Failed Prospects Pt. 9: Juan Diaz

Since I have been a fan, there have been several players with huge expectations in the Red Sox minor league system. Some of these players, such as Mo Vaughn, Nomar Garciaparra, Trot Nixon, Jon Lester, and others meet those expectations. Others are not as fortunate.

JUAN DIAZ
Juan Diaz was a Cuban undrafted free agent who signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1996. After a few years in the Dodgers system, he signed as a minor league free agent with the Red Sox in 2000. He was a very large man, with big power potential. He hit 20 or more home runs in the Red Sox minor league system for three straight years. He looked like a potential star with his massive power.

But there was a problem.

After 2001, when there was a push to find accurate birth records of immigrants from Latin American countries, it was discovered that Diaz was older than originally thought. Four years older. Immediately, Diaz's prospect status was killed. A 28 year old hitting 20 or more home runs in AAA is significantly less impressive than a 24 year old.

Diaz made the Majors briefly in 2001 with the Red Sox and did hit a home run. But that was it for him.

One-Card Wonder Pt. 9: Midre Cummings

For whatever reason, sometimes I am only able to find one card of certain players. To be considered a One-Card Wonder, a player must have been active since 1991 (when I started paying attention).

MIDRE CUMMINGS
Midre Cummings actually spent parts of two seasons with the Red Sox. Yet, he only has the 2001 Pacific card in a Red Sox uniform. No scan again, sorry. One of these days, when I open my office I will have a scanner.

Cummings was originally picked up off waivers from the Reds in 1998. During that season he played in 67 games as a backup outfielder. Then, he batted .283/.381/.475/.856. Pretty decent numbers for a backup really. He also hit five home runs and drove in 15. Nevertheless, Cummings was released during Spring Training in 1999.

In 2000, Cummings was traded by the Twins back to the Red Sox in late August for the stretch run. He batted .280/.419/.280/.699 with no extra base hits and two runs driven in.

Cummings was not a good defensive outfielder, but his ability to draw walks was valuable. Unfortunately, this was not a time when the ability to draw walks was as well-valued as now.

One-Year Wonder Pt. 10: Takashi Saito

Every once in awhile, the Red Sox pick up a veteran player for a year, or just the stretch run that was a star at one point that I become fascinated with. It's a player that is basically only a role player at that point in their career, but may show flashes of their old brilliance. It's so unusual to see them as a member of the Red Sox, that I try to find as many of their cards as possible. This series will be about some of those players.

TAKASHI SAITO
Takashi Saito was part of the Red Sox bullpen in 2009 and was one of its most consistent members. Prior to 2009, Saito played for the Dodgers and was an excellent closer for them for three years. The right-hander also had very good strikeout rates, typically well more than one strikeout per inning.

Saito came to the Red Sox, not as a closer, but as a setup man. He was part of a group of four Japanese pitchers for the Red Sox in 2009, including Daisuke Matsuzaka, Hideki Okajima, and Junichi Tazawa. Saito pitched very well, and was easily the most consistent bullpen arm.

Saito went 3-3 with a 2.43 ERA, two saves, and 52 strikeouts in 55.1 innings pitched. He gave up 50 hits and 25 walks. Saito was not re-signed after the season which was a bit of a disappointment as he continued pitching well in 2010.

Unknown Heroes Pt. 10: Alan Embree

Alan Embree made an immediate impact upon his acquisition in 2002. He was acquired in a trade with the Padres along with Andy Shibilo for Brad Baker and Dan Giese, who never really did much in the Majors. Embree however, proved to be an extremely important arm out of the bullpen for the Red Sox through the 2004 season. He was used in a variety of roles, from setup man to situational lefty to closer.

In 2002, Embree pitched to a record of 1-2 with a 2.97 ERA and 43 strikeouts in 33.1 innings. His ERA was higher and his strikeout rates were lower the next two years, but he remained a vital part of the bullpen. He was particularly impressive in the postseasons with the Red Sox. He gave up only two earned runs in 19 innings over the course of two postseasons with the Red Sox.

Embree struggled terribly in 2005 and was released. He found his way to the Yankees where he continued to struggle. He never pitched quite as well again.

Red Sox to Sign Carl Crawford?

Link.

I was a little premature when I posted about the Adrian Gonzalez trade because that looked like it could have died Sunday afternoon. So, hopefully I am not jumping the gun here, but it looks like Carl Crawford is on his way to Boston. I am thrilled. Crawford is a great defender and a great hitter. His on base skills leave a bit to be desired, but he is very fast. Hopefully Ellsbury still has a job with Boston. This could be the lineup:

CF Ellsbury
2B Pedroia
LF Crawford
3B Youkilis
1B Gonzalez
DH Ortiz
RF Drew
C Saltalamacchia
SS Scutaro

That is a scary damn lineup.

Feature: Red Sox for About 5 Minutes

A lot of players have played for the Red Sox. But there are some players that have been signed to the Red Sox that never actually played in a Major League game with them. Sometimes players are acquired in trade and immediately traded away. Sometimes players are picked up and sent to the minors, but just never make it to the Majors.

Let's look at some of these surprising players, who for about five minutes, were Boston Red Sox:

ROGER PECKINPAUGH
Roger Peckinpaugh was a great shortstop during the Dead Ball Era for the Yankees. He was even the league's MVP in 1925 when he was with the Washington Senators, though that was a few years after his very brief stint with the Red Sox. Peckinpaugh had a very good 1919 for the Yankees, hitting .305/.390/.404/.794, good numbers for a middle infielder at the time. Peckinpaugh was traded to the Red Sox as one of the better pieces the team acquired when they were trading their best players to the Yankees in the early 1920's. Peckinpaugh was acquired along with Rip Collins, Bill Piercy, Jack Quinn and $100,000.00 for Bullet Joe Bush, Sad Sam Jones, and Everett Scott in 1922. It was one of the few decent deals for the Red Sox, as Quinn was the best player from that point on. It would have looked even better had the Red Sox actually kept Peckinpaugh, but two weeks later, they shipped him off to Washington for Jumpin' Joe Dugan and Frank O'Rourke. Of course a few months into the season, the Red Sox would trade Dugan, a fine player in his own right, to the Yankees.

ROLLIE FINGERS
The story of Rollie Fingers's very brief stint with the Red Sox in 1976 is well-known. The Oakland Athletics were having money problems and owner Charles Finley was attempting to purge the team to help. Finley sold Fingers, one of the league's top relievers and a future Hall of Famer, along with Joe Rudi to the Red Sox for $1 million apiece. Just a few days later, Baseball Commissioner Bowie Kuhn voided the sales as "against the best interests of baseball". Fingers and Rudi were in uniform at one game, but never appeared. If they had, perhaps things would have been different. Rudi eventually played for the Red Sox in 1982, but Fingers never did.

TOM HENKE
I remember this vividly, but I cannot for the life of me find anything about what happened. I had a newspaper article from late 1992 that stated the Red Sox had signed both Henke and Andre Dawson. But the deal must have fallen through or something and Henke later signed with the Texas Rangers. I was upset because I was only 12 and I really liked Henke with the Blue Jays and was looking forward to seeing him with the Red Sox.

SAMMY SOSA, KEVIN APPIER, and JOHN WETTELAND
After the Players' Strike of 1994 began, several free agents switched teams. But later, it was decided that the free agent contracts would be voided and contract negotiations disallowed. Sammy Sosa, Kevin Appier, and John Wetteland had all signed free agent contracts with the Red Sox that were voided as a result. Link.

BOB HAMELIN
The former Rookie of the Year with the Kansas City Royals was basically washed up, but was brought to Spring Training with the Red Sox in 1999. This sometimes happens with players. He was signed with the hope of replacing some of the lost offense of Mo Vaughn. He never made it out of Spring Training with the Red Sox.

MARTY CORDOVA
See above for Bob Hamelin. Cordova was the Rookie of the Year the year after Hamelin. Cordova though, at least was able to continue in a reserve role for a number of other teams after his failed tryout with the Red Sox in 2000.

QUILVIO VERAS
The former speedster Quilvio Veras was picked up by the Red Sox in late August 2001 as a free agent after a couple of injury-plagued seasons. He played only three games in AAA Pawtucket that year due to continuing injury problems. But hey, he has a Red Sox baseball card despite not playing a single game at the Major League level with the Red Sox.

MIKE GONZALEZ
He was not a well-known player at the time, but he has had some big years out of the bullpen recently. In 2002, Gonzalez and Scott Sauerbeck were acquired by the Red Sox from Pittsburgh for Brandon Lyon and Anastacio Martinez. Sauerbeck was the big piece and Gonzalez had not yet appeared in the Majors. He was sent to AAA Pawtucket. A little more than a month later, the Pirates discovered some problems with Lyon's shoulder and the Red Sox, in order to appease them, returned Gonzalez in exchange for Lyon and Martinez as part of a larger deal that also resulted in Boston trading Freddy Sanchez and getting Jeff Suppan. This really did not work out well for Boston as Sanchez went on to become an All Star and batting champ, and neither Suppan nor Sauerbeck pitched well for Boston down the stretch. At least Lyon was included in the Curt Schilling deal.

CHARLES JOHNSON
The former All Star and great defensive catcher Charles Johnson was acquired along with Chris Narveson in a trade by the Red Sox from the Colorado Rockies for pitcher Byung Hyun Kim. It was a salary dump and Johnson was released the same day. He later found his way to Tampa Bay, but his career was basically over.

GUILLERMO MOTA and ANDY MARTE
Reliever Guillermo Mota and third-baseman Andy Marte were acquired in different trades in the offseason after 2005 and then traded away in the same deal. Mota was acquired along with Josh Beckett and Mike Lowell from Florida for Hanley Ramirez, Anibal Sanchez, Jesus Delgado, and Harvey Garcia. Marte was one of the top prospects in the game when he was traded from the Braves to the Red Sox for Edgar Renteria. Both players were packaged a short time later with Kelly Shoppach and a player to be named later for Coco Crisp, David Riske, and Josh Bard.

HEE-SEOP CHOI
Hee-Seop Choi carried a lot of hype for years in his time with the Cubs, Marlins, and Dodgers. He was supposed to be a big power hitter, but never managed to stay on the field long enough to reach his full potential. When the Dodgers tired of this, they placed him on waivers and the Red Sox took a flyer. He never made it out of AAA for Boston though.

CARLOS DELGADO
The former big-time slugger with Toronto, Florida, and New York, was signed late in the 2010 season after coming off of an injury. He began rehabbing in Pawtucket, but was injured again and never appeared in a Major League game with the Red Sox.

Hall of Fame Worthy? Pt. 8: Roger Clemens

The Hall of Fame has inducted many players who were borderline choices, and many players who deserve induction have been on the outside looking in. I want to look at some players to determine if they deserve to be in the Hall of Fame.

ROGER CLEMENS
Okay, statistically, there is no doubt that Roger Clemens should be in the Hall of Fame. The big right-hander is one of the best pitchers of all time. Hands down. His record is 354-184. He had a career 3.12 ERA, and struck out 4,672 batters. He won seven Cy Young Awards.

He did most of his damage with the Red Sox too, winning 192 games and three of his Cy Young Awards. He also pitched for the Blue Jays, Yankees, and Astros, winning at least one Cy Young Award for each team.

Statistically, he's clearly in. But will voters only consider his stats? Clemens is at the center of the ongoing steroid controversy, and with Barry Bonds, has the biggest black mark on his career because of it. Many voters will be unable or unwilling to look past that, just as they have continued to snub Mark McGwire. This year, Rafael Palmeiro, who was actually suspended for testing positive for PEDs, will be on the ballot for the first time. I will be very interested in what happens with his vote. That should help us get a clearer picture of what will happen when Roger Clemens is eligible.

THE VERDICT
He should be in, regardless of the steroid controversy.

Busts Pt. 8: Ramon Martinez

Sometimes, offseason acquisitions work out. Sometimes they don't. Sometimes, they are spectacular failures.

RAMON MARTINEZ
In their ongoing quest to find decent pitching to fill out the back end of the rotation, the Red Sox signed Pedro Martinez's older brother. Ramon Martinez was a great pitcher early in his career with the L.A. Dodgers and even won 20 games in 1990. Of course he pitched a lot of innings early in his career, so he began to pay for that as the decade wore on.

Martinez was signed to an inexpensive deal in 1999 and made four starts for the Red Sox, winning two games with a 3.05 ERA and 15 strikeouts in 20.2 innings. He looked like a pretty good bet to pitch well the next year, but he tanked.

Martinez was 32 years old in 2000, but pitched like a 40 year old. He won ten games, but lost eight and pitched to a 6.32 ERA. He struck out 89 in 127.2 innings and walked 67. He also cost the Red Sox over $6 million, big money for the time.

Martinez went to Pittsburgh the next year but he was basically washed up. His brother continued to shine for several more years though.

Failed Prospects Pt. 8: Wilton Veras

Since I have been a fan, there have been several players with huge expectations in the Red Sox minor league system. Some of these players, such as Mo Vaughn, Nomar Garciaparra, Trot Nixon, Jon Lester, and others meet those expectations. Others are not as fortunate.

WILTON VERAS
Wilton Veras was supposed to be one of the top prospects that Dan Duquette developed. It just did not work out that way. The third baseman had power potential, could hit for a decent average, and played decent defense. At least he did in the minors.

But Veras never could make the Major Leagues for long. He spent parts of two seasons in Boston and compiled a slash line of .262/.297/.340/.637. He hit two home runs and drove in 27. He also struck out 34 times and only walked 12 times in 294 plate appearances. It was this poor strike zone judgment that ultimately cost Veras a career.

Veras jumped from AA to the Majors. He could not cut it in the Majors so he was sent to AAA to get more seasoning but he was never able to develop there either. He was out of professional baseball after the 2003 season.

One-Card Wonder Pt. 8: Mark Lemke

For whatever reason, sometimes I am only able to find one card of certain players. To be considered a One-Card Wonder, a player must have been active since 1991 (when I started paying attention).

MARK LEMKE
Mark Lemke was one of my early favorite non-Red Sox players when he was with the Atlanta Braves in the early 1990's. He was a good-fielding second-baseman who did not hit much but seemed to play hard all the time. I have always liked players like that, although he was not really a good player.

Lemke came to the Red Sox in the 1998 season to keep second base warm for the prospect Donnie Sadler. Unfortunately, Lemke only played 31 games for the Red Sox before suffering a concussion in a game that kept him out the rest of the season. His career was over.

The only Red Sox card I have of Lemke is from the 1998 Online set, a great team collector set. I do not have a scan of the card though. Lemke hit .187/.232/.231/.463 for the Red Sox. He did provide good defense at second base though.

Since Lemke went down with an injury and Sadler never really developed, second base duties were mostly handled by Mike Benjamin who parlayed a decent season into a mind-boggling multi-year deal with the Pirates.

One-Year Wonder Pt. 9: Bartolo Colon

Every once in awhile, the Red Sox pick up a veteran player for a year, or just the stretch run that was a star at one point that I become fascinated with. It's a player that is basically only a role player at that point in their career, but may show flashes of their old brilliance. It's so unusual to see them as a member of the Red Sox, that I try to find as many of their cards as possible. This series will be about some of those players.

BARTOLO COLON
2005 AL Cy Young Award Winner Bartolo Colon had been experiencing some major injury problems since he won the award. In 2008, Boston took a flyer on him to see if he could help solidify the rotation. It was a low risk move. Colon was 35 and could charitably be described as hefty. He only pitched in 29 games total the previous two years.

Colon spent the first part of the year on the disabled list and rehabbing. He finally made it to Boston in the middle part of the season and pitched in only seven games for the Red Sox. Colon went 4-2 with a 3.92 ERA in those seven games, striking out 27 in 39 innings.

Colon could not stay healthy and he left the team, his Red Sox career over almost as fast as it started.

Unknown Heroes Pt. 9: Dante Bichette

Dante Bichette was part of the exciting quartet of sluggers in the early days of the Colorado Rockies. Of course, like the others, his numbers were inflated somewhat by his home park. Bichette was a promising young player when he went over to Colorado.

Bichette was near the end of his career when the Red Sox acquired him from the Cincinnati Reds during the 2000 season. He still had something left though and hit seven home runs for the Red Sox during the stretch drive and had a slash line of .289/.336/.518/.854 in 30 games.

Bichette returned to the Red Sox the next season and was meant to be the principal designated hitter, but also spent time in the outfield. He was not a terrible fielder, and looked a lot worse than he actually was. 2001 was his last season in the Majors and Bichette hit only 12 home runs with a slash line of .286/.325/.460/.786. He was 37 that year, so not much was expected of him, but with Carl Everett also slumping, Boston was not able to make the playoffs.

Red Sox Trade for Adrian Gonzalez

Link.

This one is huge. Adrian Gonzalez has been targeted by Boston for several years now and it finally looks like he is headed over. This effectively ends the pursuit of Adrian Beltre as Gonzalez will shift Kevin Youkilis over to third base, his original position.

The cost is significant. Boston is sending first round draft picks Casey Kelly and Rey Fuentes, along with first base prospect Anthony Rizzo and a player to be named to San Diego. But to pick up a player of Gonzalez's caliber, you have to give up quite a bit. Boston also has five early draft picks next year to help absorb some of that loss to the organization as Beltre, Victor Martinez, and Felipe Lopez will all bring compensatory draft picks.

Gonzalez will be 29 next May, so he is still young. He is also a big-time power threat as he has hit 30 or more home runs each of the last four years while playing in San Diego, a notorious pitcher's park. This is a good pickup for Boston.

Feature: 2010 Hall of Fame Ballot

The 2010 Hall of Fame Ballot and Veteran's Committee Ballots are out there now. Obviously, I do not have a vote in these, but I wanted to look at the players that have played part of their Major League careers with the Red Sox.

Here's the Veteran's Committee Ballot:
Vida Blue
Dave Concepcion
Steve Garvey
Ron Guidry
Tommy John
Al Oliver
Ted Simmons
Rusty Staub
Billy Martin
George Steinbrenner
Pat Gillick
Marvin Miller

No Red Sox. I hope to see Ted Simmons get in from these names.

And the main ballot:
Roberto Alomar
Carlos Baerga
Jeff Bagwell
Harold Baines
Bert Blyleven
Bret Boone
Kevin Brown
John Franco
Juan Gonzalez
Marquis Grissom
Lenny Harris
Bobby Higginson
Charles Johnson
Barry Larkin
Al Leiter
Edgar Martinez
Tino Martinez
Don Mattingly
Fred McGriff
Mark McGwire
Raul Mondesi
Jack Morris
Dale Murphy
John Olerud
Rafael Palmeiro
Dave Parker
Tim Raines
Kirk Reuter
Benito Santiago
Lee Smith
B.J. Surhoff
Alan Trammell
Larry Walker

First the Red Sox:
Carlos Baerga:
I touched on Baerga a little bit earlier on this blog. After his first six seasons, Baerga looked like a potential Hall of Famer. Unfortunately, his career fell off of a cliff after that and so did his Hall chances. If he had not declined so dramatically he might have had a shot. I think he will disappear off of the ballot in this, his first year.

John Olerud:
John Olerud is a potential sneaky candidate. His 17 year career was not filled with excellent seasons, although he did have a few. He quietly went about his business, which was mostly spent getting on base however he needed. His career OBP was .398, pretty impressive. Olerud was also a very good defensive first baseman. I think his career could get lost based on the fact that his power numbers were nowhere close to typical first base numbers. He played only part of one season with the Red Sox, but he still had a lot left and played very well for the Sox. He could go either way. He could drop off after this year, or he could build in voters minds to eventual enshrinement. Time will tell.

Lee Smith:
I planned to devote a whole post to Smith, but this will do. I think Smith belongs in the Hall of Fame. What has kept him out has been the fact that the Hall voters are not sure what to do with closers yet. The only closers in are Goose Gossage, Dennis Eckersley, Hoyt Wilhelm, Bruce Sutter, and Rollie Fingers, all of whom offered more than just one inning a game saves.

Smith was at the forefront of the revolution of closers and held the saves record for years. He was an absolutely dominating closer. He racked up nearly a strikeout per inning for his career, had a 3.03 career ERA, and saved 478 games. Of course that number has been dwarfed by both Trevor Hoffman and Mariano Rivera since, so his case suffers in comparison.

I would like to see Smith in, and I think he could get in eventually. But it may take until the Veterans Committee.

NOTES
-I predict Roberto Alomar, Bert Blyleven, and Jeff Bagwell will get in this year.

-Bagwell, Juan Gonzalez, and Charles Johnson all spent a brief time period as Boston Red Sox, though none made it into any games.

-I think Alan Trammell, Fred McGriff, Dale Murphy, Rafael Palmeiro, Barry Larkin, Edgar Martinez, Tim Raines, and Larry Walker will all make it eventually.

-Kirk Reuter and Lenny Harris will not get a single vote.

News and Notes

1. The Red Sox picked up Brandon Duckworth, 34, a right-handed pitcher who last pitched in the Majors in 2008 with the Royals. This is probably just organizational depth. Not anything to be excited about.

2. The Red Sox non-tendered Hideki Okajima, Taylor Buchholz, and Andrew Miller. Presumably this is to free up space on the 40 man roster and then try to re-sign these players to lesser or even minor league contracts. Miller surprises me because they just traded for him. I really want to see Okajima back because I like him quite a bit, but I will not be disappointed if he leaves.

3. Other interesting players who were non-tendered: Russell Martin (C, Dodgers), Bobby Jenks (RP, White Sox), J.P. Howell (RP, Rays), Chien-Ming Wang (P, Nationals), George Sherrill (RP, Dodgers), Jack Cust (DH, Athletics).

4. I have been thinking about possible trade targets if the Red Sox cannot re-sign Adrian Beltre and I wonder if San Francisco is so down on Pablo Sandoval that they might consider moving him. If Boston could get him to be motivated to keep his weight in line, this could be a solid pickup.

5. Please Boston, sign Carl Crawford and move Ellsbury back to center.

6. It was rumored that Boston attempted to sign Mariano Rivera this week. I do not know if that is true, but it would not surprise me.

EDIT
7. The Red Sox signed Nate Spears, Santo Luis, and Jason Bergmann. Spears and Luis were both in the Red Sox minor league system last year, so this does not really qualify as particularly noteworthy. Bergmann has been in Washington's bullpen for the last six years and is potentially a name to watch for a bullpen slot next year.

Red Sox Re-Sign Jason Varitek

Link.

The Red Sox and Jason Varitek agreed to a one-year $2 million contract today. Excellent news as Varitek remains my favorite player. His role will be the same as this last year, except that he will also be acting as a mentor to Jarrod Saltalamacchia. This is probably a prelude to a coaching position soon.

Hall of Fame Worthy? Pt. 7: George Scott

The Hall of Fame has inducted many players who were borderline choices, and many players who deserve induction have been on the outside looking in. I want to look at some players to determine if they deserve to be in the Hall of Fame.

GEORGE "BOOMER" SCOTT
George Scott was one of the first African American stars for the Red Sox, and the team's first African American All Star. He arrived in the Major Leagues in 1966 with the Red Sox and played in every game that year, hitting 27 home runs, driving in 90 runs and a slash line of .245/.324/.433/.757. He finished third in the Rookie of the Year race behind Tommie Agee, whose overall numbers were similar to Scott's.

Scott improved on his overall numbers for the pennant winning Red Sox in 1967 and looked to be a big upcoming star. He won the first of his eight Gold Gloves that year and hit .303/.373/.465/.839 with 19 home runs and 82 RBIs. He also stole ten bases for a great all-around year.

Unfortunately, his numbers took a massive tumble in 1968 when he hit only .171/.236/.237/.473 with three home runs and 25 RBIs. He did win his second Gold Glove, but that was the only bright spot. He improved significantly each of the next two seasons and looked like his career was back on track.

Scott was traded to the Brewers in a huge trade prior to the 1972 season along with several other players for Tommy Harper and a couple of others. With Milwaukee, Scott became a well-known power hitter, leading the league in home runs and RBIs in 1975. He was traded back to Boston in 1977 for Cecil Cooper, which was not a great trade. Scott had his last big season in 1977 hitting 33 home runs with 95 RBIs.

Scott was a great defensive first-baseman with a lot of power, but his numbers fall well short of Hall of Fame credentials. His career line was .268/.333/.435/.767 in 14 seasons. He hit 271 home runs with 1,051 RBIs. He was often worth 1.0 to 1.5 WAR for his defense each year.

THE VERDICT
No. Scott had some great individual seasons, but his career falls well short. He was great defensively, but probably not among the best ever. He does not rise to the Bill Mazeroski/Ozzie Smith/Harry Hooper level of defensive greatness to get in with his glove.

Busts Pt. 7: Mark Portugal and Pat Rapp

Sometimes, offseason acquisitions work out. Sometimes they don't. Sometimes, they are spectacular failures.

MARK PORTUGAL and PAT RAPP
In 1999, the Red Sox sought to fill out the back end of their rotation by signing free agents Mark Portugal from the Phillies and Pat Rapp from the Royals. Neither pitcher was very good for the Red Sox, with Rapp being only slightly better.

Portugal had a great changeup and won ten games for the Phillies the year before. But he was an unmitigated disaster with the Red Sox. Portugal went 7-12 for the Red Sox with a 5.51 ERA and 79 strikeouts in 150.1 innings. Portugal was released prior to the end of the season.

Rapp was only slightly better. He had won 12 games for the Royals the year before, but was non-tendered and the Red Sox plucked him in January. Rapp went 6-7 with a 4.12 ERA and 90 strikeouts in 146.1 innings. He also pitched in relief on occasion.

Pitching was the reason the Red Sox did not make it farther in October that year. Outside of Pedro Martinez and Bret Saberhagen, the Red Sox had to mix and match pitchers. Rapp and Portugal were a big part of the problem. Kent Mercker was acquired late in the season to help.

Failed Prospects Pt. 7: Steve Lomasney

Since I have been a fan, there have been several players with huge expectations in the Red Sox minor league system. Some of these players, such as Mo Vaughn, Nomar Garciaparra, Trot Nixon, Jon Lester, and others meet those expectations. Others are not as fortunate.

STEVE LOMASNEY
The Red Sox have had some troubles developing catchers since the early 1980's when Rich Gedman emerged. Since then, John Marzano, John Flaherty, Eric Wedge, and Scott Hatteberg all came from the Red Sox minor league system, none of whom made a single All Star game with the team. Steve Lomasney was supposed to change that. He was hyped to be the second coming of Carlton Fisk.

Lomasney was rated the #50 prospect in all of baseball prior to the 2000 season. He had hit 20 home runs and .259/.390/.482/.873 in two stops in 1999. However, in 2000, he started to slip and never came close to those numbers again. He finally made it to AAA Pawtucket in 2001 but continued to struggle. He bounced between AA and AAA for years, never quite making the leap for good.

He played one game in the Major Leagues with Boston in 1999 and was hitless in two at-bats with two strikeouts.

One-Card Wonder Pt. 7: Jim Corsi

For whatever reason, sometimes I am only able to find one card of certain players. To be considered a One-Card Wonder, a player must have been active since 1991 (when I started paying attention).

JIM CORSI
This one is a 1998 Pacific Online card, a great set for team collectors because it featured a bunch of cards of guys that had few, if any, other cards. You'll see this set again in this series.

I am not totally sure why Jim Corsi has no other Red Sox cards. He was a major part of the Red Sox bullpen for two years in 1997-1998. He also pitched in 1999 and accumulated 134 games over the course of the three seasons for Boston. Corsi went 9-7 with two saves. He pitched to the tune of a 3.35 ERA for the Red Sox. He also struck out 103 in 147.1 innings.

EDIT:  I just recently picked up one of the parallels of this card.