I probably should have posted this prior to yesterday's post, but I was already deep into the post when I came across the information that the 1929-1930 MVP Awards were "unofficial". Apparently there was a vote cast, but it was not a true award. So, I moved the little bit of information over to a new post. There were no Red Sox winners either year anyway since they were pretty much terrible at this point in time. The "winners" in the American League were Lew Fonseca of the Indians and future Red Sox Joe Cronin of the Senators.
MILT GASTON
1929
T-30th, 2 points
12-19, 3.73 ERA, 83 strikeouts and 81 walks in 243.2 innings pitched
It's tough to be a pitcher on a team that goes 58-96-1, but Gaston was Boston's best player in 1929 by a pretty wide margin. His numbers are not much to look at, especially his record, but his ERA+ was 114, so he was doing something right. Gaston led the team in bWAR with a 4.6 mark, so he was a legitimately good player, just on a bad team.
T-17th, 5 points
13-20, 3.92 ERA, 99 strikeouts and 98 walks in 273 innings.
A mostly similar season in 1930 except a bump in innings pitched which led to slightly higher counting stats. His ERA was higher, but his ERA+ was 117, so he was still clearly better than the average pitcher that season. He again led the team in bWAR, this time with a 5.3 mark.
DANNY MACFAYDEN
12th, 12 points
11-14, 4.21 ERA, 76 strikeouts and 93 walks in 269.1 innings pitched
The Red Sox actually had some legitimately good pitchers in the end of the 1920's, best among them being Red Ruffing. MacFayden had a reasonable record on a team that went 52-102 and his 4.21 ERA was an ERA+ of 109, meaning he was a better-than-average pitcher.
TOM OLIVER
13th, 9 points
.293/.339/.351, 0 home runs, 46 RBIs, 86 runs, 189 hits, 34 doubles
In Oliver's rookie season he led the league in games played and at-bats. He was a very good defensive center fielder as well. He had no power and didn't walk a lot, but his batting average was reasonable and he came close to 200 hits, primarily due to how often he played.
JACK ROTHROCK
T-13th, 8 points
.300/.361/.408, 6 home runs, 59 RBIs, 70 runs, 142 hits, 19 doubles, 7 triples, 24 stolen bases
This is how bad the Red Sox were in 1929: Rothrock was their best position player with a 100 OPS+. That is exactly average. He had a decent batting average and could run a little, but he had very little power. Typically a utility player, Rothrock spent almost the entire 1929 season playing center field.
RUSS SCARRITT
T-20th, 5 points
.294/.337/.411, 1 home run, 71 RBIs, 69 runs, 159 hits, 26 doubles, 17 triples, 13 stolen bases
Scarritt was a rookie in 1929 playing left field primarily. He had a nice season as a rookie, finishing tenth in games played and second in the league in triples. He was also in the top five in most defensive categories, including first in double plays, so he was a good defensive left fielder.
PHIL TODT
T-22nd, 4 points
.262/.305/.393, 4 home runs, 64 RBIs, 49 runs, 140 hits, 38 doubles, 10 triples
I have no idea why that card lists Todt as an outfielder. He played in 908 games in his career, 904 at first base and just four in the outfield. 1929 was not one of Todt's better seasons, but he still received some MVP consideration somehow. He did not appear among the league leaders in any category. He did lead the team in doubles, so that's something I guess.
EARL WEBB
21st, 1 point
.323/.385/.523, 16 home runs, 66 RBIs, 61 runs, 145 hits, 30 doubles
Webb was a very good hitter but his defensive inadequacies cost him a lengthy Major League career. He did play at a time of high offense, but he ranked among the league leaders in home runs (tenth) and put up an OPS+ of 133, which is pretty damn good.
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