means his value may never be higher, in a trade would be ideal.  But the Sox could throw in Blake Swihart instead.  A combo of either Swihart or Vazquez, with Sandy Leon as backup, would be more than fine for the 2019 Red Sox.

If the Mets wants minor leaguers, give them some.  The Red Sox have a weak system, but Devers is younger than most of the highly touted minor leaguers in the game.  It would take less top young talent than some other teams.

Eovaldi Frees Things Up

And now that Nathan Eovaldi is back, the Sox are freed up to include Eduardo Rodriguez in the deal if they need to.  This gives the Red Sox more options.  They don’t need to give the Mets everything, but widens the possibilities of how a trade could look.

Syndergaard Solves The Contract Crunch

At the end of 2019 the Sox will have some choices to make.  Chris Sale, Rick Porcello, and Xander Bogaerts become free agents at that time.  Nathan Eovaldi’s contract is reported to be in the $17 million a year range.  All three of those other guys will cost more than that.

Then there is JD Martinez’s opt out.  He’s currently being paid $23.75 Million.   With his performance he will definitely be looking for a raise starting in 2020.

Noah Syndergaard is in arbitration.  He made $2.975 Million last year and, his projected earnings in 2019 are $5.9 Million.  If he becomes a top 10 starting pitcher in 2019, watch out.  Thor has three years of control left in arbitration.  He won’t approach $20 million in salary until 2021 at the earliest.

If Syndergaard is in Boston, there’s a lot more money for the rest of the team.

Time To Act

There are reports of the Mets talking with the Marlins about JT Realmuto.  They are itching to trade.  The competition for Syndergaard is falling away.  The Red Sox can solve the Mets catching problems.  Fire up the Knights of Cydonia and let’s rock this trade Dave Dombrowski.

The Greatest Red Sox Legends by Uniform Number: 21-25

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There are no Hall of Famers in the numbers 21 through 25 for the Red Sox. However, that statement can be a bit misleading. Four of the five I have selected could be Hall of Famers if not for varying reasons. Two of them are borderline cases that have received varying support, while another clearly has the numbers to be there.

Number 21 – Roger Clemens

“The Rocket” would clearly be a Hall of Famer based purely upon his numbers and awards. During his time with the Red Sox, Clemens became “The Rocket” and was a Hall of Fame pitcher for roughly a decade. During that time, he won an MVP Award and had a third-place finish. Clemens also won three Cy Young Awards while also finishing in second and third during other seasons.

Clemens broke out in 1986 with his first Cy Young Award and his MVP Award. He had his first 20 strikeout game in April that season en route to striking out 238 batters for the season. He led the league in wins, ERA, and WHIP as he finished 24-4 for the pennant-winning club.

Clemens led the league in wins again in 1987 as he won the Cy Young Award. After two more very good seasons, Clemens was as dominant as ever between 1990 and 1992. He finished second in the Cy Young vote in 1990 due to Bob Welch’s 27 wins, but Clemens was the better pitcher. He led the league with a 1.93 ERA that season and finished 21-6. Clemens led the league in ERA again in both 1991 and 1992, giving him three straight ERA crowns to begin the nineties.

Clemens tailed off from there, but pitched very well for a bad team in 1994 and looked like vintage Rocket down the stretch in 1996 when he punched out 20 batters in a game for the second time. He went 192-111 with a 3.06 ERA and struck out 2590 batters during his time in Boston. From 1986-92 he averaged a season of 19-9 with a 2.66 ERA and 239 strikeouts. There is a strong argument for retiring his number.

Honorable Mentions: Tex Hughson, Ray Culp

Number 22 – Rick Porcello

At number 22, we get an active Red Sox. Porcello has had an up and down Red Sox career, but he did win a Cy Young Award and contribute to the 2018 World Series champions, so at a thin number he gets the edge.

Porcello came to the Red Sox in 2015 on a questionable contract given his mediocrity to date. The decision looked like a disaster that first season as he was 9-15 with an ERA approaching 5.00. Porcello bounced back to enjoy a career year in his second season in Boston. In 2016, he led the league in wins, finishing 22-4 with a 3.15 ERA and a 1.01 WHIP. His 189 strikeouts were far and away – a career high at the time.

Porcello regressed again in 2017, leading the American League with 17 losses despite playing for a division-winning ballclub. His strikeout numbers did stay up, however, but his home run rate skyrocketed. This past season Porcello found some middle ground, posting a 4.28 ERA while finishing with a 17-7 record. He set a career high in strikeouts with 190 over 191.1 innings. In the postseason, he made three starts and two key relief appearances, pitching to a 3.52 ERA. It’s been an interesting career in Boston for Porcello.

Honorable Mentions: Sammy White, Bill Campbell

Number 23 – Luis Tiant

Tiant is one of the most popular pitchers in franchise history. Tiant had some good seasons in Cleveland in the sixties but hadn’t been good since breaking a bone in his shoulder. He led the league with 20 losses in 1969, a season after winning 21 and posting a 1.60 ERA. He missed a lot of time in 1970 and the Red Sox were able to sign him during the 1971 season off the scrap heap.

Tiant was not immediately good for the Red Sox, struggling in that first season. However, by year two he was pitching like it was 1968 again. Pitching out of the pen for much of the year, Tiant made 19 starts that season in 42 appearances, going 15-6 with a league-leading 1.91 ERA. The next season he won 20 games for the first time in five seasons, eclipsed 200 strikeouts and led the league in WHIP.

Tiant finished fourth for the Cy Young in 1974, going 22-13 with a 2.92 ERA in over 300 innings pitched. After an 18 win 1975, Tiant went 3-0 in the postseason. He pitched a complete game versus the Athletics in the ALCS and won two games against the Reds in the World Series. Tiant then won 21 games in 1976, giving him three 20-win seasons over a four-year stretch. He finished fifth in the Cy Young vote and made the All-Star team.

From 1972 through 1978, his final season in Boston, Tiant was 121-74 with a 3.30 ERA, not too shabby for someone signed off the scrap heap. He has had varying levels of support for the Hall of Fame as he remains on the outside looking in.

Honorable Mentions: Tom Brunansky, Dennis “Oil Can” Boyd, Brian Daubach

Number 24 – Dwight Evans

I would have loved to see Dwight Evans get his number 24 retired, but the chance for that probably ended with Manny Ramirez wearing the number. Dewey spent parts of 19 seasons with the Red Sox and played at a borderline Hall of Fame level. Had he hit earlier in his career as he did during the eighties, he likely would be in by now.

Evans was always a great fielder, winning eight Gold Gloves in right field. His first came in 1976 and he won three of them during the seventies. His hitting was solid, yet unspectacular until the strike-shortened season of 1981. Evans led the league in home runs and OPS that season, making the All-Star Game, finishing third in the MVP vote and winning the Gold Glove and Silver Slugger Awards. Red hot before the strike took place, an argument can be made that the strike cost him the MVP Award. Had he won an MVP, maybe Dewey would be in the Hall.

Dewey hit a career-high 32 home runs in 1982, a number he matched in 1984 and eclipsed with 34 in 1987. He led the league in walks three times during the eighties and OPS twice. For the decade, Evans hit 256 home runs and drove in 900 runs while posting a .280/.385/.497/.882 batting line. That’s some Hall of Fame work when you throw into consideration his eight Gold Glove Awards.

Honorable Mentions: Manny Ramirez, David Price, Mike Stanley

Number 25 – Tony Conigliaro

When I say Tony Conigliaro could be a Hall of Famer, it’s not in the same way as the previous guys. Obviously, Conigliaro is not a Hall of Famer off what he achieved. However, if Jack Hamilton’s fastball hadn’t crushed his eye socket in 1967, Conigliaro may have become a Hall of Famer. Conigliaro was just 22 years old at the time and already had 104 home runs in his career, with some of the season still to play. He had a home run crown under his belt and seemed like he could be well on his way to joining the 500 home run club.

Even with the tragic events that took place in his life, Tony C is still the greatest Red Sox to ever don the number 25. On top of the previous statistics I stated, he did briefly return and even hit a career-high 36 home runs in 1970. Unfortunately, his eyesight rapidly deteriorated from there, quickly ending his playing career. In all, the local kid hit 162 home runs and drove in 501 runs for the Red Sox. Would the Red Sox have won the World Series in 1967 had Conigliaro not been injured?

Honorable Mentions: Mike Lowell, Troy O’Leary

 

Featured picture credit to “Boston Baseball History/Rich Pilling” and taken from Cooperstown Cred

On This Day in Red Sox History: April 8, 1969

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On April 8, 1969, the Red Sox opened their season down at Baltimore’s Memorial Stadium. With the new season returned a beloved face to the Red Sox lineup, as Tony Conigliaro began his comeback from the beaning in August of 1967. With his return to a lineup already including Carl Yastrzemski, Reggie Smith, Rico Petrocelli and George Scott, there was plenty of optimism for the Sox.

Opening Matchup

The Red Sox would send Jim Lonborg to the mound for the opener. They hoped for a return to his 1967 form where Lonborg won the Cy Young Award. His 1968 season had been marred by injury and disappointment. He was opposed by the Orioles 1968 breakout star, Dave McNally. McNally had won 22 games the previous season while posting a minuscule 1.95 ERA and 0.84 WHIP. The Orioles lineup featured sluggers Frank Robinson and Boog Powell. They also had glove wizards Brooks Robinson, Mark Belanger and Paul Blair, who would win 32 Gold Gloves between them.

The Red Sox would lead off Reggie Smith, bat Carl Yastrzemski third, and in his return to the lineup, Tony Conigliaro batted fifth. Rico Petrocelli, who would break out that year with 40 home runs, an American League shortstop record at the time, batted seventh.

Baltimore’s Memorial Stadium

The Early Innings

The Red Sox didn’t take long to get on the board for the season. Carl Yastrzemski followed a Reggie Smith walk and Mike Andrews single with an RBI double. The Sox quickly squandered an opportunity for a big inning though. Hawk Harrelson popped out to the catcher, bringing up Tony Conigliaro for his first at-bat back, two men in scoring position. Conigliaro struck out. George Scott then popped out and the threat was over.

The Red Sox would add another run in the third, but again wasted a prime opportunity for more runs. A Hawk Harrelson single scored Yastrzemski to give the Red Sox a 2-0 lead. After back-to-back walks to Conigliaro and George Scott, the Red Sox had the bases loaded with one out. Earl Weaver pulled his ace for Dave Leonhard, and Leonhard got out of the jam with no more harm done.

After cruising through the first two innings, Lonborg allowed a home run to the light-hitting Mark Belanger. Belanger was a wizard in the field, but only hit 20 career home runs. Lonborg then departed the game after walking Don Buford with 2 outs. This was not a good sign for a pitcher who had missed time with injury the previous season. Lonborg wouldn’t pitch again for 17 days, after which he missed another month.

Bullpens Hold Serve

With both teams into their bullpens early, they actually traded zeroes for a while. Both teams were held scoreless in each of the next four innings to enter the eighth with the Red Sox ahead 2-1. Dave Leonhard had pitched 2.2 shutout innings for Baltimore. In the top of the eighth, Dick Hall set the Red Sox down 1-2-3 for his third consecutive shutout inning.

For the Red Sox, Lee Stange had been holding down the fort since Jim Lonborg was replaced. Going into his fifth inning of work though, the Orioles finally got to him for a run to tie the game. Stange ran into a bit more trouble in the bottom of the ninth, but Sparky Lyle came on to induce an inning ending double play and send the game to extras.

Lee Stange allowed just 1 run over 5.2 innings of relief.

Extra Innings

With the game headed to extra frames, Tony Conigliaro had the chance to be an extra-inning hero in his return. He came up against Pete Richert with a man on base thanks to an error to begin the 10th. The local boy and fan favorite did not miss this opportunity.

Conigliaro’s home run in his remarkable return put the Red Sox ahead by two in the tenth. However, the Orioles were not ready to admit defeat.

Red Sox left-handed relief ace Sparky Lyle had gotten the Red Sox out of trouble in the ninth, but he ran into his own problems in the tenth. With two outs, he faced Frank Robinson with a man on thanks to a Don Buford walk. Frank Robinson was coming off a down year and was hitless on the day, but this was a man who had 418 career home runs to that point in his career. Robinson took Lyle deep to left-center and out of the stadium to tie the game, ruining the chance for Conigliaro to have a game-winning home run in his return.

Conigliaro the Hero in His Return

After trading zeroes in the 11th, Tony Conigliaro was the leadoff batter in the 12th for the Red Sox. He worked a walk to get his way on base. George Scott followed with a single and Rico Petrocelli drew another walk to load the bases. With a man out, the Red Sox sent up Dalton Jones to pinch-hit for the pitcher. Jones hit a fly ball to right deep enough for Conigliaro to tag and score the go-ahead run.

With the 5-4 lead, the Red Sox sent Juan Pizarro to the mound to try and close out the victory. He had to face Frank Robinson with another chance to tie it, but got him to fly out. He set the Orioles down in order to preserve the Red Sox 5-4 victory. Tony Conigliaro was the hero in his return, reaching base four times, hitting a 2-run home run in the 10th and scoring the game-winning run in the 12th.

Tony Conigliaro Joe Lahoud, Russ Gibson and Ed Popowski of the Boston Red Sox leave the field following their defeat of the Baltimore Orioles on Apr. 8, 1969 (Photo by Frank O’Brien/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)

 

Featured image from the Lowell Sun.

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

 

 

The Greatest Teenage Superstars

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I have decided to create an all-time teenager team. This isn’t picking the best players who debuted as teenagers. This picks the players who performed the best while they were teenagers. It is an impressive feat to make the major leagues while most people are still in school, so let’s celebrate those who have.

Pitching Staff

Dwight Gooden #16 of the New York Mets poses for a season portrait. Dwight Gooden played for the New York Mets from 1984-1994. (Photo by Rich Pilling/MLB Photos via Getty Images)

Dwight Gooden

The Doc headlines the staff, as he went 17-9 with a 2.60 ERA, 1.07 WHIP and 276 strike outs during his age-19 season. Gooden won the Rookie of the Year Award, made the all-star team and placed second in the CY Young Vote. Gooden also led the league in both WHIP and strike outs. Doc had a chance at being an all-time great, but instead ruined his career with Darryl Strawberry by snorting cocaine constantly. Gooden had notched 154 Ws by the age of 28, yet would win just 40 the rest of his career.

Bob Feller

Feller broke into the majors at the age of 17, pitching almost three full seasons as a teenager. Placing him second on this staff is for the body of work, considering he pitched three different seasons. None of his seasons were the second best by a teen. In 1936, at 17 years old Feller went 5-3 with a 3.34 ERA and struck out 76 batters in only 62 innings. This feat is made even more impressive considering it was 1936, batters didn’t strike out much back then. The next season Feller won nine games against seven losses. He had a 3.39 ERA and again struck out more than a batter per inning. In 1938, at the age of 19, Feller won 17 games and struck out a league high 240 batters. He also walked a league high 208 batters!

Gary Nolan

Gary Nolan broke into the big leagues at the age of 18 in 1967, quickly turning 19 in May. He had a phenomenal rookie season, finishing 14-8 with a 2.58 ERA, 1.12 WHIP and 206 strike outs. Unfortunately, pitching at such a young age may have caught up to Nolan, as he suffered arm problems and had a short career. By age 24, Nolan was 76-47 with a 2.83 ERA and was coming off a 1.99 ERA in 1972. Over the next two seasons he pitched only 10.1 innings. After two successful comeback seasons in 1975 and 1976, Nolan re-injured his arm and retired at just 29 years old.

Wally Bunker

Another young guy who had a short career due to arm problems. At the age of 19 in 1964, Bunker was the Orioles ace, going 19-5 with a 2.69 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and a league leading .792 winning percentage. However, he hurt his arm late that season and was never quite the same. He enjoyed some success the following season, but his career was over by the time he was only 26 years old.

Joe Wood

Tough call for the fifth spot, but I’ll give it to Smoky Joe. Wood was known for throwing as hard as anyone in the game, but his violent delivery did not allow him to sustain his velocity as late into games as Walter Johnson could. In 1909, Smoky Joe went 11-7 with a 2.18 ERA and 1.02 WHIP for the Sox. He would remain one of the very best pitchers in all of baseball up through 1915, despite pitching injured for those last couple seasons. Based on accounts of the pain, he probably suffered from a torn rotator cuff. However, in 1915, his final season as a pitcher before switching to hitting because of the pain, Wood led the league with a 1.49 ERA. At that point, at age 25, Wood was 117-56 with a 1.99 ERA and 1.08 WHIP for his career. He should be in the Hall.

Bullpen

 

Rube Bressler

Bressler had an interesting career. In 1914, making 10 starts and 19 relief appearances, Bressler won 10 games versus four losses while pitching to a 1.77 ERA and 1.14 WHIP. That’s why he’s on this team. However, over the rest of his career he would go 16-28 with a 4.01 ERA. So what did he do? He switched to hitting and batted .311 between 1921 and 1932.

Larry Dierker

Dierker pitched two seasons as a teenager, mostly starting, but he made 10 relief appearances while a teenager. In 1965 at 18 years old Dierker posted a 3.50 ERA. The following season he brought his ERA down to 3.18 while finishing with a 10-8 record. In both seasons he had a 1.17 WHIP. Dierker had himself a solid career, making two all-star teams and winning 20 games once.

Walter Johnson

I’m cheating a bit with this one, as Johnson made 12 starts versus only two relief appearances in 1907. Despite being 5-9 on a really bad Senators team, Johnson had a 1.88 ERA and 1.09 WHIP. As I said, really bad Senators team. The Senators were bad almost his entire career and yet he won 417 games. Imagine if he had pitched on a decent team.

Jim Palmer

This one is actually not cheating, as Palmer was a reliever initially. In 1965 Palmer went 5-4 with a 3.72 ERA while mostly pitching out of the bullpen.  Of course, he had one of the best careers on this list.

Don Gullett

In 1970, Gullett went 5-2 with a 2.43 ERA and six saves pitching out of the Reds bullpen. Over the next eight seasons, Gullett would primarily start, and do it very well, receiving Cy Young votes in two separate seasons. He was forced to retire in 1978 at the age of 27 due to shoulder problems. He was 109-50 with a 3.11 ERA for his career.

Billy McCool

Who wouldn’t want a guy with the name McCool closing out games for them? McCool turned 20 in mid July in 1964, but spent enough time as a teenager before that to qualify. He was 6-5 that season with a 2.42 ERA, 1.06 WHIP and seven saves. He went on to save 39 games over the next two seasons, but flamed out quickly and was out of the league by the age of 26.

Billy McCool of the Reds.

Starting 9

Catcher

Del Crandall batted .263 with four home runs and 34 RBI during 1949. As one can imagine, there haven’t been many highly successful teenage catchers. Crandall would spend most of the next decade and a half as the Braves primary catcher and hit 179 career home runs.

First Base

Phil Cavarretta turned 19 in July of 1935, his first full season in the Bigs with the Chicago Cubs. He batted a very respectable .275 with eight home runs, 12 triples and 82 runs batted in. His 82 RBI were good for third most on the team. Cavarretta spent almost two decades with the Cubs,  through the 1953 season.

Second Base

Sibby Sisti is the only guy I even wrote down. Unfortunately, the other infield positions have several more worthy candidates than Sisti fighting with each other. Sibby batted .251 with six home runs and a .664 OPS in 1940, when he turned 20 years old in July.

Shortstop

Edgar Renteria gets the nod, which surprises me. I forgot he was a teenager when he broke in with the Marlins. In 1996, at age 19 (he turned 20 in August), Renteria batted .309 with a .757 OPS for the Marlins, also stealing 16 bases. So he gets the pick over some worthy competition.

Third Base

This one was close, but I am going with Freddie Lindstrom. He and Buddy Lewis had very similar batting numbers, but Lewis committed many more errors so the nod goes to Freddie. Lindstrom batted .287 with 12 triples and a .761 OPS in 1925, the highest OPS of any teenager who didn’t play the outfield. Lindstrom eventually made the Hall of Fame courtesy of the Veterans Committee.

Outfield

Mel Ott broke in at the age of 17 and batted .309 over 223 at bats during two partial seasons to begin his career. In 1928, at the age of 19, Ott was up for good and posted arguably the best offensive season a teenager ever has. That season Ott batted .322 with 18 homers, 77 runs batted in and a .921 OPS, the highest ever by a teenager. Standing at just 5’9” 170 pounds, Ott went on to win six home run crowns and bash over 500 career home runs.

Tony Conigliaro is one of the biggest ‘what ifs’ ever. Conigliaro homered in his first Fenway at bat (and later would homer in his first game back from his beaning). In 1964, at the age of 19, Tony C hit 24 home runs, the most ever by a teenager. He accomplished that in only 111 games. He also batted .290 and posted a stellar .883 OPS. The next season he would lead the league in home runs with 32 at just 20 years old. Conigliaro had 104 home runs in only 494 games at the time of his head injury at just 23 years old.

Bryce Harper didn’t disappoint in his first season. In 2012 he posted an .817 OPS while making the All-Star team and winning the Rookie of the Year Award. He batted .270 with 22 home runs and stole 18 bases at the age of 19.

Mel Ott, New York Giants Hall of Fame outfielder, practices his unusual swing in preparation for the upcoming World Series in 1936. This is the third image in a series of four. (Photo Mark Rucker/Transcendental Graphics/Getty Images)

What did Tony C lose on August 18, 1967?

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Fifty years ago today, Tony Conigliaro’s life changed forever. A Jack Hamilton fastball clocked him right in the eye, causing permanent retina damage. On this fiftieth anniversary of the beaning I want to take a look at his career so abruptly and brutally ended.

A brilliant rookie year

(Photo By The Denver Post via Getty Images)

In Conigliaro’s 1964 rookie season, at the age of 19, he hit 24 home runs in just 404 at-bats, the most home runs ever hit by a teenager. The next season he led the league with 32 home runs, at just 20 years old. Conigliaro reached star status before he could legally have a beer. He was the youngest American Leaguer ever to reach 100 career home runs. At the time of the beaning in August, 1967 Conigliaro had 104 career home runs.

Just imagine if…

I have no problem projecting that Tony Conigliaro would have hit 500 career home runs and been a Hall of Famer had this savage injury never occurred. The question for me — how many more than 500 did he have in him? At 22, he had ample room for growth and improvement in his game. Tony proved this in his 1970 season when he hit a career-high 36 home runs. Unfortunately, his eyesight continued to deteriorate.   By the next season, his baseball career came to an end.

Year Age Tm G PA AB H HR RBI BA OBP SLG OPS
1964 19 BOS 111 444 404 117 24 52 .290 .354 .530 .883
1965 20 BOS 138 585 521 140 32 82 .269 .338 .512 .850
1966 21 BOS 150 628 558 148 28 93 .265 .330 .487 .817
1967 22 BOS 95 389 349 100 20 67 .287 .341 .519 .860
1968 Did Did Did Did Did Did Did Did Did Did Did
1969 24 BOS 141 566 506 129 20 82 .255 .321 .427 .748
1970 25 BOS 146 617 560 149 36 116 .266 .324 .498 .822
1971 26 CAL 74 292 266 59 4 15 .222 .285 .335 .620
1975 30 BOS 21 69 57 7 2 9 .123 .221 .246 .466
8 Yr 8 Yr 8 Yr 876 3590 3221 849 166 516 .264 .327 .476 .803
162 162 162 162 664 596 157 31 95 .264 .327 .476 .803

This is all creative conjecture, of course, but Conigliaro could have added roughly eight more home runs the rest of the 1967 season. By that point,  he averaged 35 home runs per 162 games played, per baseballreference.com. Take away some games played for injuries and rest days,  why couldn’t he hit 30 home runs a year? Adding in 30 home runs for his missed 1968 season, that bumps his career total to 142 at age 23.

I’m assuming his down 1969 season, when he hit .255 with 20 home runs, was caused by a combination of rust and poor eyesight. Take away these as if they never happened, and tack on 10 more home runs, he’d have 172 homers. I’ll leave his 1970 season of 36 alone since that was ultimately his career high. Through his age-25 season that would total 208 career home runs.

 

Compare with today’s lineup

By the way, Mookie Betts turns 25 this October.  He has 72 home runs. Jackie Bradley Jr. just broke out last year at age 27. At this same age, Tony Conigliaro had already hit 164 home runs, beaned, missed an entire season, made an amazing comeback and ultimately retired. Think about that for a second. Jackie Bradley is a young player just entering his prime.

Tony C’s career at the age of 25 was practically finished due to circumstances out of anyone’s control. There is no reason to think he couldn’t have continued as a perennial candidate to lead the league in home runs for the next eight to 10 years. His 162-game average at that stage of his career included 34 home runs, and he hadn’t necessarily hit his prime. A conservative estimate of 30 home runs per year for the next 8 seasons would give him 448 home runs. Factor in his young age and improving skills, I suspect he could have hit even more. He’d probably have some seasons in the upper 20’s, and he probably could have seasons where he reached and eclipsed 40 home runs. I’m slotting him at 35 home runs per year over the next eight seasons. That would give him a career total of 488 home runs through his age 33 season.

From there where do we go? It’s reasonable to expect a little decline maybe as he entered his mid-thirties. However, at 34 he would have some good baseball left.  The designated hitter came into effect in 1973. Conigliaro could have moved to DH somewhere along the line to keep him from getting injured in the field. I’m predicting that Tony C would have eclipsed the 500 home run mark in 1979 at the age of 34.

Sad end to a brilliant career cut short

Projecting for a little decline I estimate Tony at 30, 25 and 20 home runs in his age 34, 35 and 36 seasons. This would place him at 563 career home runs after 1981. At 36 years old he could still play and add to that total. By giving him just 30 home runs over the next two years he’d be at 593. If he was left just shy of 600 would he stick around another year to reach it? I’d say yes and ultimately project Tony C for just over 600 career home runs. At that time in history, the total would have placed him fourth on the all-time list.

Instead of chasing 600 home runs, Tony Conigliaro suffered a massive heart attack in 1982 at the age of 37. This heart attack was followed by a stroke that left him totally incapacitated until his death in 1990 at the age of 45. The story of Tony C is one of the most tragic stories that can be told. Hall of Fame career aside, a quality life for Tony all but evaporated by the age of 37. In all likelihood these health problems stemmed back to his being beaned by a baseball.