Maildays with a Bunch of Rafaelas

A lot of the following scans are trades from TCDB, along with some Ebay buys.  These all came in around the same period of time, and most of them include cards of Ceddanne Rafaela.  I am not sure of the status of my focus on him.  He is becoming one of the bigger stars on the team, and his stuff is becoming more expensive.  I will keep going for now, but we will see what happens.

Up first is a trade: 

1.  Bronson Arroyo.  It is so cool when companies include cards of retired players like this.  Arroyo was not a big star and he is certainly not as well-known for his time with the Red Sox.  He was pretty good for the Red Sox in 2004 and 2005.  He was then traded to the Reds for Wily Mo Pena, which is a trade that worked out much better for Cincinnati than Boston.

2.  Wilyer Abreu.  Abreu is finally starting to do a bit better in my collection lately.  He is still somewhat underrepresented for as big of a player as he is for this team.

3.  Aroldis Chapman.  I didn't love it when Boston signed Chapman, but he has won me over with his great performance since joining the Red Sox.

4.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Rafaela has been breaking out this season, making the All Star team for the first time and carrying a batting average around .280 and an OPS over .750.  He is also playing his usual great defense, hitting for some pop and stealing bases.  

5.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card number two.

6.  Corey Kluber.  The Klubot was a disaster in Boston.  The two-time Cy Young winner started on Opening Day in 2023, but had a 7.04 ERA in 15 games with the Red Sox.  About the best thing that could be said about his stint in Boston was that he notched the first (and only) save of his career.

Here is card number three of Rafaela in this post.  Several more to come.

The next two scans are from the same trade:

1.  Hanley Ramirez.  Ramirez was the first real player I followed from his time as a minor leaguer.  I grabbed a bunch of his cards during his rise through the minor leagues.  Then he made it to the Major Leagues in 2005, playing in just two games, then he was traded to the Marlins in the deal for Josh Beckett and Mike Lowell.  And that's why I don't invest heavily in prospects anymore.  He did come back to Boston and had a bad year in 2015, a great year in 2016, an okay year in 2017 and was released partway through 2018.  There's some concerning rumors about what happened that led to that.

2.  J.D. Martinez.  I still get offered a ton of Martinez cards all the time in trades on TCDB.

3.  Connor Seabold.  He looks like a right-handed, slightly more svelte Payton Tolle here.  Seabold seemed like the big get when Boston traded Brandon Workman and Heath Hembree to the Phillies in 2020, but it ended up being Nick Pivetta.  Seabold was not good in Boston.

4.  J.D. Martinez.  See?

5.  Masataka Yoshida.  Yoshida has played well limited opportunities with the Red Sox this season.  I don't know how much longer he will be in Boston though.  

6.  David Hamilton.  I liked Hamilton, particularly in 2024 when he stole 33 bases.  He was part of the package sent to the Brewers along with Kyle Harrison for Caleb Durbin, Andruw Monasterio and Anthony Seigler, each of whom has been producing for Boston lately.

7.  Rafael Devers.  I expect that he will be offered a lot in upcoming TCDB trades.  I remember turning one down that featured 15 Devers cards.  I don't mind getting more cards of him, but that one seemed excessive.

8.  Garrett Crochet.  The amazing thing about the Red Sox recent success is that they are doing it without Crochet.  He has been on the shelf since May.  

9.  Garrett Crochet.  

10.  Dustin May.  The acquisition of May was not a good trade by the Red Sox.  Most of their trades since have been fairly decent, but this one was bad.

11.  Marcelo Mayer.  Mayer has not played well in his opportunities at the big league level.  That being said, he was the fourth overall pick in the 2021 draft and he is still just 23.  I think he deserves more time before deciding he is a bust.  I also do not want to see him get traded yet.

12.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card number four.

1.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card number five.

2.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card number six.

1.  Justin Slaten.  Slaten has been another remarkable discovery through the Rule 5 Draft.  He was drafted by the Mets in the 2023 Rule 5 Draft, but immediately traded to the Red Sox and has been very impressive, becoming a weapon at the back end of the bullpen.

2.  Dick Gernert.  Unfortunately vintage cards are hard to come by in TCDB trades.  Gernert was a good-hitting first-baseman for the Red Sox in the 1950's.  He hit 101 home runs with the Red Sox and had a .788 OPS.

3.  Ryan Weber.  Weber was a journeyman pitcher who played with the Braves, Mariners, Rays, Brewers and Yankees, but who had his most success with the Red Sox, though that's not really saying a lot.

Card number seven.

1.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card number eight.

2.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card number nine.

3.  Wilyer Abreu.  My second Abreu in this post.

4.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card number ten.

5.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card number eleven.  Yes, this counts as a Rafaela card.  That's him coming to the plate after a walkoff.

6.  Aroldis Chapman.  My second card of him in this post.  This is naming him as the reliever on the All Topps Team.

1.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Card number 12.  This card was supposed to part of the trade made up by the below two cards, but the wrong one was sent and I bought this one.

2.  Carl Yastrzemski.  I like this card a lot, plus it has Yaz in the mid- to late-70's uniforms with the red hats.

3.  Jhostynxon Garcia.  I was disappointed when Garcia was traded, but understood why it happened.  The outfield was full.  Unfortunately, the Major League pitchers acquired in the deal have been injured for most of the season.  Tyler Samaniego has been very good while Johan Oviedo has struggled.

And closing things off with a very garish-looking card number 13.

Red Sox Awards History: MVP Pt. 5 (The 1940's)

 THE WINNERS

TED WILLIAMS

1946

1st, 224 points

.342/.497/.667, 142 runs scored, 38 home runs, 123 RBIs

The MVP Award eluded Williams more often than he actually won it, but in 1946 he was the best player on a juggernaut Red Sox team that steamrolled every AL team on the way to the World Series.  It would have been impossible to deny Williams the award.  He led the league in OBP, slugging percentage, runs scored and walks (156).  By bWAR (10.6), it was the greatest season of his career.  It is no wonder he finally won it.

1949

1st, 272 points

.343/.490/.650, 150 runs scored, 43 home runs, 159 RBIs

Just a few years later, Williams won his second, and last, MVP Award.  The Red Sox were in a dogfight for the pennant into the last game of the season and Williams was once again the best player on the team.  He led the league in runs scored, home runs, RBIs, OBP, slugging percentage and walks (150).  Again, this was an easy victory for Williams.    

RECEIVING VOTES

JOE CRONIN

1941

11th, 26 points

.311/.406/.508, 16 home runs, 95 RBIs

Cronin was still the Red Sox player/manager in 1941, guiding the team to a second place finish at 84-70.  The shortstop was in his final season as a regular player, but still had a fair amount left in the tank.  It was also his last All Star season.  He was eighth in OBP and slugging percentage and was sixth in the league in doubles (38).  

1943

27th, 3 points

.312/.398/.558, five home runs, 29 RBIs

I do not really understand this one.  His slash line was pretty decent, but Cronin only played in 59 games.  He was still the team's player/manager but was much more focused on the managerial side of things by this point in his career.  Also, the team finished seventh in the league, so he does not really get credit for being a manager.  This just really does not make much sense.

DOM DIMAGGIO

1941

27th, 1 point

.283/.385/.408, 117 runs, 165 hits, eight home runs, 58 RBIs, 13 stolen bases

The Little Professor was in his sophomore season in 1941 and was a catalyst for the Red Sox offense.  He was also a fantastic defensive center fielder, like his brother.  DiMaggio was named to his first All Star team in 1941 and was third in runs scored, tenth in hits and seventh in doubles (37).

1946

9th, 56 points

.316/.393/.427, 85 runs scored, 169 hits, seven home runs, 73 RBIs, ten stolen bases

As with several other players, DiMaggio returned from service in World War II in 1946.  He had a big season that year, finishing fifth in the league in batting average, OBP, tenth in OPS (.820), ninth in runs and sixth in hits while making the All Star team.  This was DiMaggio's highest position in MVP voting in his career.

1948

29th, 3 points

.285/.383/.401, 127 runs scored, 185 hits, nine home runs, 87 RBIs, ten stolen bases

It was another very good year for the younger DiMaggio.  He led the league in games played (155) and at-bats (648) as a result of the team playing a one-game playoff against the Indians.  He was second in runs scored, sixth in hits, fourth in doubles (40) and walks (101).  He also led the league in several defensive categories for center fielders.  

1949

16th, 7 points

.307/.404/.420, 126 runs scored, 186 hits, eight home runs, 60 RBIs, nine stolen bases

DiMaggio was a catalyst again for the Red Sox.  He finished seventh in the AL in batting average, tenth in OBP, third in runs scored, hits and doubles (34) and ninth in walks (96).  He was also once again first in several defensive categories.  He was an All Star for the fourth time in his career. 

JOE DOBSON

1947

29th, 3 points

18-8, 2.95 ERA, 228.2 innings pitched, 110 strikeouts, 73 walks

Dobson was always kind of a good pitcher, but in 1947 he stepped it up a notch.  It was the best season of his career as he reached career bests in most major pitching categories.  He was fourth in the league in wins, sixth in ERA and ninth in strikeouts.  Dobson was the team's best starting pitcher in 1947.

1948

24th, 5 points

16-10, 3.56 ERA, 245.1 innings pitched, 116 strikeouts, 92 walks

It was another quality season for Dobson, who hit his career high in strikeouts.  He was no longer the team's best starting pitcher, but he was very good in his own right.  1948 was the only All Star season of Dobson's career.  He was seventh in strikeouts, eighth in wins and tenth in ERA.  

BOBBY DOERR

1942

11th, 24 points

.290/.369/.455, 15 home runs, 102 RBIs

Ted Williams once called Doerr "the silent captain of the Red Sox".  He was an offensively-gifted second baseman at a time when most middle infielders were not known for offense.  He finished seventh in the league in slugging, ninth in OPS (.824), fifth in doubles (35), eighth in home runs and fifth in RBIs.  Not bad for a second-baseman.

1943

14th, 21 points

.270/.339/.412, 16 home runs, 75 RBIs

1943 was a bit of a down season for Doerr as most of his offensive numbers declined a bit.  He did hit more home runs, but that was about it.  Nevertheless, he was still a very important member of the offense.  He did finish ninth in the league in slugging percentage, seventh in doubles (32) and home runs and became one of the better defensive second-basemen in the game.

1944

7th, 75 points

.325/.399/.528, 15 home runs, 81 RBIs

1944 was a season that saw a lot of players serving in the military.  Doerr was still around though and was the team's top player.  He led the league in slugging percentage while also finishing second in batting average, third in OBP and second in OPS (.927).  He was also eighth in home runs and ninth in RBIs.  He was also the league's top defensive second-baseman.

1946

3rd, 158 points

.271/.346/.453, 18 home runs, 116 RBIs

The Red Sox were a juggernaut in 1946 and had five players in the top ten in MVP voting.  Doerr was third as he finished fifth in the league in doubles (34), eighth in home runs, fourth in RBIs.  He was also once more one of the top defensive second-basemen in the league.  1946 was Doerr's highest placement in the MVP vote.

1947

24th, 6 points

.258/.329/.426, 17 home runs, 95 RBIs

Though his slash line categories took a bit of a tumble, Doerr remained a very valuable member of the Red Sox offense in 1947.  He still managed to finish tenth in slugging percentage, ninth in home runs and fifth in RBIs.  

1948

19th, 10 points

.285/.386/.505, 27 home runs, 111 RBIs

Doerr hit his career high in home runs in 1948 and was fifth in the league.  He was seventh in the league in slugging percentage and RBIs.  He was named to his sixth All Star Game and was the top defensive second-baseman in the game.

1949

16th, 7 points

.309/.393/.497, 18 home runs, 109 RBIs

And it was another big season for the Red Sox second-baseman.  He finished fifth in the league in batting average, fourth in slugging percentage, fifth in OPS (.890) and fourth in RBIs while playing his standard excellent defense.

BOO FERRISS

1945

4th, 148 points

21-10, 2.96 ERA, 264.2 innings pitched, 94 strikeouts, 85 walks

1945 was the season that was most effected by the ongoing war and Boston was probably the most effected team as most of the team's stars were serving their country.  It was the year of Ferriss as he exploded onto the scene in his rookie season.  He was second in the league in innings pitched, ninth in ERA and second in wins.  

1946

7th, 94 points

25-6, 3.25 ERA, 274 innings pitched, 106 strikeouts, 71 walks

Ferriss was one of Boston's top starting pitchers the year the team cruised to the World Series.  He was third in the league in wins and fifth in innings pitched.  He was an All Star for the only time in his career.  Unfortunately, this was the end of the road for Ferriss as an effective pitcher.  

  

LOU FINNEY

1940

29th, 1 point

.320/.360/.463, five home runs, 73 RBIs

Finney had his best offensive season in his first full year in Boston after spending the first several years of his career with the A's.  He was an All Star for the only time in his career and split the year between right field and first base.  His career high in batting average placed him ninth in the league.  He is one of the more random players to receive an MVP vote in this post.

PETE FOX

1943

33rd, 1 point

.288/.337/.366, two home runs, 44 RBIs, 22 stolen bases

Boston's right fielder during much of the war years, Fox is another kind of random player to receive an MVP vote in this post.  He finished ninth in the league in batting average and sixth in stolen bases.  He was one of the few players for the team during this time period who had great speed.  His 22 steals were the top mark of the decade for the team.

1944

15th, 12 points

.315/.354/.419, one home run, 64 RBIs, ten stolen bases

Fox had his last big season at the plate as his .315 batting average was sixth in the league.  He also finished fourth in doubles (37) and tenth in stolen bases, though his total dropped considerably from the previous season.  Fox was also an All Star for the only time in his career.

JIMMIE FOXX

1940

6th, 110 points

.297/.412/.581, 106 runs scored, 36 home runs, 119 RBIs

Foxx was nearing the end of his magnificent career in 1940.  It was his final season with more than 30 home runs as his 36 was second in the league.  Foxx also had top five finishes in slugging percentage, OPS (.993), walks (101) and RBIs.  He was also an All Star.  Foxx's career would decline from here until his retirement in the 1945 season.

BILLY GOODMAN

1948

27th, 4 points

.310/.414/.387, one home run, 66 RBIs

Goodman was fourth in the league in the Rookie of the Year vote and also received some low MVP votes.  He primarily played first base in 1948 and finished fourth in OBP.  His power numbers were not good, but he was an excelled contact hitter with a strong eye at the plate.  His best years were yet to come.

TEX HUGHSON

1942

6th, 92 points

22-6, 2.59 ERA, 281 innings pitched, 113 strikeouts, 75 walks

Hughson had his best season in just his first full season in the Majors, appearing in the All Star Game for the first time.  He led the league in innings pitched, wins, strikeouts and complete games (22).  He was sixth in the league in ERA.  Had there been a Cy Young Award at the time, it is likely he would have won.  

1944

12th, 22 points

18-5, 2.26 ERA, 203.1 innings pitched, 112 strikeouts, 41 walks

After failing to get MVP consideration in 1943, despite a very similar year, he was back in 1944.  This was Hughson's last appearance in an All Star Game and he led the league in winning percentage (.783) and WHIP (1.048).  He was third in the league in ERA, fourth in wins and seventh in strikeouts.  He was also third in complete games (19) and shutouts (four).

1946

13th, 19 points

20-11, 2.75 ERA, 278 innings pitched, 172 strikeouts, 51 walks

Hughson and Boo Ferriss gave the Red Sox a formidable one-two punch at the top of their rotation in 1946, the year they made it back to the World Series for the first time since 1918.  It was Hughson's last great season due to arm trouble.  He was fourth in wins, eighth in ERA and third in strikeouts.  It was his career high in strikeouts by a pretty fair margin.

BOB JOHNSON

1944

10th, 51 points

.324/.431/.528, 106 runs scored, 40 doubles, 17 home runs, 106 RBIs

Johnson was 38 years old and in his first Red Sox season, but he had a lot left in the tank as he was one of the best hitters on the team.  Johnson led the league in OBP and OPS (.959).  He was also second in slugging, sixth in hits, second in runs scored, third in doubles, sixth in home runs and second in RBIs.  He primarily played left field in the absence of Ted Williams.  It was his last All Star season.

1945

23rd, 6 points

.280/.358/.425, 71 runs scored, 27 doubles, 12 home runs, 74 RBIs

1945 was Johnson's final Major League season.  It was a reasonably productive season for a final year, though it was against lesser competition as this was the season most effected by World War II.  He was sixth in slugging percentage, ninth in home runs and seventh in RBIs.

ELLIS KINDER

1949

5th, 122 points

23-6, 3.36 ERA, 252 innings pitched, 138 strikeouts, 99 walks

"Old Folks" had his greatest season as a starting pitcher in 1949, though he would have some great years as a reliever later.  He received his nickname as a result of making his Major League debut in 1946 at 31 years of age.  Kinder was one of Boston's most reliable pitchers in 1949 and finished second in the league in wins, ninth in ERA and third in strikeouts.  

EDDIE LAKE

1945

31st, 2 points

.279/.412/.410, 81 runs scored, 11 home runs, 51 RBIs, 106 walks

The Red Sox shortstop had the best season of his career, and the only one in which he received any MVP consideration.  His league-leading on-base percentage was boosted by his incredible number of walks.  He finished second in the league in that category.  He was also fourth in runs scored and ten in home runs.  Lake had a chance in Boston due to Johnny Pesky serving in the military.  He was traded after 1945 to the Tigers in the deal that brought Rudy York to Boston.

TONY LUPIEN

1942

25th, 4 points

.281/.351/.384, 25 doubles, three home runs, 70 RBIs, ten stolen bases

Lupien was a rookie in 1942.  He had decent numbers, but for a first-baseman, the numbers are not real impressive.  The only statistic he was in the top ten in the league in was sacrifice hits.  He was sixth in the league with 12 sacrifice hits.  He is another very random player to appear in this post.

DICK NEWSOME

1941

9th, 32 points

19-10, 4.13 ERA, 213.2 innings pitched, 58 strikeouts, 78 walks

Newsome, like Lupien, was a rookie when he received his MVP consideration.  His 19 wins are the primary reason he is here as most of the rest of his numbers were not that impressive.  He was third in the league in wins.  Otherwise, he is primarily known for allowing Joe DiMaggio's hit in the last game of 56 game hitting streak.  1941 was Newsome's only decent season and he was out of the Majors after 1943.  

SKEETER NEWSOME

1943

27th, 3 points

.265/.301/.327, 21 doubles, one home run, 22 RBIs

This Newsome is not the same person as Dick Newsome, nor is he any relation.  This one was a shortstop, who also played a little third base.  I assume he was considered a good defensive shortstop because I really cannot explain this at all.  He did finish first in range factor, for whatever that is worth when applying advanced defensive metrics to a player who played long before these things were measured.

1945

32nd, 1 points

.290/.322/.370, 30 doubles, one home run, 48 RBIs

This one makes a bit more sense.  Newsome did not have great numbers, but they were a bit better than in 1943.  He split time between second (82 games), shortstop (33 games) and third (eleven games).  His .290 batting average was tenth in the league.  

MEL PARNELL

1949

4th, 151 points

25-7, 2.77 ERA, 295.1 innings pitched, 122 strikeouts, 134 walks

Parnell was probably the best pitcher in the league in 1949 and made the first All Star team of his career.  He led the league in wins, ERA, innings pitched and complete games (27).  He was seventh in strikeouts and fourth in shutouts (four).  He and Kinder were Boston's top starting pitchers and pitched a lot down the stretch.

JOHNNY PESKY 

1942

3rd, 143 points

.331/.375/.416, 105 runs scored, 205 hits, two home runs, 51 RBIs, 12 stolen bases

Pesky had one of the greatest seasons by a rookie shortstop in history.  He led the league in hits and sacrifice hits (22) while finishing second in the league in batting average, sixth in runs and tenth in triples (nine).  Pesky would go on to become one of the most beloved Red Sox players of all time and have the right field foul pole named after him.

1946

4th, 141 points

.335/.401/.427, 115 runs scored, 208 hits, two home runs, 55 RBIs, nine stolen bases

Despite having a number of really good to great seasons, 1946 was the only season that Pesky was an All Star.  He came back from three seasons of military service to lead the league in hits for the second year in a row.  He was third in the league in batting average, fourth in OBP, ninth in OPS (.827), second in runs scored, third in doubles (43) and ninth in stolen bases.

1947

18th, 11 points

.324/.393/.392, 106 runs scored, 207 hits, zero home runs, 39 RBIs, 12 stolen bases

For the third season in a row that Pesky was active, he led the league in hits.  His tumble in the MVP vote can most likely be attributed to the team being worse, because his season was every bit as good as his previous two.  He finished third in batting average, seventh in OBP, third in runs scored and third in stolen bases.  Pesky would likely be a borderline Hall of Famer had he not missed three seasons early in his career to military service.

VERN STEPHENS

1948

4th, 121 points

.269/.350/.471, 114 runs scored, 29 home runs, 137 RBIs

The acquisition of Stephens moved Johnny Pesky to third base.  Stephens was one of the first true power-hitting shortstops.  He ranked sixth in the league in runs scored, fourth in home runs and second in RBIs.  The right-handed slugger found Fenway to his liking.

1949

7th, 100 points

.290/.391/.539, 113 runs scored, 39 home runs, 159 RBIs

That RBI total is huge and tied Stephens for the league lead with teammate Ted Williams.  Stephens was second in the league in slugging percentage, third in OPS (.930), fourth in runs scored, seventh in hits (177), fifth in doubles (31) and second in home runs.  It was one of the most productive offensive seasons for a shortstop to that point.  He probably should have finished a lot higher than seventh.

JIM TABOR

1943

33rd, 1 point

.242/.299/.374, 13 home runs, 85 RBIs

Rawhide had several better seasons than 1943 that he did not receive any MVP consideration, so it is kind of odd that this was the year he received a vote.  He did finish seventh in the league in RBIs, but that was about the best that could be said about his season.  He was a gritty, hard-nosed player, and that likely made him a bit of a fan favorite.

BIRDIE TEBBETTS

1948

11th, 23 points

.280/.371/.381, five home runs, 68 RBIs

Tebbetts was a good contact hitter for a catcher and was an All Star for the third time in his career in 1948 (and the first time with the Red Sox).  He did not rank in the top ten in any offensive categories, but was a strong defensive catcher and a reliable leader on the field.

1949

18th, 6 points

.270/.369/.342, five home runs, 48 RBIs

Though it was an even weaker offensive season for Tebbetts, he once again garnered MVP consideration based on his defense and leadership qualities.  He did finish tenth in intentional walks (six), most likely because he typically batted ahead of the pitcher's spot in the lineup.  That would also explain his 62 walks versus 32 strikeouts.

HAL WAGNER

1946

26th, 1 point

.230/.354/.322, six home runs, 52 RBIs

As with Birdie Tebbetts above, Wagner's vote likely came as a result of him being a reliable presence behind the plate.  He may have been given credit for helping Boston's pitching staff to such a massive season.  He did finish tenth in walks (69) and was an All Star, but his hitting certainly did not gain him the MVP consideration.

TED WILLIAMS

1940

14th, 16 points

.344/.442/.594, 134 runs scored, 23 home runs, 113 RBIs

The sophomore season for Williams was not quite as good as his rookie season, but he was still an extremely impressive hitter.  He led the league in runs scored and OBP and was third in batting average and fifth in RBIs.  It was not one of his greatest seasons, but it was a very good year nonetheless.

1941

2nd, 254 points

.406/.553/.735, 135 runs scored, 37 home runs, 120 RBIs

Look, I know Joe DiMaggio had the 56-game hitting streak in 1941 and that the Yankees won the pennant, but Williams's numbers eclipse DiMaggio's nearly across the board.  Williams led the league in all three slash categories, home runs, runs scored, and walks (147).  He was fourth in RBIs, the only major hitting category of which DiMaggio had the advantage.  This is still the last time any hitter has ever hit .400 in a full season.  

1942

2nd, 249 points

.356/.499/.648, 141 runs scored, 36 home runs, 137 RBIs

This one is worse than 1941.  Williams lost out to Joe Gordon of the Yankees on the strength of the fact that the Yankees won the pennant.  Williams won the Triple Crown, and also led the league in runs scored and walks (145).  Gordon had more stolen bases, that's it.  This is one of the biggest travesties in MVP voting history.  Williams had a bad relationship with baseball writers and that cost him.

1947

2nd, 201 points

.343/.499/.634, 125 runs scored, 32 home runs, 114 RBIs

As in 1942, Williams won the Triple Crown in 1947, and, as in 1942, somehow he came in second in the MVP vote.  This time he lost out to Joe DiMaggio, as he did in 1941.  The only statistic DiMaggio had the lead in was stolen bases (three to zero).  This was the closest MVP vote in history that did not end in a tie as DiMaggio won by just one vote.  One sportswriter left Williams off his ballot entirely out of spite, otherwise he would have won.

1948

3rd, 171 points

.369/.497/.615, 124 runs scored, 25 home runs, 127 RBIs

The 1948 season saw Boston finish tied for first with Cleveland, necessitating a Game 163, which Cleveland won.  Cleveland's Lou Boudreau won the MVP.  Williams led the league in all three slash categories, doubles (44) and walks (126).  His power numbers had declined a little and he missed a little bit of time.    

RUDY YORK

1946

11th, 28 points

.276/.371/.437, 17 home runs, 119 RBIs

York was acquired by the Red Sox prior to the 1946 season to add a right-handed thumper to the middle of the lineup.  York definitely fit the part.  He made the All Star team and finished tenth in OBP, ninth in hits (160), ninth in home runs and third in RBIs.  

A Day of Maildays

This was of course several months ago that these cards came in, but as I recall they all came in at once. 

1.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Yes, there will be several Rafaela cards in this post.  That's just the way it is.  This photo was taken after one of his walkoffs.

2.  Roman Anthony.  Kind of cool to have both City Connect uniforms in the same scan.  I like the greens better, but I like the yellow more than I thought I would.

1.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  This scan was not a trade, but a few Ebay buys.

2.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  This is the Holiday parallel.

3.  Garrett Whitlock.  This card was a freebie with the previous Rafaela.  Whitlock is an absolute weapon in the bullpen for the Red Sox.  He had a rough outing in the Wild Card Series last year but has been absolutely nails for the team most of the rest of the time.

4.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  This photo is also from one of the walkoffs.  I know this one though, it is after his two-run home run from a run down against the Rays in July.

1.  Ceddanne Rafaela.

2.  Roman Anthony.  And here's Roman in the greens.

3.  David Ortiz.  I will never turn down Ortiz cards in trades.

1.  Jackie Bradley Jr.  This is a cool insert with the Father's Day uniforms.  Nice powder blue coloring.  I was a big fan of JBJ.  If he could hit a bit more, he might have had a longer career.  As it was, he had a great year in 2016 when he hit .267/.349/.486 with 26 homers, 87 RBIs and was an All Star for the only time.  

2.  Aroldis Chapman.  Chapman recently broke the all-time record for strikeouts by a relief pitcher.  He has a decent Hall of Fame case.  Only some off-field issues could potentially cause issues for his candidacy.

3.  Johnny Damon.  I prefer to remember Damon as he was in the postseason for the Red Sox in 2004, when he hit the grand slam and two-run shot against the Yankees.  What is sort of forgotten was that he was not having a good series until Game 7 of the ALCS. 

Closing things out is a trade for a trio of Chrome Refractors of Ceddanne.  A fun trade.

2025 Select Blaster

I like buying Panini blasters just because I seem to have better luck with them as far as pulling Red Sox cards.  Even when there are very few cards in them.  Like this one:

1.  Roman Anthony.  One of the biggest issues this year has been the struggles of Anthony, who had a huge rookie season.  Injuries have stunted his development.  I am looking forward to him coming back healthy.  This is a Concourse subset, which may mean it is short-printed.  I don't really know.

2.  Tony Perez.  It is really cool to see a company acknowledge Perez's time with the Red Sox.  He was not great in Boston, but he did have a very good 1980 season when he hit .275/.320/.467 with 25 home runs and 105 RBIs.  It was the last time in his career he would hit more than 20 home runs and drive in more than 100 runs.  

3.  Koji Uehara.  I love that Koji made it into the set.  His 2013 season is still probably my all time favorite relief pitcher season.  He was so much fun to watch that year.  This insert set also features Hideki Okajima.  I will have to track that card down.   

Two More TCDB Trades

A lot of the cards to come are going to be through TCDB trades.  I will try to catch up as soon as I can, but it will take awhile.

The first one is a bunch of blue parallels from this year's Heritage set.

1.  Carlos Narvaez.  Narvaez had a great season in 2025 as a rookie catcher, hitting 15 home runs.  He was acquired in a deal with the Yankees prior to the season for pitching prospect Elmer Rodriguez-Cruz, and that trade looks like a decent deal for both sides.  He has struggled this season.  Something is going on with him, possibly something off the field.  

2.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Yes, Rafaela is still my favorite player and there will be a lot of cards of him coming in future posts.  He is having a big year so far and appeared in the All Star Game for the first time.  

3.  Marcelo Mayer.  Mayer has not been great at the Majors so far.  As the fourth overall pick, he is going to be given a longer leash, but it would be nice to start seeing better results.  He's just 23, so there is time.

1.  Tyler O'Neill.  O'Neill had a huge season in his only year in Boston.  That One-Year Wonder post is coming some time.  He hit 31 home runs.  Will it be enough to unseat Hunter Renfroe as the top One-Year Wonder Right Fielder?  I guess we will find out.

2.  David Ortiz.  What is there more to say about Ortiz?  I love getting cards of him still.

3.  Tyler McDonough.  McDonough was selected in the third round of the same draft that produced Marcelo Mayer.  He has made it to Worcester this year, so he could eventually make it to the Majors, but he's 27 now, so he doesn't look like he will have a lengthy career.

2026 Topps Blaster

1.  Garrett Crochet.  This card shows the ERA leaders.  Skubal had the best ERA in the league and that seems to be the primary reason that he won the Cy Young Award over Crochet.  Crochet finished third, behind Skubal and Hunter Brown.

2.  Garrett Crochet.  Crochet finished second in the league in wins behind the Yankees' Max Fried, and ahead of the Yankees' Carlos Rodon.

3.  Romy Gonzalez.  I discussed Romy a fair amount in my Underrated Player of the Year for 2025 post.  He is just the kind of winning player teams need, but unfortunately, teams do kind of need to catch lightning in a bottle on them because these types of players do not always age well.  He has been injured for most of the season, so it is easy to give him a bit of a pass, but his current production is not really going to cut it.

4.  Brayan Bello.  What has happened to Bello?  After a decent 2025 season, Bello's numbers are really rough this season.  He has had a ton of problems in the first inning.  His ERA of 6.06 this season is primarily a result of blowing up in the first inning almost every time.  On occasions in which he has been used after an opener, he's been great.  It's a really weird thing.

One of These Things is Not Like the Others

Can you guess who?

This was a small trade that I made some time ago.  I am going to gradually catch up on my cards.  I have not been collecting as much lately, primarily because I have been so busy, but also because it's become so hard to find cards where I live.  Once in awhile I come across some stuff on the shelves, but if I don't buy right away, it's gone the next time I am there.  So, it's become frustrating.  Anyway, here are some pitchers.

1.  Roger Clemens.  Clemens won three Cy Young Awards with the Red Sox and probably should have won at least one more, if not two.  In 1990 he lost out to Bob Welch because Welch won 27 games for a juggernaut A's team despite the fact that Clemens was better than him in literally every other single category.  Clemens was the best pitcher in 1990, not Welch.  In 1992, Clemens placed third behind Dennis Eckersley, who saved 51 games and had a 1.91 ERA, and Jack McDowell, who won 20 games and had more innings pitched.  Clemens led the league in ERA (2.41) and shutouts (five) and had a record of 18-11 with 208 strikeouts.  So again, Clemens was arguably the best pitcher in the league.

2.  Dustin May.  May was acquired at the deadline in 2025.  There was a lot of smoke around Boston acquiring a starting pitcher and allegedly CBO Craig Breslow tried really hard to pry Joe Ryan away from the Twins after the Twins traded away virtually every other player they could.  But when it became obvious that the Twins were holding out to Ryan, he had to pivot quickly and apparently made a bit of a panic move, sending James Tibbs III and Zach Ehrhard to the Dodgers for May.  It was a bad move.  Tibbs had just been acquired in the Rafael Devers trade and Ehrhard was a well-regarded outfield prospect.  Tibbs has been playing well in the Dodgers system this year.  May was...not good with the Red Sox.  He pitched in just six games, starting five and had an ERA of 5.40 and a record of 1-4.  In 28.1 innings, he struck out 26, but walked 13.  He was then allowed to leave as a free agent and signed on with the Cardinals where he has been inconsistent.

3.  Garrett Crochet.  Crochet was acquired in a trade with the White Sox for four prospects, similar to the Chris Sale trade prior to 2017.  Crochet was great in his first season with the Red Sox and finished second in the Cy Young vote to Tarik Skubal.  Crochet led the league in innings pitched (205.1), shutouts (one) and strikeouts (255).  He had a record of 18-5 and a 2.59 ERA.  Skubal had a 2.21 ERA.  I do kind of think Crochet should have won it.  I am not upset about it, like I am with the 1990 vote, but Crochet pitched more and had more strikeouts and a better record.