Red Sox Team of the Decade: 1950-1959

The 1950's were rough for the Red Sox.  They started off reasonably well and they finished third with a 94-60 record.  Helping them along was the fact that the Red Sox as a team hit .302.  But it was a steep dropoff after that.  A number of longtime stars left over the next couple of years and the team tried to strike gold with young stars.  Very few of the moves paid off.  The biggest problem was the fact that Boston waited until 1959 to bring up their first black player, years after the color line was broken.  This put them way behind other teams in talent.  By the end of the 1950's the team was mired in the second division.

CATCHER - SAMMY WHITE

Sammy White was the only real option at catcher as he was the regular catcher each year from 1952 through the end of the decade.  He was a decent enough hitter, but he was a far more valuable defensive catcher.  He was among the league leaders in most defensive categories every year, including leading the league in caught-stealing percentage twice.  White had an impressive rookie season in 1952 that led to him placing third in the Rookie of the Year vote when he hit .281 with 10 home runs.  He was an All Star for the only time in his career in 1953.  He had his best season in 1954 when he hit .282/.307/.426 with 14 home runs and 75 RBIs.  White's numbers declined after the 1955 season, particularly his power numbers, but he continued to be one of the best defensive catchers in the league.  

FIRST BASE - DICK GERNERT

First base was a tougher position, but I ultimately went with a player who spent six seasons as the regular first-baseman.  Gernert was not the best player, but he had some power and hit 101 home runs with the Red Sox through the 1950's.  He had his best season in 1956 when he hit .291/.399/.484 with 16 home runs and 68 RBIs.  That was far and away his best batting average though, typically he hit around .260.  Boston started the 1950's with a huge season from Walt Dropo, who won the Rookie of the Year when he hit .322 with 34 home runs and 144 RBIs, which is the top season for a first-baseman in the 1950's, but he declined significantly after that.  They tried to replace Gernert with Harry Agganis and then Norm Zauchin who both had decent seasons, but Gernert ultimately played the most games at first and was fairly decent, with a .788 OPS with Boston. 

SECOND BASE - BILLY GOODMAN

Goodman started out as a man without a true position.  He was primarily a first-baseman when he came up, played all over the place in 1950, which was his best season, and then eventually converted into the starting second-baseman for several seasons.  In 1950, Goodman led the league in batting average with a .354 mark, splitting time in the outfield and third while also spending time at several other positions.  Goodman finished second in the MVP race and finished the season at .354/.427/.455.  In his Red Sox career, Goodman hit .306/.386/.387 with 1,344 hits.  He did not have much power, but his hitting ability and his versatility were huge assets.  He played more career games at second than any other position and was a two-time All Star.  Pete Runnels was the runner-up with two great seasons in 1958 and 1959, but the best was yet to come for him.

SHORTSTOP - VERN STEPHENS

Shortstop was tough.  A number of players came and went at the position, including future Hall of Famer Lou Boudreau.  But honestly, most of the players just were not very good.  So ultimately it came back to the 1940's pick for the position, Vern Stephens.  Stephens spent two full seasons at short for the team in the 1950's, but they were far and away better than anyone else who played the position.  Particularly his 1950 season when he tied for the league lead in RBIs with teammate Walt Dropo (144) and hit 30 home runs.  Those kinds of numbers were virtually unheard of for a shortstop.  He hit .295/.361/.511 that season.  The next year he hit .300/.364/.501 with 17 home runs and 78 RBIs.  He was traded the next season when his numbers declined significantly.  Don Buddin was considered, but his defense was so bad that it was not a difficult decision.

THIRD BASE - FRANK MALZONE

I have previously discussed why Frank Malzone should have been the Rookie of the Year in 1957.  He narrowly makes it as the third-baseman on the 1950's Team of the Decade.  Malzone was a terrific defensive third-baseman who won three Gold Gloves, all from 1957-1959.  He was an All Star six times in his career, including from 1957-1959.  If he had started his career at a younger age, he may even have been a borderline Hall of Fame candidate.  As it was, he had three good seasons toward the end of the 1950's, hitting between .280 and .295 and 15 to 19 home runs each season.  He drove in 103 runs in his 1957 season, which was a career high.  He would have several other good to great seasons into the mid 1960's and go down as one of the team's best third-basemen of all time.  Malzone beat out George Kell, who had one great season with the Red Sox and played parts of two others.  

RIGHT FIELD - JACKIE JENSEN

Jackie Jensen won the 1958 AL MVP.  That's all I really have to say to explain why he made it.  It is very hard to pass up a player who won the league MVP award.  Jensen was a terrific all-around athlete who also played football in college.  He came up with the Yankees, who really did not have a place to play him and moved him to the Senators who later shipped him to the Red Sox.  It was with the Red Sox that Jensen really shined as he had several great seasons in a row.  He regularly drove in more than 100 runs, he was a great defensive player who won a Gold Glove, and he was a 20/20 man when such a thing was nearly unheard of.  Jensen was a two-time All Star with the Red Sox and won the MVP in 1958 when he hit .286/.396/.535 with 35 home runs and a league-leading 122 RBIs.  He followed that up with a terrific 1959 season when he again led the league in RBIs and had his second 20/20 season.  He then retired for a season due to his fear of flying before coming back in 1961.  He retired for good after that season.

CENTER FIELD - JIM PIERSALL

In a move that made sense to almost no one, especially Piersall himself, the Red Sox decided to try to turn him into a shortstop his first full season.  Piersall had never played shortstop before, he had always been an outfielder, and took this to mean Boston did not want him around.  When he moved back to center field, he became the player he was expected to be.  Piersall was a gifted defensive outfielder who should have won a lot more than the two Gold Gloves he won.  He was also a pretty decent hitter.  He had his best season with the Red Sox in 1956 when he hit .293/.350/.449 with 14 home runs, 87 RBIs, and a league-leading 40 doubles.  Piersall of course suffered from some mental health issues that made him practically a household name, but it is often forgotten that he was a pretty good player.

LEFT FIELD - TED WILLIAMS

The Splendid Splinter continued his quest to become the Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived throughout the 1950's, despite the fact that he missed most of two seasons due to flying combat missions in the Korean War.  His power declined somewhat, due to a series of injuries, but he had one of the greatest batting eyes in the game.  He had an incredible season in 1957 when he was 38 years old when he nearly hit .400 for the second time in his career.  He hit .388/.526/.731, all of which led the league, with 38 home runs and 87 RBIs.  Yet he finished just second in the AL MVP vote.  The next season he became the oldest player to win a batting title with a .328 mark.  Williams was the biggest draw on the team for most of his career, but this was especially true in the 1950's when the rest of the team was mostly mediocre.  There is just no contest here.    

STARTING PITCHER - MEL PARNELL

Parnell's best seasons were behind him by the time that the 1950's rolled around, but he had several more good seasons.  He was an 18 game winner in both 1950 and 1951 while continuing to put up decent numbers.  He had his last great season in 1953 when he was 21-8 with a 3.06 ERA and 136 strikeouts in 241 innings.  Unfortunately, arm injuries ruined his career from there and he won just 12 games over the next three seasons.  He pitched a no-hitter in his last season in 1956.  He was still one of the top starting pitchers on the team in the 1950's.  There is no telling what his career numbers may have looked like had he not broken down so young.

STARTING PITCHER - MICKEY MCDERMOTT

One of the hardest throwers in the game in the 1950's, the only problem with McDermott was that he never really knew where the ball was going.  He racked up a lot of strikeouts, but also walked far too many hitters, which is why it took so long before he really started to produce for the team.  He was used mostly in relief in 1950, but gradually became more of a starter.  He had a breakthrough season in 1953, going 18-10 with a 3.01 ERA and 92 strikeouts versus 109 walks.  For the Red Sox, he was 48-34 with a 3.80 ERA in 773.2 innings.  After his great 1953 season, he was traded to the Senators for Jensen.  He never had a season quite like his 1953 season and started to decline due to off-the-field reasons.

STARTING PITCHER - FRANK SULLIVAN

Sullivan is most likely the top starting pitcher for the Red Sox during the 1950's.  He came up in 1953 for a brief showing and was a 15-game winner the next season.  He had a breakout season in 1955, leading the league in wins with an 18-13 record and a 2.91 ERA.  He also led the league in games started and innings pitched and notched 129 strikeouts.  He was an All Star in 1955 and 1956.  He was 14-11 with a terrific 2.73 ERA in 1957.  Sullivan's record might have been even better had the Red Sox been a better team in his prime.  For the Red Sox, he was 90-80 with a 3.47 ERA in 1,732 innings and struck out 821 batters.  He declined toward the end of the decade and was traded after the 1960 season.

STARTING PITCHER - TOM BREWER

Tom Brewer spent his entire eight-season career with the Red Sox.  Like Sullivan above, Brewer's record might have been more impressive if Boston had been a better team during his career.  He had a great season in 1956 when he was 19-9 with a 3.50 ERA while striking out 127 and walking 112 in 244.1 innings.  It was his only All Star season and he also received some MVP votes.  For his career, Brewer was 91-82 with a 4.00 ERA.  He struck out 733 and walked 669 in 1,509.1 innings.  He was also a surprisingly good defensive pitcher who led the league in putouts twice, assists twice, and range factor twice.

RELIEF PITCHER - ELLIS KINDER

After a couple of impressive seasons primarily as a starter, "Old Folks" was shifted into the bullpen in the early 1950's.  From 1951 through 1953, Kinder was one of the best relievers in the game.  He was 11-2 with a 2.55 ERA and led the league in games (63), and saves (16) in 1951.  He finished seventh in the MVP vote that season.  He finished 41 games while starting two and struck out 84 and walked 46 in 127 innings.  He was 5-6 the next season, but with a 2.58 ERA.  Then, in 1953, Kinder had a terrific season in the bullpen, pitching in 69 games, all in relief, with a 10-6 record, 1.85 ERA, and a ML-leading 27 saves.  He was a little more ordinary his last two seasons in Boston but still pretty decent.  He saved 93 games in his Red Sox career.

PITCHER - IKE DELOCK

If not for seven games with the Orioles in the second half of the 1963 season, Delock would have been one of the more obscure players in my Loyalty and Longevity series.  Delock spent the rest of his career with the Red Sox, mostly as a starter, but with a couple of seasons as a reliever as well.  He was primarily a reliever in 1956 when he was 13-7 with a 4.21 ERA, 105 strikeouts and 80 walks in 128.1 innings.  He picked up nine saves.  Then from 1958 to 1959, he was one of the better starting pitchers on the team.  He was 11-6 with a 2.95 ERA in 1959.  For his Red Sox career, Delock was 83-72 with a 4.01 ERA.  He struck out 661 batters.

1991-2016: All-Underrated Team: Right Field

I have been watching baseball for 26 years now. In that time, I have been obsessed with under-the-radar players. These are my picks for an All-Underrated Team. I have picked one player for each position and their best season.

I still do not understand how Trot Nixon was never an All Star.  For a three-year period from 2001 through 2003, Nixon was a terrific player with a 128 OPS+ and hit 79 home runs.  His best season though was undoubtedly 2003.  He was not an All Star and did not even receive any MVP votes despite a fantastic season. 

In 2003, Nixon hit .306/.396/.578 for a .975 OPS.  Those are MVP type numbers.  He was seventh in on-base percentage, fifth in slugging percentage, and fourth in OPS.  He was third in OPS+, actually higher than the MVP winner Alex Rodriguez.  He hit 28 home runs and drove in 87 runs for a team that won the Wild Card.  It was a 5.1 WAR season.  He was a decent right-fielder with good range as well.  It was the best season of Nixon's career.

What worked against Nixon was his inability to hit against left-handers and the fact that he played for a team that was so loaded with powerful hitters that Nixon was almost an afterthought.  Nixon's slash line was just .219/.296/.375 against lefties.  Nixon also was on the same team as Nomar Garciaparra, Manny Ramirez, David Ortiz, Kevin Millar, Jason Varitek, Bill Mueller, and Johnny Damon.  Despite all of that thunder, Nixon was tied for third in home runs, fifth in RBIs, and third in average, OBP, and slugging. 

In the postseason, Nixon was a difference maker.  He hit a walk-off home run to win Game 3 of the ALDS against the Athletics which shifted momentum to the Red Sox after the team was down two games to none.  Boston went on to win the ALDS series and play the Yankees in the ALCS.  Nixon hit .333 with three home runs and five RBIs in the ALCS loss to the Yankees.

Unfortunately, 2003 was Nixon's last great season.  Injuries took their toll on his career from then on, but he still had some good moments.  He played with Boston through 2006 before bouncing around a little after that.

Loyalty and Longevity Pt. 7: Rico Petrocelli

In this series, I look at players who played their entire Major League career with the Red Sox, as long as said Major League career lasted at least ten years.

Rico Petrocelli spent 13 seasons with the Red Sox, mostly split between shortstop and third base.  He might have played longer, but after two seasons of declining numbers, he was given his release late in Spring Training prior to the 1977 season.  Petrocelli was a rare shortstop who could hit for a lot of power.

Signed as an amateur free agent in 1961, Petrocelli played a couple of seasons in the minors before making the Major Leagues for good in 1965.  He played one game in Boston in 1963 and had a double and an RBI in four at-bats.  His power showed up right away as he hit 19 home runs in AA ball in 1963.  He had some trouble making contact, but was also a very good defensive shortstop.

Petrocelli's rookie season in 1965 saw him hit .232/.309/.412 with 13 home runs and 33 RBIs.  Decent numbers, particularly his power numbers, for a shortstop at the time period.  He hit more home runs (18), doubles (20), and drove in more runs (59) in 1966, but his on-base percentage and slugging percentage both declined.  

It was the Impossible Dream season of 1967 that saw Petrocelli rise to stardom.  He was an All Star for the first time in his career as he hit .259/.330/.420 with 17 home runs and 66 RBIs.  His impressive year also led to him receiving some MVP votes.  He hit just .200 in the World Series against the Cardinals, but did hit two home runs in Game 6 which Boston won 8-4 to stay alive and take the Series to seven games.  His numbers in 1968 declined to .234/.292/.374 and 12 home runs.

If 1967 was his rise to stardom, 1969 saw him become an elite player for a few seasons.  He had a monster year hitting .297/.403/.589 with a then-American League record 40 home runs for a shortstop.  He also drove in 97 runs, hit 32 doubles, and walked 98 times.  He was an All Star for the second time and finished seventh in the MVP vote.  He might have been higher if Boston was in contention.  He had another good season in 1970 with a slash line of .261/.334/.473 and slugged 29 home runs.  He drove in a career-high 103 runs.  1971 was his last season as a shortstop and his last elite season.  He hit 28 home runs and drove in 89 runs with a line of .251/.354/.461.

Boston acquired future Hall of Fame shortstop Luis Aparicio prior to the 1972 season and moved Petrocelli to third.  As good a defensive shortstop as he was, he was even better at third and holds a lifetime .970 fielding percentage as a third-baseman, sixth highest of all-time.  He continued to be a steady performer at the plate for the next three seasons, hitting around 15 home runs each year , but he was no longer the elite player he was 1969-1971.  

The 1975 season saw the first major signs of decline as Petrocelli hit just .239/.310/.333 with just seven home runs.  But he performed quite well in the postseason, hitting .308 with four RBIs.  In his final season in 1976 he hit .213 with three home runs and lost his job at third to Butch Hobson.  He was released prior to the 1977 season.

Petrocelli's single-season home run record for AL shortstops lasted for many years.  He hit .251/.332/.420 for his career with 210 home runs and 773 RBIs.  He spent his entire career with the Red Sox and later managed in the minor league system.

My Second 2017 Topps Hanger Pack

I bought another hanger pack recently.  My success was not nearly as impressive this time around:

I am a little annoyed with Topps's obsession with Henry Owens, who played in just five games with the Red Sox in 2016 and was not good.  Benintendi, on the other hand, is a player that I am looking forward to getting more of as the year goes on.  He is an early favorite for the American League Rookie of the Year after an impressive showing in Boston late in the season, which included becoming the youngest Red Sox player to homer in the postseason.

Red Sox With No Cards: 2009

We are entering into some rough territory over the next few years.  There was a lot of turnover for the Red Sox as they struggled to contend.  A lot of these players played only a handful of games, but still, there are some reasonably well-known players here.

BRIAN ANDERSON

Once a top prospect with the White Sox, Anderson was never able to live up to the high expectations.  He was drafted 15th overall in the 2003 Draft and made his Major League debut with the White Sox just two years later.  He played his first full season in 2006 but hit a disappointing .225/.290/.359 with eight home runs and 33 RBIs.  He was injured in 2007 and then hit just .232/.272/.436 in 2008.  He started the 2009 season with the White Sox before being traded to the Red Sox for Mark Kotsay.  With the Red Sox he hit .294/.381/.647 in 21 plate appearances over 21 games.  He hit two home runs and drove in five runs while being used as a spare outfielder.  He was not re-signed after the season and attempted to resurrect his career as a pitcher for a number of teams, but he never made it back to the Major Leagues.

FERNANDO CABRERA

Cabrera was a 10th round pick by the Indians in the 1999 Draft out of Puerto Rico.  He pitched exclusively out of relief for his career and, after a couple of impressive showings late in the season in 2004 and 2005, he made it into 51 games in 2006.  He was 3-3 with a 5.19 ERA, but he struck out 71 in 60.2 innings.  He walked 32.  He continued to strike out more than a batter an inning for the rest of his career, but also walked too many and had high ERAs.  In 2009, Cabrera was in his first season with the Red Sox, but he spent most of the season in the minors.  He was 0-3 with a 1.71 ERA and 22 saves in Pawtucket and pitched in just six games for Boston.  He was 0-0 with an 8.44 ERA while striking out eight and walking four in 5.2 innings.  He pitched in one game for Boston the next year before moving on.  Cabrera does have minor league cards with the Red Sox.

JOEY GATHRIGHT

Joey Gathright's biggest weapon was his speed.  The outfielder stole more than 20 bases three times in his career despite the fact that he was rarely a regular player for any team.  He did not hit much, did not get on base enough to make up for the fact that he did not hit, and he had next to no power.  But he was fast so he continued to get work.  Gathright came up with the Devil Rays and played there for a few seasons before being traded to the Royals in 2006.  He started the 2009 season with the Cubs before being traded to the Orioles.  Boston purchased him from the Orioles in August and utilized him as a late-inning pinch-runner and reserve outfielder.  He made it into 17 games for Boston with just 17 plate appearances.  He picked up five hits and a stolen base.  Gathright was used much the way Dave Roberts was in 2004 for the postseason.  He was on the roster and appeared in one game.  He stole a base and scored a run.  Gathright did not appear in the Majors again until he returned to Boston in 2011.  

ENRIQUE GONZALEZ

The Venezuelan right-hander Gonzalez was very successful in the minor leagues and was a top pitching prospect for the Diamondbacks when he was called up to the Majors in 2006.  He was 3-7 with a 5.67 ERA for Arizona that season, starting 18 of his 22 games.  He struck out 66 and walked 34 in 106.1 innings his rookie season.  He never started another Major League game though and only pitched in more than 10 games once the rest of his career.  Gonzalez spent most of the 2009 season in Pawtucket.  He was 8-11 with a 5.12 ERA for the PawSox.  He made it into just two games for Boston and was 0-0 with a 4.91 ERA in 3.2 innings.  He struck out one and walked two.  The next season he appeared in 18 games for the Tigers and had a reasonably impressive 3.81 ERA.  He played one more year for the Tigers.  He does have a card with Pawtucket.

ADAM LaROCHE

The only player who can be said to be any type of star from this post is Adam LaRoche.  LaRoche came up with the Braves in 2004 and hit more than 20 home runs in a season eight times.  He also played with the Pirates, Diamondbacks, Nationals, and White Sox during his career.  LaRoche started the 2009 season with the Pirates and was hitting .247/.329/.441 with 12 home runs when he was traded to the Red Sox in late July.  Boston was having some injury issues and needed some insurance at first base and gave up minor leaguers Argenis Diaz and Hunter Strickland.  He played in just six games with Boston before being traded to the Braves for Casey Kotchman.  LaRoche did hit a home run and two doubles with the Red Sox and hit .263/.263/.526.  He went on to hit 12 home runs for the Braves over the next two months and had his best seasons yet to come.  In 2012 he won a Silver Slugger and a Gold Glove while hitting 33 home runs.  LaRoche retired prior to the 2016 season with 255 career home runs.

BILLY TRABER

Like Brian Anderson, Billy Traber was a former first-round draft choice.  He was the 16th overall pick by the Mets in 2000.  Traber was part of the return the Indians received when they sent Roberto Alomar to the Mets before the 2002 season.  Traber made his Major League debut in 2003 and was 6-9 with a 5.24 ERA in 33 games.  Unfortunately he was injured the entire 2004 season which stunted his development.  He bounced around after that, playing for the Nationals and Yankees before appearing in just one game with the Red Sox in 2009.  The southpaw came on in relief and pitched 3.2 innings, giving up five runs while walking and striking out one during a 13-7 loss to the Yankees.  It was Traber's last Major League appearance.  Traber does have a card with Pawtucket.

GIL VELAZQUEZ

Velazquez is one of those super-aggravating players with no cards despite showing up in multiple years for the Red Sox.  Granted, he only played in nine games over the two seasons, but still.  I talked about him at length in the 2008 post here.  Velazquez played in six games in 2009, but only had three plate appearances.  He walked once and did not register a hit, giving him a strange-looking .000/.333/.000 slash line.  He appeared in four games at short and two at third.  He made one error, had three putouts and three assists.  Velazquez appeared with the Angels and Diamondbacks later on.

CHRIS WOODWARD

Chris Woodward was approaching the end of his 12-year career when he was selected off waivers from the Mariners in August of 2009.  Woodward was primarily a utility infielder throughout his career and had a decent season for the Blue Jays in 2002.  Woodward also played for the Mets and Braves during his career.  He started the 2009 season with the Mariners and played in 20 games before he was placed on waivers.  Boston picked him up to be a utility infielder and he played in 13 games, six at second, four at short, and three at third.  He only picked up one hit in 12 at-bats though and had another odd-looking slash line of .083/.313/.083.  He appeared in just a handful of games over the next two seasons with the Mariners and Blue Jays.

As mentioned, Adam LaRoche is the only player from this group approaching stardom.  I understand how he was skipped as his Red Sox career lasted only six games before he was on the move again. Joey Gathright probably had the biggest impact of the players here as he made it to the postseason roster.  Based on that, Gathright is probably the player I would have most wanted to see get a card.

One-Card Wonder Pt. 39: Kevin Jarvis

I have mentioned before that Topps seems to find one outside-the-box choice for the Red Sox almost every year for the Update set.  Players like Daniel Bard in 2013 (2 games), Carlos Peguero in 2015 (4 games), and Kelly Johnson in 2014 (traded to the Orioles at the end of August) are all odd choices for inclusion.  Not to say I am upset about their inclusion, well maybe Bard who I think should have been replaced by Andrew Miller who never got a Boston Red Sox card even though he was one of the team's top relievers early that year.  The weirdest one for 2006 was one of the weirdest ones of all time.

Kevin Jarvis appeared in just four games for the Red Sox in 2006.  He started the season with the Diamondbacks and appeared in just five games for them.  He was 0-1 in five games for Arizona, starting one, and had an 11.91 ERA in 11.1 innings.  He was sent to the Red Sox at the August trading deadline as part of a conditional deal.  He started three of the four games he pitched in for Boston at a time when the Red Sox starting rotation was in shambles as the team was desperately trying to stay in contention.  It did not really work out.  Jarvis was slightly better for Boston, pitching 16.2 innings with a 4.86 ERA.  He struck out seven and walked six.

Jarvis was also an odd pick because he never really had much success in his Major League career, which lasted 12 years.  His best season was 2001 with the Padres when he was 12-11 with a 4.79 ERA, but he led the league in home runs allowed that season.  That was one of only two seasons he had a winning record (he was 1-0 in 2004) and one of only two seasons he won more than four games (he was 8-9 in 1996).  And it is not as if he has primarily been a reliever.  He started 118 of his 187 career games.

Topps's decision to include Kevin Jarvis in the 2006 Topps Update set was definitely a bizarre one, but as someone who wants to see as many Red Sox players as possible on cardboard, it was a welcome one.

2017 Topps Hanger Pack

Well, I bought my first 2017 cards.  I was at Walmart and bought one of those $9.99 hanger packs.  I did not want to spend a lot of money, but I wanted a reasonable chance at some Red Sox cards.  

I did pretty well.  Of course they were all base, but five cards out of the hanger pack is a pretty impressive showing.  The second card I pulled was the Jackie Bradley Jr. card, a good sign for the rest of the pack, and hopefully for the year.  The only other standard base card was Dustin Pedroia.  The last three are all League Leaders cards.  Ortiz led the league in RBIs, Porcello in wins, and the Betts is an odd one.  Betts led the league in at-bats and total bases, but this card shows him as second in the batting race.  I'm not sure why Topps did that, he was .02 behind leader Jose Altuve, so he was not really all that close.  This was a pretty good showing.  I will be buying some more, but not a ton.

Highly Subjective and Completely Arbitrary

Recently, I came across Brian's blog Highly Subjective and Completely Arbitrary.  Brian is a Twins fan and he was showing off some boxes of cards from various teams along with a few random cards.  One of those cards caught my eye and I contacted Brian to start a trade.  Here is the package he sent:

1.  1979 Topps Jim Rice/George Foster.  Rice and Foster led their respective leagues in home runs in 1978.  Foster hit 40, Rice hit 46.  Rice was in the midst of the season that largely led to his induction into the Hall of Fame as he accumulated 406 total bases, an insanely high number.

2.  1990 Bowman Mike Rochford.  This was the last card I needed for this team set.  Rochford pitched in eight games over three seasons with the Red Sox and was 0-1 with a 9.58 ERA.  He struck out two and walked nine in 10.1 innings.

3.  2015 Leaf Heroes of Baseball Pedro Martinez.  This is the last card I needed for this set.  I love this set, just some nice-looking cards, despite the lack of an MLB license.

4.  2016 Donruss The Prospects Statline Yoan Moncada.  I am glad that Moncada was at least able to play a little bit in the Majors with the Red Sox.  It is disappointing that he was traded, though I look forward to Chris Sale pitching for Boston.

5.  2016 Topps Gypsy Queen Autographs Henry Owens.  Owens needs to show he can be a Major Leaguer this year.  I think it is his last chance in Boston, and that might not even be true with the number of left-handed starting pitchers ahead of him on the depth chart.

6.  2016 Bowman's Best Mirror Image Yoan Moncada/Jose Altuve.  Moncada's Red Sox numbers include 20 plate appearances over eight games.  He hit just .211/.250/.263 with a double and an RBI.  He struck out 12 times.

7.  2014 Topps 1989 Mini Dustin Pedroia.  Pedroia is the senior member of the team now, and as the next two posts will show, he is picking up steam in my collection.

8.  2016 Bowman's Best Top Prospects Rafael Devers.  After Benintendi graduates from prospect status, Devers will take over as the team's top prospect.  He has hit 29 home runs over three seasons in the minors so far.  He has impressive power.

9.  1996 Select Certified Jose Canseco.  Canseco is sneaking up on 100 cards in my collection.  This is #93.  Canseco was in the midst of one of his best seasons in 1996 when he went down with an injury.  He hit .289/.400/.589 with 28 home runs and 82 RBIs, despite missing the entire last month of the season.

10.  2016 Topps Bunt Nomar Garciaparra.  I am slowly adding these Bunt cards to my collection.  Somehow I completely missed out on them last year.

11.  2016 Topps Bunt Henry Owens.  Owens is getting quite large in my collection, which will be annoying if he never amounts to anything.

12.  2016 Topps Bunt Roger Clemens.  Clemens may finally make it into the Hall of Fame next year.

13.  2016 Topps Bunt Ted Williams.  A fairly typical photo of Williams here.

14.  2016 Topps Bunt Wade Boggs.  Boggs was my favorite player when I first started watching baseball.  He finally had his number retired last year by the Red Sox.

15.  2016 Topps Bunt Dustin Pedroia.  At this point in his career, Pedroia needs a few more seasons like 2016 to start to look like a lock for the Hall of Fame.  His numbers currently are .301/.366/.445 with 132 home runs, 1,683 hits, and four Gold Gloves.

16.  1953 Bowman Color Hoot Evers.  This is the card that started the trade.  This is my first 1953 Bowman card.  After several impressive seasons with the Tigers, Evers was traded to the Red Sox after one game in 1952.  It was the same deal that sent George Kell to the Red Sox and Johnny Pesky to the Tigers.  He hit .262/.318/.429 with 14 home runs and 59 RBIs.  He declined further in 1953 and was exposed to waivers and claimed by the Giants.  He never played as well as he had with the Tigers.

Thanks for the trade Brian!  I am still working on finding more cards for you.

The Jason Varitek Quest for 1,000: 912-913

The Jason Varitek quest continues and includes another Tek variation and another autograph.  Pretty much the same as the last Varitek update.  The Tek card is the Tidal Diffractor and is my eighth Varitek card from the High Tek set.  It will never come close to the 1998 Tek set for my Sandy Alomar Jr. collection, but there is a nice handful of these.  The second card is the blue variation of the Silver Signature and I really like this card.  It is serial-numbered to 20 and features a great photo and a silver signature.  It is a very impressive card.

So this brings me to 913 Jason Varitek cards.  87 to go.

Red Sox in Cooperstown Pt. 29: Tony Perez

TONY PEREZ
Years in Boston: 1980-1982 (.266/.318/.443, 40 home runs, 175 RBIs, 126 runs, 289 hits)
Best Year in Boston: 1980 (.275/.320/.467, 25 home runs, 105 RBIs, 73 runs, 161 hits)

Tony Perez had a long 23-year career.  He spent 16 of those years with the Cincinnati Reds and that is the team with whom he will be forever identified.  His first 13 seasons and his last three were spent with the Reds, book-ending seven seasons with the Expos, Red Sox, and Phillies.  He rose to prominence with the Reds and was a key member of the Big Red Machine teams that won the 1975 and 1976 World Championships.  He was named to seven All Star teams during his career, all of which were with the Reds.  Of course, this post is about his time with the Red Sox.

After three decent seasons with the Expos, Tony Perez signed a free agent contract to join the Boston Red Sox in November of 1979.  His time with Boston was the only time he played in the American League.  The Red Sox had an opening at first base after Bob Watson, who had been acquired to take over for the traded George Scott, signed as a free agent with the Yankees.  Perez was about to turn 38 early in the 1980 season, but he still had something left in the tank, at least at first.

Perez spent the vast majority of the 1980 season at first base, with just a dozen games at designated hitter.  He was never a very good defensive first-baseman.  He did not have a ton of range, and he made ten errors in 1980.  Nevertheless, Boston already had Carl Yastrzemski and Jim Rice splitting time at designated hitter.  Yaz was older than Perez and nearing the end of his illustrious career.  But Perez was not acquired for his defensive skills.  He was a hitter, plain and simple.

His 1980 season was his last good season.  He hit 25 home runs, his most since 1974 and drove in 105 runs, his most since 1975.  He also clubbed 31 doubles and three triples for a .467 slugging percentage, his highest since 1973.  He hit a decent .275 with a .320 on-base percentage.  He had lost a step though and led the league in grounding into double plays.  He even received some MVP votes, though he finished 22nd, though much of that may have been because the team was never really in contention and finished fifth in their division.

Unfortunately, his next two seasons were not nearly as good.  In the strike-shortened 1981 season, Perez played in 84 of the 108 games and spent about a third of that time at DH.  He hit just .252/.310/.395 with nine home runs and 39 RBIs.  His legs were done as he managed just 11 doubles, though he still had three triples.  The following year, he played in just 69 games, primarily at DH, with just two games at first.  His hitting improved somewhat, his slash line was .260/.326/.444, but he hit just six home runs and drove in 31 runs.  After the season, he was released.  Having both him and Yastrzemski still was superfluous.  Neither player could play much in the field.

Perez was not done though, despite being 41 years old the next season.  He hooked on with the Phillies for a year before returning to the Reds for three more seasons.  He never played more than 91 games in any of those four seasons and never hit more than six home runs.  He was clearly coming to the end of the road.

Tony Perez was first eligible for the Hall of Fame in 1992 and received 50% of the vote.  It took him nine years to gain election to the Hall of Fame.  He was a borderline candidate.  He drove in a lot of runs (1,652), but only hit 379 career home runs and hit .279/.341/.463, decent numbers, but not overwhelming.  There was also the fact that the only category he ever led the league in was grounding into double plays, once.  Perez was a big-time hitter for a dynastic Reds team, but was not really one of the greatest players in the league for more than a couple of seasons.  He got in though, and that is what counts.  Despite a good 1980 season, Perez's time in Boston is mostly irrelevant to his Hall status.

Your 1981 Red Sox Pt. 6: Steve Crawford

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

A wave of young pitchers were starting to find their way onto the Red Sox roster in the early 1980's.  The team had a terrific crop of young pitchers in Bruce Hurst, Bob Ojeda, John Tudor, Dennis Boyd, and Roger Clemens, among others, over the next several years.  One of the earliest pitchers to make the leap was Steve Crawford, who was not at the same level as the earlier mentioned names.

Crawford was signed as an amateur free agent in 1978.  He moved quickly through the minors and made his Major League debut in September of 1980, appearing in six games including four starts.  He was a fairly impressive 2-0 with a 3.62 ERA in 32.1 innings.  He started the 1981 season in the starting rotation after his encouraging debut and spent the entire season in Boston.

He started the season in the starting rotation and pitched well in his first start of the season, throwing eight innings, giving up just two unearned runs while striking out five and walking one.  He took the loss in a 5-1 game to Jim Palmer and the Orioles.  After that, he had a string of mostly less-than-impressive starts.  He was 0-5 with a 4.96 ERA when the players' strike started in June.  The team lost confidence in Crawford and he barely played when play resumed, making one start and two relief appearances in low-leverage situations.  Crawford finished the season 0-5 with a 4.99 ERA, striking out 29 and walking 18 in 57.2 innings.

The 1982 season saw Crawford return to Pawtucket for more seasoning and he appeared in just five games at the Major League level.  He spent the entire 1983 season in the minors.  When he returned to the Majors to stay in 1984, he was a relief pitcher and he had a few decent seasons, including leading the team in saves in 1985 (12).  Crawford was with the Red Sox through the 1987 season and was 19-16 with a 4.15 ERA and 17 saves.  He struck out 195 and walked 126 in 382 innings.  Crawford was never really a star with the Red Sox, despite having impressive stuff.  He had his most success out of the bullpen in the mid-1980's.  He was a member of the 1986 American League champions.

He left the team as a free agent in May of 1988 but did not play in the Majors the entire season.  Crawford re-emerged with the Royals in 1989 and played a couple of seasons.  He had a good season in 1989 before struggling again in 1990 and 1991.  He retired after the 1991 season.  

Failed Prospects Pt. 17: Seung-Jun Song

In the late 1990's/early 2000's, Red Sox general manager Dan Duquette seemed to be obsessed with finding low-cost, high-reward pitching from Asia, in particular from the Korean league.  Seung-Jun Song was supposed to be the crown jewel of the foray into the Asian market.  Unfortunately, only Tomokazu Ohka was able to have any kind of success in the U.S., and most of that came after being traded to Montreal.

Song was signed as an international free agent in 1999 before he played professionally in Korea.  He started his professional career at the same time that most players his age were starting college.  He was impressive from the start.  In the rookie league, Song was 5-5 with a 2.30 ERA and a 3.05 K/BB rate and 10 strikeouts per nine innings.

He rose through the ranks fairly quickly.  With Low Class-A Lowell in 2000, he was 5-2 with a 2.60 ERA.  He struck out 93 and walked just 20 in 72.2 innings.  Across two levels in 2001, he was 8-4 with a 1.90 ERA.  He had a 3.75 K/BB rate and a 9.9 K/9.

Prior to the 2002 season, Song appeared on Baseball America's Top 100 prospect list at #60.  It was the first time he was ranked on the list.  Song had also moved to the top of the team's top prospect ranking.  Unfortunately, he struggled for the first time in 2002.  It was not a huge deal.  He was still just 22 years old, but he started out the season at Double A Trenton and was 7-7 with a 4.39 ERA.  However, his K/BB and K/9 rates were close enough to his previous numbers that the increase in ERA was not much of a concern.

At the trading deadline in 2002, Song was packaged along with fellow Korean Sun-Woo Kim to Montreal for Cliff Floyd.  Duquette was not very good at building up and retaining a decent farm system and wanted another bat for the stretch run.  Ultimately the move did not pay off.  Floyd was a good hitter, but Boston still fell short of the postseason and allowed Floyd to walk after the season.

Song pitched in just one game in Montreal's system the rest of the way in 2002.  He had a good season in 2003, making it to Triple A for the first time and going 12-4 with a 3.08 ERA.  Unfortunately, that was the last of his success.  His career stalled after that due to injuries and ineffectiveness.  In 2004 he was 4-2 with a 4.78 ERA over three levels.  He had a little more success in 2005, but was moving backwards.  He last appeared in the U.S. in 2006 in the Royals system.  After that season he returned to Korea where he has pitched ever since.  He is still active in Korea.

Seung-Jun Song never appeared in the Major Leagues.  He moved through the Red Sox system quickly and looked to be ready to make the leap to the Majors after the 2003 season.  But injuries derailed his promising career.  It is a shame.    

The Red Sox and the Rule 5 Draft

The Rule 5 Draft is one of the baffling events during the Major League season.  Held at the end of the Winter Meetings, teams can select a player who has not been placed on the 40 man roster of another team within three or four years after signing their first contract, depending on their age at the time.  Yes, it is confusing.  The catch is that the selecting team has to keep that player on their Major League roster for the entire season in order to keep him, or they must offer him back to the original team.  The original team can elect not to take him back or work out a trade.

There have not been a lot of really good players who get a chance due to being selected in the Rule 5 Draft.  Roberto Clemente is the best example, being selected by the Pirates from the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1954.  I'm sure the Dodgers want that one back.  Johan Santana, Kelly Gruber, Jose Bautista, Fernando Vina, and Shane Victorino are some other players who have done well since being selected.  Boston does not have nearly as much success.  In fact, very few players Boston has picked up in the Rule 5 Draft have had much of any success in the Majors.

Since I started watching the team, only four players selected by Boston in the Rule 5 Draft have played in the Majors with the Red Sox.  Boston lost Wil Ledezma, Ryan Pressly, and Josh Fields, who had some success in the Majors, over the years.  Looking back prior to that, there really were not any big name players selected either.

And now, counting down the best players to make it to the Majors selected by the Red Sox since 1991, based on their Major League success:

5.  Matt White

The Red Sox had three picks for some reason in the 2002 Rule 5 Draft.  Their first pick was Javier Lopez (the reliever), who they returned and then re-acquired a few years later.  Their second pick was White from the Indians, who was apparently injured the entire 2002 season.  He did make it into three games with the Red Sox in 2003, but had an 0-1 record and a 27.00 ERA.  He was later traded to the Mariners for Sheldon Fulse, who never made it to the Majors.  He didn't do much better for Seattle and was returned to the Indians, as per the Rule 5 rules.  White was selected again in the 2003 Rule 5 Draft, this time by the Rockies who also ended up returning him to Cleveland.

4.  Adrian Brown

Brown was kind of an unusual choice for the Draft.  He had been a longtime Major Leaguer with the Pirates and had a decent season in 2000.  But after 2002, he was released by the Pirates and signed by the Rays, who failed to put him on their 40 man roster.  So the Red Sox selected him as their third of three picks they had in the Draft.  Brown was actually returned to the Rays, released by the Rays, and signed by the Red Sox in the span of three days in Spring Training, which allowed Boston to send him to the minors, where he spent most of the season.  Brown was an All Star at Pawtucket and eventually played in nine games with Boston, hitting .200/.250/.200 with two stolen bases.  He bounced around after that and was never a full-time regular again.

3.  Adam Stern

Stern was a personal favorite of mine since he was a fellow Nebraska Cornhusker, though he is originally from Canada.  Stern had been in the Braves system and had a decent season in Greenville, yet the Braves did not add him to their 40 man roster.  Stern spent the entire 2005 season in Boston, either on the active roster or on the disabled list and ended up appearing in 36 games, hitting .133/.188/.333, though he did get his first home run and stole a base.  That is obviously the problem with the Draft, Stern was clearly not ready and it likely stunted his growth as a player, because he never played more than 10 games in the Majors again.  Stern played in just 10 games with Boston in 2006 and was traded to the Orioles for Javy Lopez (the catcher).    

2.  Lenny DiNardo

The most likely players to be selected in the Rule 5 Draft are relief pitchers, particularly lefties, and DiNardo is a good example.  Selected in the 2003 Draft from the Mets, DiNardo appeared in 22 games over the course of the season, though he was also injured for a time.  He struck out 21 and walked 12 in 27.2 innings and had a 4.23 ERA.  He made it through the season with Boston, was granted free agency and re-signed, and was able to go back to the minors in 2005.  He made it back to Boston later that season and had a 1.84 ERA in eight games, striking out 15 and walking five in 14.2 innings.  He had a rough season in 2006 though, going 1-2 with a 7.85 ERA and a significantly decreased strikeout rate.  DiNardo was reasonably successful with Oakland in 2007 when he was 8-10 with a 4.11 ERA.  He played another season for Oakland and one for the Royals.  

1.  Vaughn Eshelman

It is pretty close between Eshelman and DiNardo for the title here.  DiNardo likely had the best individual season and had the longest Major League career, but Eshelman was ever so slightly better, mostly on the strength of his decent 1995 season.  The southpaw Eshelman was selected in the 1994 Rule 5 Draft from the Baltimore Orioles.  He won his first three Major League games in 1995, only giving up three earned runs in 18.2 innings.  It was a pretty decent start to the season.  He finished the season 6-3 with a 4.85 ERA.  He walked 36 and struck out 41 in 81.2 innings.  He had an identical 6-3 record in 1996, but with a 7.08 ERA.  He was mostly used in relief, making it into 29 games out of the bullpen versus ten starts.  He was then 3-3 with a 6.33 ERA in 1997, again splitting time between the rotation and bullpen.  He was left exposed in the expansion draft and was selected by the Devil Rays, but he never made it back to the Majors.

Unfortunately, the best player Boston selected in the Rule 5 Draft was immediately traded away.  Marwin Gonzalez was selected in the 2011 Draft from the Cubs but was traded to the Astros for someone named Marco Duarte.  Gonzalez has been with Houston ever since and has been a fairly reliable utility player.  In 2015, he hit .279/.317/.442 with 12 home runs and 34 RBIs.  Duarte, who had been a very good pitcher in the Mexican League, never made it to the Majors.  

This season, Boston's Rule 5 selection was Josh Rutledge, an infielder who has already played for Boston the last couple of seasons.  He is expected to be another utility infielder option along with Brock Holt and Marco Hernandez.  They also lost Justin Haley, a pitcher in Pawtucket.  There is a possibility he could be returned.

So, the Rule 5 Draft is not terribly exciting.  Certainly not historically for the Red Sox.  None of these players are household names, and none should be.  It takes a lot of luck for a player from the Rule 5 Draft to turn into a good player.  There have been a few, but Boston has not been that lucky.