Award History: Rookie of the Year

I am going to do something a bit different with the major awards.  Since we have voting results, I figured it might be a little more interesting to look at Red Sox players who received votes each year.  With the MVP, I might have to cut it off at a certain number though.  

So, let's start with the Rookie of the Year, which has been given out since 1947.  The first two seasons, there was only one award, then they gave one out to each league.

1948

BILLY GOODMAN: 4th - tie

Goodman, who was renowned for his versatility, played almost exclusively at first base in his rookie season.  He tied for fourth place in the Rookie of the Year vote with A's pitcher Lou Brissie.  The winner was Alvin Dark of the Boston Braves.  Goodman hit .310/.414/.387 and was a very good contact hitter throughout his career.  He did not have much power and hit just one home run, but hit 27 doubles.  He also walked 74 times compared to just 44 walks.  Goodman won the batting titled in 1950 and had a career .300 batting average.  He was a two-time All Star with the Red Sox and picked up MVP votes in several seasons.  Hall of Famer Richie Ashburn finished third in the vote.

1950

WALT DROPO: 1st

Boston's first Rookie of the Year winner was the gigantic first-baseman Dropo, from Moosup, CT.  Dropo had some massive power, hitting 34 home runs, 28 doubles, and a surprising eight triples.  He led the league in total bases (326) and tied for the league lead in RBIs with teammate Vern Stephens (144).  Dropo hit .322/.378/.583 and was an All Star for the only time in his career.  Unfortunately, he never came close to these numbers again throughout his career.  Whitey Ford finished a distant second place in the vote.

1952

SAMMY WHITE: 3rd

Red Sox catcher White finished third in the vote in 1952 behind A's pitcher Harry Byrd and Browns catcher Clint Courtney.  This vote really could have gone in any direction as no one really stood out.  White hit .281/.310/.423 with ten home runs, 49 RBIs and 20 doubles.  He had more power than Courtney, but a slightly lower average.  Byrd won 15 games, but also lost 15 and had a 3.31 ERA.  White was Boston's starting catcher for much of the 1950's and was an All Star in 1953.

1953

TOM UMPHLETT: 2nd

Coming in a very distant second to Tigers star Harvey Kuenn was Red Sox center fielder Umphlett.  In his only season with the Red Sox, Umphlett hit .283/.331/.376 with three home runs, 27 doubles, five triples, 59 RBIs and four stolen bases.  Umphlett walked more than he struck out (34 to 30) and notched 140 hits with 53 runs scored.  He was traded after the season along with Mickey McDermott to the Senators for Jackie Jensen, which was a big upgrade for Boston.  Umphlett played just two more seasons in the Majors, declining significantly.

1955

BILLY KLAUS: 2nd

Indians phenom Herb Score won the award in 1955 by going 16-5 with a 2.85 ERA and a league-leading 245 strikeouts, but surprisingly did not win the award unanimously.  Shortstop Klaus, who was with his fifth organization already, came out of nowhere to hit .283/.351/.377 with 153 hits, 83 runs scored, 26 doubles, seven home runs and 60 RBIs.  He put up similar numbers the next season, but steadily declined every year after that.  Klaus was fairly versatile and played quite a bit at third base, even being the primary starter there in 1956.  

NORM ZAUCHIN: 3rd

Boston had a pair of rookies pick up votes in 1955.  First-baseman Zauchin hit 27 home runs and drove in 93 runs while hitting .239/.335/.430.  He also hit ten doubles, scored 65 runs and stole three bases.  Zauchin never played in 100 games the rest of his career and did not come close to his power output in 1955.  He would eventually be traded to the Senators for Pete Runnels, another time Boston fleeced the Washington franchise.

1957

FRANK MALZONE: 2nd

I have discussed this travesty of a vote before.  The issue here is that Yankees officials pushed for a change in the definition of "rookie" during the season to exclude players who had 100 prior plate appearances.  Under today's rules, Malzone would have still qualified as a rookie in 1957.  Malzone had better numbers than winner Tony Kubek of the Yankees.  Malzone hit .292/.323/.427 with 15 home runs, 103 RBIs, 185 hits, 31 doubles and 82 runs scored.  He was an All Star and won the Gold Glove at the hot corner.  Kubek hit .297/.335/.381 with three home runs and 39 RBIs.  Malzone was one of the best third-basemen in Red Sox history, being named to six All Star games and winning three Gold Gloves.  

1961

DON SCHWALL: 1st

Boston's second Rookie of the Year winner was the righty starting pitcher Schwall.  The 25-year-old came up and had a record of 15-7 with a 3.22 ERA.  In 25 games, he pitched 178.2 innings, striking out 91 while walking 110.  He completed ten games and threw two shutouts.  Schwall led the league in home runs per nine innings, giving up just eight on the entire season.  Schwall made the All Star team in 1961.  He was never quite this good again though and was traded to the Pirates after 1962 in the deal that brought Dick "Dr. Strangeglove" Stuart to Boston.

CHUCK SCHILLING: 3rd - tie

The Red Sox second-baseman also garnered some Rookie of the Year votes.  He played in 158 games, leading the league in plate appearances (738) while hitting .259/.340/.327 with 87 runs scored, 167 hits, 25 doubles, five home runs, 62 RBIs and seven stolen bases.  He drew 78 walks compared to 77 strikeouts and had a steady glove.  Schilling's bat would decline a bit the next few years, though he was always decent with the glove.  He spent all five years of his Major League career with the Red Sox.  Among other players receiving votes in 1961 was future Royals manager Dick Howser.  Oddly, Boston had another rookie in 1961 who did not receive any Rookie of the Year votes, but would be one of the greatest Red Sox of all time.  That player was Carl Yastrzemski.

1962

DICK RADATZ: 3rd - tie

"The Monster" was an intimidating presence on the mound when he came into the game in relief.  In 1962, he finished third in the Rookie of the Year vote after leading the league in games (62), games finished (53) and saves (24).  He had a 9-6 record with a 2.24 ERA and struck out 144 batters while walking 40 in 124.2 innings pitched.  Radatz was a two-time All Star and the first true relief ace in Red Sox history.  The winner of the vote was the Yankees' Tom Tresh.

1966

GEORGE SCOTT: 3rd - tie

"Boomer" was the Red Sox first-baseman in 1966 and led the league in a couple of dubious categories: strikeouts (152) and double plays (25), but it was definitely not all bad for him.  Scott hit .245/.324/.433 with 27 home runs and 90 RBIs.  He also had 147 hits, 73 runs scored, 18 doubles, seven triples and four stolen bases.  He was an All Star in 1966 and would be an All Star three times in his career, twice with Boston.  He was an exceptional fielder and won eight Gold Gloves, three with the Red Sox.  The winner of the Rookie of the Year was White Sox outfielder Tommie Agee.  Davey Johnson also received votes.

1967

REGGIE SMITH: 2nd

Finishing a distant second in the Rookie of the Year vote to future Hall of Famer Rod Carew, Smith actually had significantly better power numbers and was a more dynamic defensive player.  Carew had him beat considerably in the rate stats though.  Smith hit .246/.315/.389 with 139 hits, 78 runs scored, 24 doubles, six triples, 15 home runs, 61 RBIs and 16 stolen bases.  Smith would go on to make seven All Star games in his career, two with the Red Sox, and win his only Gold Glove with Boston.  He is a borderline Hall of Famer who could actually get elected if he could just get on an Eras Committee ballot.

1969

MIKE NAGY: 2nd

In a fairly close vote that easily could have gone the other way, righty starter Nagy finished second to Royals outfielder and future longtime manager Lou Piniella.  Piniella had a decent, but not particularly outstanding season.  Nagy pitched in 33 games, starting 28 of them, and had a sparkling record of 12-2 with a 3.11 ERA.  He threw 196.2 innings, striking out 84, but walking 106.  Nagy completed seven games and threw a shutout.  Unfortunately, injuries curtailed his career and he never came close to these numbers again and also never threw more than 130 innings the rest of his career.

1971

DOUG GRIFFIN: 4th

In another season without a clear winner, the smooth-fielding second-baseman Griffin finished fourth, primarily on the strength of his defense.  Indians outfielder Chris Chambliss won the award, but did not have an eye-catching season.  Griffin hit .244/.291/.319 with 23 doubles, two triples and three home runs.  He also contributed 51 runs scored, 27 RBIs and eleven stolen bases.  Griffin would be a regular for a couple more seasons and win a Gold Glove, but his hitting was not enough to keep him in the lineup.

1972

CARLTON FISK: 1st (Unanimous)

The first American League unanimous selection for Rookie of the Year was Fisk, who was Boston's third Rookie of the Year winner.  Fisk hit .293/.370/.538 with 22 home runs and 61 RBIs as Boston's catcher.  He also notched 134 hits, 28 doubles, stole five bases and led the league with nine triples.  Fisk made the All Star team, the first of eleven (seven with Boston), and won his only Gold Glove.  Fisk would go on to a Hall of Fame career, a memorable home run in the World Series, and wears a Red Sox cap on his plaque.

1974

RICK BURLESON: 4th

Like Griffin above, Burleson was primarily notable for his defense.  Unlike Griffin, Burleson could hit a little as well.  He was a dynamic offensive threat and his defense was definitely his strength, but Burleson was the quintessential guy who could do all the little things.  In 1974, he hit .284/.320/.372 with 109 hits, 36 runs scored, 22 doubles, four home runs, 44 RBIs and three stolen bases in 114 games.  Burleson would be Boston's starting shortstop through 1980 and was named to four All Star games in his career, three with Boston.  His career was derailed by injuries after 1981.  The winner in 1974 was Mike Hargrove, "The Human Rain Delay".  Future Hall of Famer Gieorge Brett finished third.

1975

FRED LYNN: 1st

Lynn was a near-unanimous selection for Rookie of the Year (one voter split his vote).  The center-fielder was a five tool player who led the league in runs scored (103), doubles (47) and slugging percentage (.566).  He hit .331/.401/.566 with 21 home runs, 105 RBIs, ten stolen bases and had 175 hits and seven triples.  Lynn was named to the All Star team and won a Gold Glove.  It was one of the greatest rookie seasons of all time and he was the first player to win both the Rookie of the Year and MVP in the same season.  Lynn's career was impacted by injuries, otherwise he could have been a Hall of Famer.  He was an All Star nine times, including six with Boston, and won four Gold Gloves, all with Boston.

JIM RICE: 2nd

The aforementioned split vote had Rice appearing with his teammate on one ballot.  Rice actually had very similar numbers to Lynn, but only led him in home runs.  Rice hit .309/.350/.491 with 174 hits, 92 runs scored, 29 doubles, four triples, 22 home runs, ten stolen bases and 102 RBIs.  Rice was also not nearly as dynamic in the field and missed some time late in the season with an injury.  The biggest difference is that the best was yet to come for Rice as he would become one of the premier power threats in the league, eventually winning an MVP award himself, being named to eight All Star teams, winning two Silver Sluggers and eventually being named to the Hall of Fame.  Rice spent his entire career with the Red Sox.

1980

DAVE STAPLETON: 2nd

1980 was the year of "Super" Joe Charboneau.  The Indians outfielder was a sensation that season, but is a great example of a rookie fluke.  Stapleton played primarily at second base in 1980 and came in second in the Rookie of the Year vote.  He topped Charboneau in batting average and hits, but nothing else.  Stapleton hit .321/.338/.463 with seven home runs and 45 RBIs, notching 144 hits, 33 doubles and 61 runs scored.  Stapleton's numbers steadily declined each season after that to the point where he was primarily a defensive replacement in his last couple of seasons.  Notably, he usually replaced Bill Buckner at first base in 1986 but was on the bench during the final innings of Game 6 of the World Series.

1981

RICH GEDMAN: 2nd

Gedman replaced Carlton Fisk at catcher for the Red Sox in 1981 after the team failed to tender him a contract in time.  Gedman played in just 62 games, but it was a strike-shortened season.  He hit .288/.317/.434 with five home runs and 26 RBIs and also accumulated 15 doubles, 59 hits and 22 runs scored.  Gedman would go on to be the team's primary catcher for most of the 1980's and appear in two All Star games.  The winner in 1981 was Yankees pitcher Dave Righetti, who was more of a starter at the time, but would go on to great success as a reliever.

BOB OJEDA: 3rd

1981 was another year Boston had two rookies garnering votes as southpaw starter Ojeda finished third in the race.  Ojeda started ten games, pitching 66.1 innings to an ERA of 3.12.  He had a record of 6-2 and struck out 28 batters while walking 25.  Among his ten games pitched were two complete games.  Ojeda would pitch a few more seasons with the Red Sox before being traded to the Mets.  He had a lengthy career and received some Cy Young consideration in 1986 with the Mets, but was never an All Star.

1982

WADE BOGGS: 3rd

Boston had the 1981 batting champ at third base coming into 1982, but Carney Lansford had some injury issues and the stage was set for Boggs who came out hitting and never stopped.  Boggs finished third in the Rookie of the Year vote behind fellow future Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr. and Twins first-baseman Kent Hrbek.  Boggs did not have Ripken's or Hrbek's power, but he was a much more accomplished contact hitter, hitting .349/.406/.441 with five home runs, 14 doubles, 51 runs scored, 118 hits and 44 RBIs.  Boggs would go on to win five batting titles and post seven straight 200 hit seasons.  He was an All Star 12 times in his career, including eight times with Boston.  He won eight Silver Sluggers, six with Boston, and two Gold Gloves.  He was inducted in the Hall of Fame on his first ballot and wears a Red Sox cap on his plaque.

1984

ROGER CLEMENS: 6th

Clemens made his Major League debut less than a year after being drafted in the first round.  He did not pitch much in his first season, but gave some glimpses of the outstanding career he would have.  He pitched in 21 games, starting 20 of them, and had a record of 9-4 and a 4.32 ERA in 133.1 innings pitched, striking out 126 and walking 29.  He threw five complete games and one shutout.  Clemens would go on to a terrific career, winning seven Cy Young Awards (three with Boston), one MVP, and being named to eleven All Star teams, five with Boston.  Alvin Davis of the Mariners won the Rookie of the Year in 1984.

AL NIPPER: 7th - tie

Boston had another decent rookie starter in 1984 with Nipper.  Nipper appeared in more games than Clemens, pitching 29 games, with 24 starts.  He had a record of 11-6 with a 3.89 ERA in 182.2 innings, striking out 84 and walking 52.  He threw six complete games and finished three games in relief.  Nipper would not have nearly as good of a career as his rookie teammate though.  His ERA climbed each of the next three seasons and he was eventually traded in the deal that brought Lee Smith to Boston.

1987

MIKE GREENWELL: 4th

Greenwell had the highest batting average of any rookie in 1987, but this was the year Mark McGwire hit 49 home runs.  As a rookie.  It was a pretty easy decision.  Greenwell hit .328/.386/.570 with 19 home runs and 89 RBIs in his rookie season.  In addition, he had 135 hits, 31 doubles, six triples and five stolen bases.  Greenwell would spent his entire Major League career with the Red Sox and was an All Star twice and won a Silver Slugger.  He came in second in the MVP vote in 1988.  Oddly enough, Ellis Burks, who was also a rookie in 1987, received no votes even though he had a 20/20 season.

1988

JODY REED: 3rd

The only thing I can think of to explain how Reed finished third in the vote to A's shortstop Walt Weiss is that Weiss played in quite a few more games.  Reed had more runs, walks and significantly better rate stats, but played in 109 games compared to Weiss's 147.  Reed hit .293/.380/.376 with 99 hits, 60 runs scored, 23 doubles, one triple, one home run, 28 RBIs and one stolen base.  Reed spent several seasons in Boston and led the league in doubles in 1990.  He had a lengthy career, but was never an All Star.

1991

PHIL PLANTIER: 8th - tie

Plantier played in just 53 games in 1991, but he was extremely impressive down the stretch.  He hit .331/.420/.615 with eleven home runs and 35 RBIs.  He had 49 hits, 27 doubles, a triple and a stolen base.  Of course his limited games was nowhere near enough to get him the award over the Twins Chuck Knoblauch.  Plantier was disappointing in 1992 and was traded to the Padres before the 1993 season.  He hit 34 home runs that year, but declined after that.

1993

AARON SELE: 3rd

Boston's first round draft pick in 1991, Sele had a very good stretch run in 1993.  He came up around mid-season and pitched in 18 games, starting each one of them.  Sele had a record of 7-2 with a 2.74 ERA in 111.2 innings pitched.  He struck out 93 batters while walking 48.  Sele had a better ERA than second-place vote-getter Jason Bere, but pitched in fewer games with fewer innings.  The Angels Tim Salmon won the award though.  Sele had a 15-year career in the Majors and was an All Star twice after leaving Boston.

1997

NOMAR GARCIAPARRA: 1st (Unanimous)

Garciaparra had one of the greatest rookie seasons in Red Sox history.  The shortstop led the league in at-bats (684), hits (209) and triples (11).  He hit .306/.342/.534 with 30 home runs, 98 RBIs and 22 stolen bases.  Garciaparra also had 122 runs scored and 44 doubles.  He was also an All Star and won the Silver Slugger in his rookie season.  Garciaparra would go on to be an All Star six times, five with Boston, and win two batting titles with the Red Sox.  He is one of the best shortstops in team history, if not the best.  Unfortunately, injuries derailed his career, otherwise he would be looking at a Hall of Fame career.  He could still make it in one day.

1999

BRIAN DAUBACH: 4th

Probably one of the most random Red Sox players to receive Rookie of the Year votes, Daubach was a 27-year-old rookie in his third organization and had once been a replacement player.  Daubach went on a tear down the stretch, which garnered him some attention and allowed him to finish fourth in the Rookie of the Year vote.  He hit .294/.360/.562 with 21 home runs and 73 RBIs.  He had 61 runs scored, 112 hits, 33 doubles and three triples.  The winner in 1999 was Royals outfielder Carlos Beltran.

TROT NIXON: 9th

Right-fielder Nixon also received votes in 1999.  Well, one vote.  Nixon was a heralded prospect after being drafted early in the first round in 1993.  In his first extended look in the Majors, Nixon hit .270/.357/.472 with 15 home runs and 52 RBIs.  He had 103 hits, 67 runs scored, 22 doubles, five triples and three stolen bases.  Nixon would be a productive member of the team for several seasons, putting up particularly good numbers from 2001-2003.

2006

JONATHAN PAPELBON: 2nd

Papelbon had one of the best seasons by a Red Sox closer in his rookie season.  He could have done even better in the vote had he not been shut down in the last month of the season.  He was an All Star in 2006.  Papelbon pitched in 59 games, finishing 49 of them.  He had a record of 4-2 and saved 35 games.  Papelbon pitched 68.1 innings, giving up just seven earned runs for an ERA of 0.92.  He struck out 75 batters and walked 13.  Papelbon is one of the best closers in Red Sox history, holding the team record for career saves and was an All Star six times in his career, four times in Boston.  Papelbon finished second to unanimous winner Justin Verlander.

2007

DUSTIN PEDROIA: 1st

It was widely predicted that Boston would have the Rookie of the Year in 2007, but Pedroia was not the player that was predicted.  The second-baseman was a great fielder, but also hit a little.  Pedroia hit .317/.380/.442 in 139 games.  He had 165 hits, 86 runs scored, 39 doubles, eight home runs, 50 RBIs and seven stolen bases.  He walked 47 times, compared to 42 strikeouts.  Pedroia spent his entire career with the Red Sox and was a league MVP, went to four All Star games, won four Gold Gloves and a Silver Slugger.

DAISUKE MATSUZAKA: 4th

Matsuzaka was the player many assumed would win the Rookie of the Year in 2007.  Matsuzaka had a good year though, making 32 starts and pitching 204.2 innings with a record of 15-12 and an ERA of 4.40.  He struck out 201 and walked 80 and threw one complete game.  Matsuzaka was a highly-touted and expensive addition to the Red Sox starting rotation.  He did not really live up to the contract as injuries took their toll.  He was largely disappointing other than a really good 2008 season.

HIDEKI OKAJIMA: 6th

What's this?  THREE Red Sox rookies getting votes?  Okajima was signed from Japan primarily to give Matsuzaka someone on the team to relate to, but he turned into an incredibly valuable reliever.  The lefty middle reliever made it into 66 games, throwing 69 innings with a 2.22 ERA and a record of 3-2.  He saved five games and struck out 63 batters while walking just 17, remarkable considering his pitching motion ended with him looking down at the ground while he delivered the ball.  Okajima was named to the All Star team in 2007, his only such honor, but he was a reliable bullpen arm for a few years in Boston.

2008

JACOBY ELLSBURY: 3rd

Ellsbury caused a sensation with his play in the last month of the 2007 season and his play in the postseason.  Expectations were high for him in 2008, his official rookie season.  He was decent, but not quite as good as expected.  Ellsbury led the league in stolen bases (50) and hit .280/.336/.394 with 155 hits, 98 runs scored, 22 doubles, seven triples, nine home runs and 47 RBIs.  The next season he would set the team record for stolen bases in a season and he would eventually make an All Star team, win a Gold Glove and a Silver Slugger.  Rays third-baseman Evan Longoria won the award.

2013

JOSE IGLESIAS: 2nd

I am counting this.  Iglesias started the 2013 season with the Red Sox, but was traded at the deadline to the Tigers in the deal that brought Jake Peavy to Boston.  For the year, Iglesias hit .303/.349/.386 with three home runs, 106 hits, 16 doubles, 29 RBIs and five stolen bases while playing impressive defense at shortstop and third base.  Of the 109 games he played in 2013, 63 came in Boston, and he hit .330/.376/.409.  He would go to an All Star game and eventually return to Boston.  He is still active.  Rays outfielder Wil Myers won the award.

2014

BROCK HOLT: 8th

Holt spent most of his career as a utility player, playing every position during his career except catcher.  He was acquired by the Red Sox in a deal with the Pirates prior to the 2013 season and spent part of that season in Boston.  His official rookie season was in 2014 and he hit .281/.331/.381 with 126 hits, 68 runs scored, 23 doubles, five triples, four home runs, 29 RBIs and 12 stolen bases.  Holt was Boston's sole All Star in 2015 and hit for the cycle twice, including becoming the first to do so in the postseason.  He was a fan favorite.  White Sox first-baseman Jose Abreu won the Rookie of the Year.

2017

ANDREW BENINTENDI: 2nd

After a great showing in 34 games in 2016, expectations were high for Benintendi in 2017.  He had a very good year, but no one expected Aaron Judge to hit 52 home runs.  Benintendi hit .271/.352/.424 with 155 hits, 84 runs scored, 26 doubles, 20 home runs, 90 RBIs and 20 stolen bases.  It was the third time a Red Sox rookie had a 20/20 season.  Benintendi had a slightly better season in 2018, but seemed to decline toward the end of the season and could never really get back on track in Boston.  He has since moved on to the Royals, Yankees and now White Sox.  He was an All Star for the Royals last season and seemed to come into his own as a low-power contact hitter.  The dynamic offensive threat from 2017-2018 appears to be gone. 

Well, that was exhausting and a lot more work than I expected.  I really doubt I will do this again for the MVP vote in particular.  I might still do it for the Cy Young vote though.

Shiny Madness

One of the things I discovered as I was inputting my Red Sox collection on to Trading Card Database is that parallels are somewhat underrepresented in my collection.  There are SO many parallels out there that it is basically impossible to get all of them for just one player, much less an entire team.  I add them when I can in trades, but they are not added to my wantlist because there are so many.  I tend to get them more when I have a mini player collection going.  I get a lot of Varitek parallels for example.  

One day I was browsing Ebay and I came across a lot of 64 mostly parallel cards, all Red Sox of course.  The price was a little much, but I decided to take the plunge because it seemed highly unlikely I would find a better deal like this.  All of the cards were from 2020 to 2022 and came mostly from Topps Chrome and various Panini sets.  61 of the 64 cards were new to me, so that was another point in favor.  So, here is the lot:

1.  Alex Verdugo.  It's early in the season, but Verdugo has indeed been one of the more consistent hitters on the team this year.  

2.  Connor Wong.  Wong looks like he is slowly moving into the starting catcher role.  Reese McGuire has been hitting reasonably well, but Wong has been significantly better at controlling the running game.

3.  Xander Bogaerts.  Bogaerts has been off to a great start with his new team.  Of course there was no reason to believe he wouldn't be good in the short term.  The issue is what he looks like after year four of his 11 year deal.

4.  Xander Bogaerts.

5.  Jarren Duran.  Duran has been doing well in the minors, he might get another shot in the Majors soon.  It will likely be his last shot in Boston.

6.  Chris Sale.  Sale is finally healthy, but he is having some difficulty spotting his pitches.  That has led to some rough games in the early going.

7.  Trevor Story.  Story's injury has caused some major issues to the team, such as Bobby Dalbec playing shortstop.

8.  Nick Pivetta.  Pivetta has been decent in the early going.  He is trying to prove he can stick in the rotation this year, and it is an important year for that with young pitchers like Tanner Houck, Garrett Whitlock and Brayan Bello knocking.

9.  J.D. Martinez.  Martinez is another member of the 2018 World Champions to find himself on a new team this year.  In his case, he is with the Dodgers.

10.  Jarren Duran.  There are a LOT of Duran cards in this lot.

11.  Carl Yastrzemski.  One of the very few retired players in this lot.  Also, the only Hall of Famer.

12.  Jackie Bradley Jr.  JBJ is yet another 2018 World Champion on a new team.  He is with the Royals.

13.  Jackie Bradley Jr.  

14.  Andrew Benintendi.  The fourth 2018 Champ on a new team, Benintendi has joined the White Sox.

15.  Hirokazu Sawamura.  I really liked Sawamura.  He was prone to completely breaking down at times, but when he was right, he was very difficult to hit.  I was disappointed to see his stint in the Majors end how it did.

16.  Andrew Benintendi.

17.  Nathan Eovaldi.  The fifth 2018 Champ on a new team, Eovaldi is with the Rangers.

18.  Luis Tiant.  Will Tiant EVER make it to the Hall?  His next potential shot is 2025.

19.  Jackie Bradley Jr.  This is probably my favorite card from the lot.  This is a Blue Sparkle Refractor from 2022 Heritage High Numbers.  What is weird, and seems to happen with the Chrome parallels in Heritage, is that the base is photoshopped to show JBJ with another team, in his case the Blue Jays.

20.  J.D. Martinez.

21.  Kyle Schwarber.  Schwarber was the 2022 N.L. home run leader.  He will be fondly remembered in Boston for his short stint in 2021.

22.  Chris Sale.

23.  Kutter Crawford.  Crawford entered the season in the Red Sox starting rotation, but recently was sent down to stay stretched out as starting pitching depth.

24.  Nathan Eovaldi.

25.  Nathan Eovaldi.

26.  Alex Verdugo.  Verdugo appears several times in this lot as well, but I really welcomed that.

27.  Alex Verdugo.

28.  J.D. Martinez.

29.  J.D. Martinez.

30.  Chris Sale.

31.  Xander Bogaerts.  Bogaerts is another player heavily represented in this lot.  That has him increasing his lead over Rafael Devers, who has been quickly gaining on him.

32.  Connor Wong.  

33.  Carl Yastrzemski.

34.  Carl Yastrzemski.  I kind of like this card too, especially with the parallel color scheme.  

35.  Xander Bogaerts.

36.  Xander Bogaerts.

37.  Alex Verdugo.

38.  Alex Verdugo.

39.  Xander Bogaerts.

40.  Eduardo Rodriguez.  I would like to go back and add some more E-Rod cards.  I always liked him.  I should have collected him more.

41.  Xander Bogaerts.

42.  Rafael Devers.  Devers does appear a few times in this lot.  He is off to a good start, which is somewhat unusual for him.

43.  Jarren Duran.

44.  Jarren Duran.

45.  Jarren Duran.

46.  Jarren Duran.

47.  Connor Seabold.  Seabold was acquired by Boston in the same deal as Pivetta, but Seabold struggled greatly and was released during the offseason.

48.  Connor Wong.  Wong might be becoming one of my favorite under-the-radar players, though I would still like to see Jorge Alfaro come up.

49.  Rafael Devers.

50.  Jarren Duran.

51.  Alex Verdugo.  

52.  Roger Clemens.  The last of the retired greats.  Like Tiant, Clemens should be in the Hall of Fame.

53.  Chris Sale.

54.  Chris Sale.

55.  Nathan Eovaldi.

56.  Alex Verdugo.

57.  Connor Seabold.

58.  Connor Seabold.

59.  Jarren Duran.

60.  Hirokazu Sawamura.

61.  Rafael Devers.  This is a good way to end the lot.

So, lots of new cards and a lot of players added several cards to my collection.  Here are the top gainers:

1.  Jarren Duran: Eight cards.  Duran has firmly entrenched himself in the top five current Red Sox players.  Man, I need to add some cards of guys like Tanner Houck.

2.  Tie: Alex Verdugo and Xander Bogaerts: Seven cards.  It will not be too long before Rafael Devers overtakes Bogaerts, but it will not be after this.  Verdugo is improving his chances of making it to 100 cards by the end of the year.

3.  Chris Sale: Five cards.  Sale is in second place among current Red Sox.  He is not in danger of losing that spot any time soon.

After that, there were a bunch of guys between one and four cards.

Hall of Fame Worthy? Pt. 20: Jonathan Papelbon

 

Let's do another one of these, shall we?  Jonathan Papelbon was on the ballot for the BBWAA in 2022 and dropped off after the first ballot.  He is not going to have another shot until he is eligible on the Eras Committee in about ten years or so.  So, this is definitely not a real urgent candidacy.

It is pretty obvious that voters do not really know what to do with relief pitchers.  There are obvious inductees like Mariano Rivera, Trevor Hoffman and Dennis Eckersley, but Lee Smith took until he was first eligible on the Eras Committee to get elected.  Billy Wagner looks like he may get in next year.  Otherwise, the only relievers in the Hall are Bruce Sutter, Goose Gossage, Rollie Fingers and Hoyt Wilhelm.  

It is extremely difficult to find a real good metric to compare relief pitchers since the role has changed so much over the years.  Wilhelm, Gossage, Fingers and Sutter all came from an era in which relievers might pitch a couple of innings a game.  Smith came in toward the end of that era.  Eckersley spent half his career as a starter.  So, Papelbon could only adequately be compared to Rivera and Hoffman.  So, let's start there.  I will put Wagner in as well since his induction seems imminent.

RIVERA: 82-60, 2.21 ERA, 652 saves, 1.000 WHIP, 1,173 strikeouts, 56.3 WAR

HOFFMAN: 61-75, 2.87 ERA, 601 saves, 1.058 WHIP, 1,133 strikeouts, 28.0 WAR

WAGNER: 47-40, 2.31 ERA, 422 saves, 0.998 WHIP, 1,196 strikeouts, 27.7 WAR

PAPELBON: 41-36, 2.44 ERA, 368 saves, 1.043 WHIP, 808 strikeouts, 23.3 WAR

Well, in looking at those numbers, it is pretty clear what the Wagner argument is.  Holy smokes, he was dominant.  One of the obvious barriers to Papelbon's induction is the brevity of his career.  He falls far short in the counting stats primarily because he pitched just 12 years and 725.2 innings.  Those numbers are far smaller than any of the other three.  His record, ERA and WHIP are favorable to Hoffman though.  Let's look at some other rate stats:

RIVERA: 8.2 SO9, 4.10 SO/W, 2.76 FIP

HOFFMAN: 9.4 SO9, 3.69 SO/W, 3.08 FIP

WAGNER: 11.9 SO9, 3.99 SO/W, 2.73 FIP

PAPELBON: 10.0 SO9, 4.37 SO/W, 2.81 FIP

That is a little more interesting.  Again, Wagner presents a compelling case based on these stats, but Papelbon has the better strikeouts per nine innings among the rest, and has the best strikeout to walk ratio.  His FIP is better than Wagner's and comparable, but higher than Wagner and Rivera, and better than Hoffman.  This seems to present a better argument for Papelbon.

There is a metric called R-JAWS that specifically rates relievers and this metric rates Papelbon fairly highly.  Papelbon comes in 10th all-time, behind Rivera, Eckersley, Wilhelm, Gossage and Hoffman (and Wagner), but ahead of Smith, Fingers and Sutter.  He also comes in behind Joe Nathan, Firpo Marberry and Tom Gordon.  I do not really see anyone making arguments for Marberry and Gordon, so that is not terribly helpful.

Papelbon finished second in the A.L. Rookie of the Year vote in 2006, and might have won it had he not gone on the disabled list for the last month of the season.  He never received any votes for Cy Young or MVP, but did get named to six All Star teams.  Papelbon never led the league in any major categories, but he was consistently in the top ten in saves and is eleventh all time.  He was also a beast in the postseason, appearing in 18 games, pitching 27 innings with an ERA of 1.00.  He had a record of 2-1, struck out 23 and walked eight, while saving seven games.  

THE VERDICT

Longevity seems to be a big problem for Papelbon.  He was certainly a consistent and dominant relief pitcher.  He just did not pitch long enough and his innings total was significantly less than even Wagner.  Many voters are using Wagner's innings as a reason not to vote for him, so that is not helpful with Papelbon.  I just do not see him getting in.  Papelbon will have to settle for being in the Red Sox Hall of Fame, and he holds the team record for saves (219), so that appears a safe bet.

2001 Fleer Red Sox 100th Pt. 3: Birdie Tebbetts

NAME: Birdie Tebbetts

POSITION: Catcher.  

WHY IS HE HERE?:  Local-ish catcher (from Vermont) who spent three-plus seasons in Boston during a period when the team was competing with the Yankees for the pennant.  Tebbetts was a two-time All Star and hit .287 during his time with Boston.  He was a highly-respected leader behind the plate.

WOULD I PUT HIM IN IN 2001?:  Probably not.  

ANY BETTER CHOICES IN 2001?:  Tebbetts is one of four catchers in the set, two of whom clearly belong here.  Tebbetts is a bit of a weird choice, but he was a two-time All Star.  But so was Rich Gedman, who also played longer than Tebbetts.  Other possible choices that did not appear in this set were Bill Carrigan, who was a player/manager and is the only manager to lead the team to consecutive World Series titles (should have gotten him in right there) and Sammy White, who was an All Star and spent most of the 50's behind the plate.

WOULD I PUT HIM IN NOW?:  No.  Since this set, there are even more choices that would be better than Tebbetts.

ANY BETTER CHOICES NOW?:  Obviously there is Jason Varitek, who had only been in the Majors for four seasons at the time this set was released, and had not yet been an All Star.  Victor Martinez was a short-term player, like Tebbetts, who was an All Star.  There's also Christian Vazquez, who had a nice career with Boston.  

The Worst Red Sox Team of All Time Pt. 20: John Michaels

Failure is often even more fascinating than success. I am definitely intrigued by the 1932 Boston Red Sox, the worst Red Sox team of all time. The team finished with a record of 43-111, for a winning percentage of .279 and very little went right.

John Michaels is another obscure member of the 1932 Red Sox team.  1932 was his only season in the Major Leagues, though he did appear in a reasonable number of games during the season.  Michaels was pitching in the minor leagues when he was sent to the Red Sox Major League team in December of 1931.  Michaels spent most of the season in Boston, pitching in 28 games, primarily as a reliever.

The southpaw Michaels made his Major League debut in the fourth game of the season, entering the game in the fourth inning and pitching just one-third of an inning.  He walked a batter and allowed a hit, but got the last out of the inning.  

Michaels threw 80.2 innings and made eight starts during the season.  Michaels finished with a record of 1-6, his only win came in a complete game 6-5 win over the Yankees.  He allowed five runs, four earned, striking out one and walking two.  Michaels notched 16 strikeouts and 27 walks over the season.  

After the 1932 season, Michaels pitched a few years in the Cardinals system, followed by a one-year return to the Red Sox.  He never made it back to the Majors.

Red Sox in Cooperstown Pt. 43: Tom Yawkey

TOM YAWKEY 

Years Owning the Red Sox: 1933-1976

Best Year Owning the Red Sox: 1946

Tom Yawkey owned the Boston Red Sox for 44 years, longer than any other owner in team history.  He was beloved by his players and was popular among the fans and media.  As the years have gone on though, his legacy has become more clouded with revelations about his potential involvement in the team's inability to integrate in the 1940's and 1950's.  The street that was once named after him in front of Fenway Park has been renamed as the team has tried to distance itself from Yawkey.  

Yawkey likely deserves at least some of the criticism for not integrating earlier.  He was the owner after all and could have forced the issue.  He also likely should be criticized for being unable to field a championship team.  The Red Sox contended for much of Yawkey's ownership, but only made the World Series three times, each time losing in seven games.  Had the team been able to strike a better balance between player development and bringing in big stars, they may have won more.  The team though often seemed to be in one phase or the other, and almost never both.  When Yawkey first bought the team, the team had very few good players and no real farm system.  Yawkey resorted to buying players from teams that were struggling financially.  By the 1940's the team was developing its own stars, but not spending as much on outside talent, and in particular, did not have enough pitching.  Then the 1950's saw the Red Sox try, but largely fail, to develop good players, and this was where not bringing in the talented black players hurt the team the most.  There was a massive influx of talent as other teams signed players from the Negro Leagues, but Boston, for whatever reason, did not get involved.  The team finally started to come back around in the late 1960's and early 1970's when Yawkey brought in GM Dick O'Connell, who had a clear plan.  The team fought its way back into contention with some of the most balanced rosters they ever had under Yawkey's ownership.  Yawkey though, died in 1976, never achieving his dream of seeing the Red Sox win the World Series.

As I said, there is a fair amount to criticize about Yawkey.  But one thing is clear: if not for Yawkey, the Red Sox may not still exist.  When Yawkey took over the team, the Red Sox had been a bottom-dwelling team for more than a decade.  Since 1919, the team was more known selling its only good players away than for anything it did on the field.  Yawkey put an end to that, fixed up Fenway Park, and brought good players in.  He essentially saved the franchise from oblivion.  And for that, he does deserve to be remembered.  

Yawkey has an extremely complicated legacy.  He was elected to the Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee.  I think it is safe to say that if he was eligible today, he likely would not be elected, but that does not mean that his election was unwarranted at the time.  I really cannot say whether he should have been elected or not.  I do not think there is any clear standards for executives to be elected to the Hall of Fame.  Yawkey revitalized an organization and ran it for 44 years.  That cannot really be said of that many other executives in the Hall.

Living Set: Alex Verdugo

 

So, I guess Living Set is still going.  I guess I should not be surprised by that.  I do wonder if there have been any players who have appeared in the four-plus year going set more than once.  I am sure if there has been, it is almost certainly a Yankee player.  Probably Aaron Judge.  I could check, but I am not that motivated right now.  

Anyway, here is Alex Verdugo, who is still my pick for a breakout season in 2023.  As of this writing, he has had a good start to the season.  Hopefully that will continue.  I would love to see him develop into an All Star-caliber player.  

The Jason Varitek Quest for 1,000: #991

I have been, I guess you could say "auditing" my collection recently.  I have been cataloguing everything on TCDB and that has led to some interesting gaps in my collection page.  Two Varitek cards appeared on my full team collection page that were not on the Varitek list page and not numbered, which led to me having two more cards than I thought I did.  I think my current count is correct.  Making this Piedmont back from 2022 Topps 206 my 991st Varitek card.

I was rather dismayed to learn that I have several cards that were not listed on TCDB, including a few buybacks and some weird stamped national oddballs of other cards.  So, my count on TCDB is 980.  I was also disappointed to learn I did not have the most Varitek cards on the site.  In fact, someone has 300 more cards.  I guess much of that can be attributed to the fact that after about 2008, Varitek was more of a secondary focus in my Red Sox collection.  I am missing a great number of parallels, particularly in recent years.

 Anyway, nine cards to 1,000.  Or 20.  Maybe.

Unknown Heroes Pt. 47: Tzu-Wei Lin

Readers who have been following me for more a few years may remember my obsession with Tzu-Wei Lin.  I super-collected him for a little while, starting shortly after his debut in 2017 and leading up to him leaving as a minor league free agent.  I have been working on putting my Red Sox collection up on TCDB, starting with what I figured was an easy way in and starting with Tzu-Wei Lin.  Not surprisingly, when checking my ranking among other people on the site, I come out way ahead.  I may do a post with what all I have figured out on that site some day.  

But anyway, today I am showing off a new acquisition for my Lin collection:

Apologies for the bad picture.  This is the 2013 Bowman Chrome Prospects Pink Refractor.  I recently found this on Ebay and decided I would grab it.  I still need the black, gold, orange, red, super and yellow refractors from this set.  That is quite a ways to go still.

Lin spent parts of four seasons with the Red Sox, never quite reaching the level of success he had in the minors.  He had a promising start to his Major League career, hitting .268/.369/.339 in 25 games in 2017, playing mostly shortstop and third base.  He had a bit of a longer look in 2018, but his hitting stats declined, though he did hit for a bit more power.  Lin managed to hit his only Major League home run and traveled with the team during the postseason run.  He was just an injury away from appearing in the postseason.  

Unfortunately, things went downhill after that.  His numbers in the minors declined and he got fewer opportunities in 2019.  He played in just 13 games in the Majors that year, hitting just .200.  Boston also started bringing in players like Marco Hernandez, who were also lefty-batting utility players.  Nevertheless, he held on and was given a big opportunity when Brock Holt left after the 2019 season.  Lin stayed in the Majors the entire COVID-shortened season, appearing in 26 games and becoming a true super-utility player.  He played every position that season except first base and third base.  He even caught and pitched.  Unfortunately, his hitting tanked and he put up just a .154/.182/.173 line.  The writing was on the wall.

Lin was not offered a contract after the season and he signed with the Twins as a minor league free agent.  His final line in Boston was .223/.298/.316 with nine doubles, three triples, a home run, 27 runs scored, 12 RBIs and two stolen bases.  He ended up appearing in just one game with the Twins, playing in left field for two innings without a plate appearance.  To date, that was his last appearance in the Majors.  He spent the 2022 season in the Mets system, but hit just .136 and was released in August.  I do not know if he will get another chance.  

Lin did appear in the World Baseball Classic for Chinese Taipei and homered in a game against Italy.  

All-Time One-Year Wonder Update: Right-Handed Starting Pitcher

I recently grabbed this autograph card of Michael Wacha, so it is time to determine if he can unseat Hideo Nomo as the top one-year wonder right-handed starter.

Wacha was signed as a free agent from the Rays prior to the lockout in the offseason before 2022.  He had been a rookie standout with the Cardinals and pitched in the 2013 World Series against the Red Sox.  He pitched three terrific games in the postseason, leading up to the World Series and was named the NLCS MVP.  He pitched another great game in Game 2 of the World Series, winning it, but then losing the clinching Game 6.

Wacha was an All Star in 2015, but then injuries started to take their toll.  He was eventually allowed to leave for the Mets in 2020.  He had a rough season there and continued to struggle in 2021 with the Rays.  Not a lot was expected of him coming to the Red Sox, but he surprised everyone with the season he had.

2022 saw Wacha have his best season since his injury-shortened 2018.  He quickly proved to be the most consistent of Boston's starters, though he did still miss some time due to injuries.  Wacha put up a very impressive 11-2 record in 23 games started, pitching 127.1 innings with a 3.32 ERA.  He struck out 104 while walking just 31.  He threw a shutout, which ended up leading the league.  He recorded a 4.14 FIP, 1.115 WHIP and 3.35 strikeout to walk ratio.

So, how does he compare to my All-Time One-Year Wonder Right-Handed Starter?  Well, Wacha had a better winning percentage by a significant margin (.846 to .565) and ERA (Nomo was 4.50) and he generally had better rate stats, beating Nomo in BB9 (2.2 to 4.4) and strikeouts to walks (Nomo was 2.29).  He also ended up having a higher WAR (3.3 to 3.1) despite the fact that he pitched ten fewer games and more than 70 fewer innings.  Finally, he walked significantly fewer batters.  Nomo led the league with 96 walks, more than three times as many as Wacha.  So analytics seem to prefer Wacha.

The biggest point against Wacha is obviously the fact that he pitched in fewer games and fewer innings.  That allowed Nomo to record some numbers higher than Wacha.  First and foremost would be the number of victories.  Nomo won 13 games, two more than Wacha, but had Wacha pitched more, he likely would have tied that.  Nomo threw 198 innings as well.  Nomo also has Wacha beat in shutouts (two), complete games (two) and strikeouts (220).  Strikeouts is the biggest point in Nomo's favor as Wacha would likely not have come close to that number even if he had pitched 198 innings.  Nomo led the league in strikeouts and SO9 (10.0).  

So where does that leave us?  I am tempted to give the title over to Wacha, because he seems to have been generally better than Nomo, but health is extremely important as well.  The Red Sox were able to count on Nomo to make almost every start in 2001 and he threw nearly 200 innings.  Coupled with his league lead in strikeouts and the no-hitter, and I think I am going to keep Nomo as the winner.  Plus, there is the fact that Nomo was a more well-known pitcher and that I was generally much more invested in seeing Nomo pitch, and there is the answer.  

Any thoughts?  Agree?  Disagree?

Another Lot of Devers

Here I have yet another lot of Rafael Devers cards purchased off of Ebay.  I may be done with these, unless I find something really good again in my quest for 300.  This was a lot of 28 cards, 13 of which were new to me.  With a decent price, I decided that was worth it.

Most of these are base cards, but there are some highlights.  First off is the relic card.  Believe it or not, I think this is my first Devers relic card.  I do have an autograph card previously, and I may have to look back at it, but I'm pretty sure this is my first.  That seems really odd.  

Several of these cards came from Panini, including a couple of Chronicles cards.  I'm pretty sure I could come close to 300 Devers cards just by hunting down the rest of the Chronicles cards I need.  There is also the Donruss Optic version of the Diamond King card.  I have heard that Panini will not be producing baseball cards in 2023, I hope that is not true, but I suspect it might be.  Panini's deal with the Player's Union has ended.  I would hope they could at least still produce historical sets, like the Diamond Kings set.  We need another really good historical set with big player selection.

But, back to Devers:

Here we have another Chronicles card and a couple more random cards, including the Home Run Challenge game card, which I never took part in.  I like the Chrome Refractor version of the 1965 insert as well.

So, that's 13 more Devers cards, bringing me up to 245 cards.  55 to go.

Your 1981 Red Sox Pt. 26: Bob Stanley

In this series, I will look at each player who played in 1981, the year I was born. Because, why not?   

When Bob Stanley retired, he had pitched in more games than any other Red Sox pitcher in history and also recorded more saves than anyone (132).  He still holds the games record with 637 games pitched, 47 more than the second-place Tim Wakefield, but he has been passed on the saves list by Jonathan Papelbon.  Stanley spent his entire 13-year career with the Red Sox and pitched in a number of roles, though most often as a reliever.  I have covered Stanley before, looking at his entire career, so this post will be mostly looking at his 1981 season.

Stanley was in his fifth season with the Red Sox in 1981.  He had already contributed in a number of ways by this time.  When he started out, he was more of a swingman, starting occasionally but also appearing in relief.  In 1978, he spent most of the season in the bullpen and had a terrific season, finishing with a record of 15-2, 10 saves and a 2.60 ERA.  He made his first All Star game in 1979 when he was more of a starter.  He did a little of both in 1980.

1981 saw Stanley in primarily a relief role.  In the strike-shortened season, he appeared in 35 games, pitching 98.1 innings, finishing out 14 of them and only starting one.  It was not one of Stanley's better seasons as his 3.83 ERA resulted in an ERA+ of just 102.  A WHIP of 1.500 and 3.5 BB/9 were his worst marks of his season to that point.  He also walked more batters (38) than he struck out (28) for the first time in his career.  Nevertheless, his numbers were not all bad.  He did finish with a record of 10-8.

Stanley would improve significantly over the next couple of seasons and have his career-best season in 1983.  He would stick around in Boston through the 1989 season and finish with a career record of 115-97 and a 3.64 ERA.  It is unfortunate that one of the things he is most remembered for is being unable to close out Game 6 of the 1986 World Series because Stanley did a lot for the Red Sox.

The Jason Varitek Quest for 1,000: #990

Jason Varitek card #988 comes from 2023 Topps Allen & Ginter.  This is the base short print card.  I discussed this image a bit recently.  I like that the "C" is visible on his jersey.  There really is not much more to say about this one.  10 cards to go.

More Aoki Cards

I bought another couple of Aoki cards from one seller because I really needed to add one in particular to my collection.

1.  Eric Hosmer.  Longtime readers know that player selection is a big deal to me.  I felt that Hosmer had a chance to go without getting any Red Sox cards.  That has not been the case as he has appeared in a few sets, but there was no way he was going to get a lot.  This card was actually the first one I was aware of, but it took a long time for Topps to send these out.

2.  Bobby Dalbec.  Since I was buying the Hosmer card, I decided to add a couple more to make the shipping more worthwhile.  Dalbec has been playing well in Spring Training, but then that has always been the case for him.  We will see what happens in the season, if he is not traded first.

3.  Andrew Benintendi.  This is from 2020.  Benintendi is already gone of course and will be with the White Sox in 2023.  He just could not get back on track with the Red Sox after beginning to struggle in 2018.

One Year Wonder Pt. 31: Garrett Richards

Garrett Richards always seemed like he was just on the cusp of turning into a very good pitcher.  He had a couple of great seasons in 2014 and 2015, then suffered significant injury setbacks over the next few years.  He was finally mostly healthy in 2020 and had some decent pitching metrics.  It allowed the Red Sox to take a flyer on him in 2021, signing him to a one-year deal.

Richards started the 2021 season in the rotation.  He was very inconsistent, seemingly alternating poor starts and good ones.  He seemed to be trending in the right direction after a start in which he struck out ten over seven one-run innings against the Mets.  But early in the season, MLB announced new rules which were meant to crack down on substances used for gripping the ball.  Richards was one of the pitchers who suffered greatly from this change.  After his ERA increased to over 5.00, he was removed from the rotation and put in the bullpen.

Richards flourished for awhile in the bullpen and even notched three saves, even though he was not the primary closer.  Two of those saves involved him pitching three innings of scoreless ball.  Both times he struck out four batters.  His final numbers in the regular season were a record of 7-8, an ERA of 4.87 in 136.2 innings pitched (his most since 2015).  He struck out 115 batters and walked 60.  He only appeared in the postseason for a third of an inning against the Rays in the ALDS, allowing no hits or walks.  After the season, Richards signed a deal with the Rangers and pitched mostly out of the bullpen.  

So, how does he measure up on my All-Time One-Year Wonder post?  He qualifies more as a starter than a reliever, but it does not really matter where you put him.  He is not unseating either Hideo Nomo or Takashi Saito.

We Need Another Knuckleballer

1.  Tim Wakefield.  This is a Chrome Platinum Anniversary parallel of knuckleballer Tim Wakefield.  I bought this card from the same seller as one of the Sandy Alomar Jr. parallels I showed off awhile back (I was way ahead on Red Sox posts).  There has not been a regular knuckleball pitcher in the Majors since R.A. Dickey retired in 2017.  Steven Wright was still active at the time, but pitched in just 20 games in 2018, 16 in relief, and then just six in 2019.  There have been a couple of short-term knuckleballers since, but nobody that stuck around.  This is a travesty.  The knuckleball is one of the most entertaining pitches to watch, but it's hard to throw well.  Wakefield is one of my favorite pitchers of all time.  He had a really good career with the Red Sox.

2.  Alex Verdugo.  The seller threw in a ton of base singles as extras.  Mostly 2022 Topps and Chrome, along with some other randomness.  Among them was this Verdugo card that was miscut pretty badly, but I still needed it.  And it adds another Verdugo card.  It puts me at 57.  100 remains an outside possibility this year.

The Jason Varitek Quest for 1,000: #989

Card #987 comes from 2023 Topps.  This is the 1988 35th Anniversary Autographs card.  Varitek did not have a base card in the insert set.  I like the red jersey and the prominent "C" on his jersey.  I have a t-shirt jersey like this, red and with the "C".  11 cards to go.

2021 Topps All Star Rookie Cup Cards

Yesterday, I did some cards from the Steve Aoki set.  Today, I am showing a couple of cards from the 2021 Topps All Star Rookie Cup set that kind of went by unnoticed by me.  I vaguely remember looking at it when it came out and checking for Sandy Alomar Jr. cards, but he did not appear in the set and I lost track of it.  It was another online set and when I bought the Aoki cards, I bought a couple of these as well.

1.  Rafael Devers.  Of course I had to grab the Devers card.  I am a little confused by this set using older designs, particularly when it comes to Devers being shown with the 1964 design.  I do love this trophy though, much more elaborate than the later trophy design.  Devers was the 2017 All Star Rookie Third-Baseman even though he did not play the full season.  He hit .284/.338/.482 with ten home runs, 30 RBIs and 14 doubles in just 58 games.

2.  Carlton Fisk.  Fisk is one of my favorite Hall of Famers to get cards of.  Fisk at least played during 1987, but he was far from a rookie.  Also, this picture came from a few years after his rookie season.  Fisk was the 1972 All Star Rookie for catcher.  It was an easy choice since he was the unanimous Rookie of the Year.  He hit .293/.370/.538 with 22 home runs and 61 RBIs.

Steve Aoki Lot

Another of the online only Topps sets from last year was the Topps X Steve Aoki-curated set.  This was released in a couple of waves and included a lot of Red Sox cards.  That, in conjunction with the fact that there were several players in new uniforms after the trading deadline, meant that I was actually kind of interested in this set.  Here is the first few cards I picked up from it.

1.  Alex Verdugo.  Perhaps a third goal may be in the works.  I guess it kind of depends on what kind of year Verdugo puts up, but maybe it's time to push him to 100.  I have mid-50's right now.  That may not be super easy.

2.  Rafael Devers.  I think the Devers goal is definitely within reach.  Still a lot of cards to get, but I suspect he will appear in just about every set along with having lots of inserts.  With Bogaerts gone, Devers is the face of the franchise.

3.  Tommy Pham.  This is one of the updated players.  Pham has appeared on more cards than I expected, and is even shown with the Red Sox in 2023 Topps.  That's fine with me because I really liked Pham.  I was hoping Boston would bring him back as a fourth outfielder, but Rob Refsnyder had better numbers and is significantly better defensively.

The Jason Varitek Quest for 1,000: #986, 987 and 988

One of my absolute favorite photos on a Varitek card is the 2020 Stadium Club aerial shot.  Of course I have to grab as many parallels as I can.  I recently purchased a lot that included three of the parallels I still needed.  From left to right, there is the Sepia, Chrome Refractor and Chrome Xfractor.  This gives me seven versions of this card.  It also puts me at 12 cards to go to make 1,000.

2001 Fleer Red Sox 100th Pt. 2: Mel Parnell

NAME: Mel Parnell

POSITION: Starting Pitcher.  

WHY IS HE HERE?:  He is a career Red Sox and is the winningest southpaw in Red Sox history, yes, more than Babe Ruth, Bill Lee, Bruce Hurst and Jon Lester.  He is a two-time All Star and finished fourth in the MVP vote in 1949.  Had there been a Cy Young Award at the time, he likely would have won as he led the league in wins and ERA.  He won 20 games twice and pitched a no-hitter.  He had a career 123-75 record with a 3.50 ERA.

WOULD I PUT HIM IN IN 2001?:  Yes.

ANY BETTER CHOICES IN 2001?:  Probably not.

WOULD I PUT HIM IN NOW?:  Probably.  Parnell is somewhat forgotten now because his career was shortened due to injury, but since he is still the winningest lefty in team history, he probably still has a place.

ANY BETTER CHOICES NOW?:  Probably not.  I maybe would consider Jon Lester and/or Chris Sale, but I don't think I would replace Parnell with either of them.