Slightly More than One-Year Wonder Pt. 4: Don Baylor

I had not originally planned on making one of these posts today, but unfortunately, Don Baylor passed away today.  So I felt it was an appropriate time for a tribute.

Don Baylor spent about a year and a half with the Red Sox, but he was a big part of the 1986 team.  He was brought over in a rare challenge trade between the Red Sox and Yankees involving each team's designated hitter.  Both teams got a decent deal, but for different reasons.  Baylor was more of a pure power hitter while Easler was more of a contact hitter.  Baylor was the AL MVP for the Angels in 1979 when he hit .296/.371/.530 with 36 home runs and a league-leading 139 RBIs.

In 1986, Baylor helped lead the Red Sox to the AL pennant with a very good year, hitting .238/.344/.439 with 94 RBIs and a team-leading 31 home runs.  Baylor was a veteran presence in the lineup and a calming influence in the clubhouse for a mostly young team.  He won the Silver Slugger Award and even picked up some MVP votes.  Baylor was also a well-known postseason performer and hit .346 in the ALCS before slumping in the World Series.

Baylor started out the 1987 season as the team's starting DH, and was on the verge of a similar season to his 1986 campaign as he was hitting .239/.355/.404 with 16 home runs and 57 RBIs when he was traded to the Twins on September 1 for the stretch drive.  Boston received a minor leaguer named Enrique Rios in the deal, who never made it to the Majors.

After playing one more season with the Athletics, Baylor's playing career came to an end.  He was able to become a Major League manager for several years, first with the expansion Colorado Rockies, and later with the Cubs.  Baylor was a well-regarded personality and popular with teammates and players.

Red Sox Awards History: Designated Hitter/Edgar Martinez Award

The American League adopted the designated hitter position in 1973 in an effort to increase offense and draw in fans.  Initially, it was planned to be a trial for a few years, but it worked out well and the league kept it in place.  That first season a new award was created for the player who had the best year as designated hitter.  The name was originally just the Designated Hitter of the Year, but it eventually changed to the Edgar Martinez Award to honor the Mariners great who won five of them.  I doubt it would happen, but perhaps the name should be changed to the David Ortiz Award.

These are the Red Sox to win it:

ORLANDO CEPEDA - 1973

The designated hitter position was created for guys like Cepeda.  He was still an outstanding hitter, but he could barely move in the field.  Cepeda was in his mid 30's and coming off of a season in which he hit just four home runs in 31 games.  Boston signed him specifically to be their first DH and he came within minutes of being the first official DH.  He was the first really good one though as he hit .289/.350/.444 with 20 home runs and 86 RBIs.  He even received some MVP votes.  It was his last great season.

JIM RICE - 1977

Rice was a still young hitter in 1977 who spent most of the season as the team's DH as a result of Carl Yastrzemski still going strong in left field.  Fred Lynn and Dwight Evans were both terrific defensive players, so it was between DH and left field for Rice.  He ended up playing in 116 games at DH and 44 in the outfield.  Rice had his first truly great season in 1977 as he hit .320/.376/.593 while leading the league in home runs (39), total bases (382), and slugging percentage.  He also drove in 114 runs and was an All Star while finishing fourth in the MVP vote.

DON BAYLOR - 1986

Another aging star whose career was extended by being a DH, Baylor was in his first, and only, full season with the Red Sox in 1986.  He was coming off of a season in which he won the award for the Yankees in 1985.  He was traded to the Red Sox for Mike Easler prior to the season and had a little better season in 1986, hitting .238/.344/.439 while helping to lead Boston to the World Series.  He led the team with 31 home runs and drove in 94 runs.  Baylor also won the Silver Slugger and picked up some MVP votes.

DAVID ORTIZ - 2003-2007, 2011, 2013, 2016

David Ortiz will go down as one of the greatest designated hitters of all time.  He has won the award eight times, three more than the guy the award is currently named after.  He might have won a couple more if injuries had not ended his 2012 season early, and he could have won in both 214 and 2015.  Here is the breakdown on the years he won:

2003: .288/.369/.592, 31 home runs, 101 RBIs

2004: 301/.380/.603, 41 home runs, 139 RBIs

2005: .300/.397/.604, 47 home runs, 148 RBIs

2006: .287/.413/.636, 54 home runs, 137 RBIs

2007: .332/.445/.621, 35 home runs, 117 RBIs

2011: .309/.398/.554, 29 home runs, 96 RBIs

2013: .309/.395/.564, 30 home runs, 103 RBIs

2016: .315/.401/.620, 38 home runs, 127 RBIs

Feature: From Yankees to Red Sox

The Yankees and Red Sox have been in competition for players for a long time. Even when there is a player that one team does not want, they tend to make things difficult for the other team to get him. Recent examples include Carl Crawford, Cliff Lee, and others. The teams have also often signed players away from the other team. The Yankees have had a bit more success than the Red Sox in this regard, taking Johnny Damon and Wade Boggs away from the Red Sox in the last twenty years. Some Yankees players have left that team to join the Red Sox, and here are some of the most recent such players:

MIKE TORREZ
Mike Torrez was a Yankee for part of one season, in 1977. He was part of the purge of the Oakland Athletics and was traded to the Yankees for Dock Ellis and a couple of other players. Torrez turned in a fine season, going 14-12 with a 3.82 ERA and 90 strikeouts. After the season, Torrez signed a free agent contract with the Red Sox and spent five seasons for them. His first two seasons were his best as he won 16 games in each of them. Unfortunately, injuries took their toll. Torrez delivered the pitch that Bucky Dent hit over the Green Monster to take the one game playoff in 1978.

DON BAYLOR
Prior to the 1986 season, the Red Sox and Yankees traded designated hitters with the Red Sox sending Mike Easler to New York for Don Baylor. Baylor was pretty good in 86 as he hit .238/.344/.439/.783. Baylor crushed 31 home runs and drove in 94 runs. He was also wildly popular in the clubhouse. Easler put up a better slash line, but less than half as many home runs and fewer RBIs.

RICK CERONE
Rick Cerone joined the Red Sox as a backup catcher after his second stint with the Yankees. Cerone had not been a valuable starter in several years, but he spent most of his two years with the Red Sox as a starter since incumbent Rich Gedman was suffering through injuries. Cerone hit .255/.323/.352/.675 with the Red Sox. Cerone later returned to the Yankees for a third time in 1990.

MIKE STANLEY
Mike Stanley won a Silver Slugger for the Yankees in 1993 after hitting 26 home runs and was an All Star in 1995. In 1996, Stanley joined the Red Sox and had a great year as the Red Sox catcher. He hit .270/.383/.506/.889 with 24 home runs. In 1997, Stanley also played first base and designated hitter and was again putting up big numbers. He was traded back to the Yankees late in the season for Jim Mecir and Tony Armas, Jr., who was later packaged to the Expos for Pedro Martinez. Stanley returned to the Red Sox the next year in a midseason trade with the Blue Jays, and he continued his hot hitting.

DAVID CONE
David Cone had transformed into a finesse pitcher while with the Yankees and won 20 games in 1998 and even pitched a perfect game. He had a horrendous year in 2000, losing 14 games with an ERA of 6.91. He left the Yankees to try to resurrect his career with the Red Sox in 2001. He went 9-7 with a 4.31 ERA and 115 strikeouts in 135.1 innings. A decent year, but Cone continued to have injury problems.

RAMIRO MENDOZA
Ramiro Mendoza was a big part of the Yankees bullpen for the dynasty years of 1998-2001. He left the Yankees for a free agent contract with the Red Sox in 2003 and spent two seasons in the Red Sox bullpen. Inconsistency and injuries were a problem for Mendoza. His ERA in 2003 was 6.75. He improved considerably in 2004 but was limited due to injuries and did not pitch in the postseason. He returned to the Yankees in 2005.

JOHN OLERUD
John Olerud was picked up late in the 2004 season by the Yankees, but he did not produce much for them. He was let go as a free agent after the season. The Red Sox picked him up in May to platoon with Kevin Millar at first base. Olerud played 87 games with the Red Sox and hit .289/.344/.451/.795 with seven home runs in his last hurrah as a Major Leaguer.