Random Stuff

This is just kind of a catch-all post for a bunch of packages. 

1.  David Ortiz.  One of my favorite parts of the offseason is seeing Ortiz torment Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez when the Yankees get eliminated.  Ortiz is such a fun watch on Fox.  He always seemed like a goofy, amiable guy.  

2.  Carl Yastrzemski.  I maintain that this is one of the ugliest sets I have ever seen.  

3.  Rafael Devers.  This is from the Bob Ross set.  I still miss Devers's bat.  Boston needs a bone fide slugger in the lineup next season.  Unfortunately, I don't know where that is going to come from.

4.  Ted Williams.  Surely Williams is not squaring up to bunt in this picture, is he?  It seems a bit more likely that he is just rubbing the bat, but it's not real clear.  I doubt Williams bunted very often.

This was a two-card lot of Roman Anthony cards I bought together.  The Topps Chrome card is cool because of the big shot of Fenway Park.  Oddly, both cards feature Anthony in the new forest green City Connect uniforms.  Anthony has a chance to be special. 

Closing things out with a couple Ceddanne Rafaela cards, including a jersey relic and an autograph.  The auto is from the Leaf Exotic set.  I have been trying to get one of each animal pattern, this being the zebra pattern.  I also have the alligator, deer, giraffe, clown fish and parrot.  I still need the butterfly, chamelon, dragon, elephant, leopard, peacock, snake and tiger patterns.

A Bunch of Oddballs and a Couple Rafaelas

In my continuing effort to get caught up, I combined a couple of Ceddanne Rafaela cards with a bunch of oddballs that I picked up from one seller on Ebay. 

Ceddanne Rafaela continues to be my favorite player, and he had a great year for most of the season.  The last month was tough as he battled an injury.  I don't pick up as many cards of him as I had been, but I still try to maintain a large enough collection of him.  He is still the current focal point of my collection, just not quite as actively.  

Up next are the oddballs, which were a ton of fun to pick out.

1.  Brandon Workman.  Workman had a really odd career.  He was a second round pick in 2010 and made his Major League debut in 2013.  He pitched well enough that he made the postseason roster that year and even had a plate appearance in the World Series.  He did not give up a run in 8.2 postseason innings.  The next season, he had a 1-10 record, then got hurt and didn't appear again until 2017.  At that point he turned into a reliable bullpen arm and then became the closer in 2019 where he had a terrific season with a 1.88 ERA, 10-1 record and 104 strikeouts in 71.2 innings with 16 saves.  He struggled in 2020, then was traded to the Phillies.  He started the 2021 season with the Cubs, then returned to the Red Sox.

2.  Bob Johnson.  "Indian" Bob Johnson is firmly entrenched in the Hall of Very Good.  For his career, he hit .296/.393/.503 with 288 home runs and 1,283 RBIs.  He played for Boston in the WWII seasons and had one of the best seasons of his career at the age of 38 when he hit .324/.431/.528 with 17 home runs and 106 RBIs.  He led the league in OBP, OPS (.959) and OPS+ (174).  

3.  Bobo Newsom.  I had to track this one down.  Newsom had a very long career, primarily for bad teams, though he himself was a pretty damn good pitcher.  He played for nine teams during his career at a time when only 16 teams existed.  In the early part of the 1937 season, Newsom was traded by the Senators to the Red Sox along with Ben Chapman for the Ferrell brothers and Mel Almada.  He pitched in 30 games, going 13-10 with a 4.46 ERA with 127 strikeouts and 119 walks in 207.2 innings pitched.  After the season, he was traded to the Browns along with Buster Mills for Joe Vosmik.  

4.  Happy Foreman.  The Jewish Major Leaguers set is still one of my favorite oddball sets.  This card is pretty hard to identify the team.  Foreman played in six total games in the Majors, three each with the Red Sox and White Sox.  TCDB identifies this as a White Sox card, but because there's no team designation and a difficult-to-see uniform, I am counting it.  Foreman had a 3.68 ERA in 7.1 innings for the Red Sox, striking out three and walking five.  

5.  Vicente Romo.  The next few cards are part of the Boston Globe photo set, a massive oddball set covering most Red Sox players from the 1950's to early 1970's.  Romo, a Mexico native, was acquired by the Red Sox along with Joe Azcue and Sonny Siebert for Ken Harrelson, Dick Ellsworth and Juan Pizarro.  Siebert was the big get for Boston but Romo was a decent bullpen arm.  Over the next two seasons, he was 14-12 with a 3.59 ERA.  He saved 17 games.  Romo was traded to the White Sox after the 1970 season along with future Royals manager Tony Muser for Duane Josephson and Danny Murphy.

6.  Tom Sturdivant.  Sturdivant was a One-Year Wonder Red Sox pitcher acquired from the Kansas City A's for catcher Pete Daley.  He started on Opening Day and pitched in 40 games, all but one of which were in relief.  He had a 3-3 record with a 4.97 ERA with 67 strikeouts and 45 walks in 101.1 innings pitched.  He was selected by the new Washington Senators (now the Texas Rangers) in the expansion draft after the season.  

7.  Dick Williams.  Williams, of course, was the skipper for the 1967 Impossible Dream Red Sox.  He spent a couple seasons with the team as a backup outfielder and eventually moved to the manager position.  He managed until 1969 and later won two World Series with the A's and an NL pennant with the Padres.  He also managed the Angels, Expos and Mariners and is now in the Hall of Fame.

8.  Dick Radatz.  The Monster was one of the first big relief aces for the Red Sox.  He was an absolutely dominant force out of the pen from 1962 through 1964.  During that time, he was 40-21 with a 2.17 ERA, 76 saves, 487 strikeouts and 149 walks in 414 innings.  He was human in 1965 and then struggled in 1966 before being traded to Cleveland for Lee Stange and Don McMahon.

9.  Chuck Schilling.  Schilling has a lot of great cards from early 1960's Topps.  He was a slick -fielding second-baseman who was not much of a hitter.  He finished third in the Rookie of the Year vote in 1961 when he hit .259/.340/.327 with five homers, 25 doubles, 87 runs scored and 62 RBIs.  His hitting declined the next season and remained mostly stagnant.  After 1963, he became a part-time player.  He was traded to the Twins prior to the 1966 season along with Russ Nixon for Dick Stigman, though Schilling never appeared in the Majors again.

10.  Billy Werber.  Werber is the owner of one of my favorite completely random fantastic Red Sox seasons.  In 1934, the third-baseman hit .321/.397/.472 with 129 runs scored, 200 hits, 41 doubles, ten triples, eleven homers, 67 RBIs and a league-leading 40 stolen bases.  He walked 77 times compared to just 37 strikeouts.  Somehow, he only finished 12th in the MVP vote.  He had a couple more good, but not great seasons with Boston before being traded to the A's for Pinky Higgins.

11.  Frank Smith.  This is an odd card that lists Smith with both the Red Sox and White Sox.  Smith was a great pitcher with the White Sox and had a 25-17 record in 1909.  He pitched most of the 1910 season with Chicago before being traded to the Red Sox along with Billy Purtell for Harry Lord and Amby McConnell.  During parts of two seasons with the Red Sox, Smith was 1-2 with a 5.64 ERA in 30.1 innings pitched.  He was sold to the Reds in 1911.  Unfortunately, Lord and McConnell were still fairly productive, making this a pretty bad trade for the Red Sox.

12.  Eddie Pellagrini.  Pellagrini was a Boston native who made it to the hometown team in the 1946 pennant-winning season.  Over the two seasons he played in Boston, he made it into 96 games, splitting time between short and third.  He hit .205/.275/.315 with six homers.  After the 1947 season, he was part of a massive trade with the Browns that sent him, Pete Layden, Joe Ostrowski, Roy Partee, Al Widmar and Jim Wilson to St. Louis for Jack Kramer and Vern Stephens.  That was a trade that worked out well for Boston.

13.  Chuck Schilling.  The next few cards are from the Greater Boston Sports Collectors Club.  I have not been able to get a good feel for everything available from this set.

14.  Don Schwall.  Schwall was Boston's second Rookie of the Year winner.  In 1961, he went 15-7 with a 3.22 ERA in 178.2 innings pitched.  He struck out 91 and walked 110.  The next season he went just 9-15 with a 4.94 ERA and then was traded to the Pirates along with Jim Pagliaroni for Dick Stuart and Jack Lamabe.  Schwall was never able to recapture his earlier success.

15.  John Kennedy.  Kennedy was a long-term super utility player who attained the nickname "Super Sub".  During the 1970 season, the Red Sox purchased his contract from the Brewers and he spent the last five seasons in Boston.  He played everywhere in the infield and hit .243/.295/.363 with 13 homers and 78 RBIs. 

16.  Frank Malzone.  Malzone is one of the best third-basemen in team history.  He spent eleven seasons in Boston, making eight All Star games and winning three Gold Glove awards.  This, and the next card, are from another great oddball set celebrating players with Italian heritage.

17.  Dom DiMaggio.  DiMaggio is Joe's younger brother and a damn good player in his own right.  He was a seven-time All Star and hit .298 in his career.  He could have been a Hall of Famer had he not missed three seasons during his prime due to service in World War II.  He could have easily amassed more than 2,000 hits which might have been enough to put him over the edge.

Panini Elite Blaster Break

I have mentioned multiple times that I love opening Panini products.  I just always seem to do fairly well with them.  I took a chance on a blaster of Elite, a product with just 30 cards to a box and this was the result: 

1.  Wade Boggs.  Boggs still holds the team record for hits in a season.  240 seems completely unattainable at this point in time.  The last Red Sox player to notch 200 hits in a season was Rafael Devers with 201 in 2019.  Ceddanne Rafaela led the team this season with 153, though he would have had more if he hadn't missed most of the last month with an injury.  The second-highest hit total in Red Sox history was Tris Speaker with 222 in 1912.  

2.  Roman Anthony.  Anthony is definitely getting bigger in my collection lately.  On top of people being willing to trade his cards, I have been pulling his stuff a lot too.  Hopefully he will be fully healthy next season.

A Couple Trades

I am going to try to catch up on my card pile since I do not have another potential trial until the end of November.  I have a little bit of time. 

1.  Roman Anthony.  Anthony is starting to appear a lot more in my trade offers.  I suspect this has something to do with the fact that some of the prospect shine has worn off as a result of his inability to stay healthy thus far.  I am not even remotely close to ready to call him a bust because he has hit so well when he's been healthy.  They just need to figure out how to avoid these injuries. 

2.  Jarren Duran.  Duran had one of the worst 20/20 seasons of all time.  He had a .627 OPS and 76 OPS+.  I just do not think there is any way he is going to be back in Boston next season.  Hopefully they can find a reasonable trade for him.

3.  Aroldis Chapman.  Chapman continued to build on his Hall of Fame resume, eclipsing the 400 save mark and breaking the record for strikeouts as a reliever.  He's likely not getting in first ballot, but I believe he will get in.  He probably goes in with a Reds cap, but I always want Red Sox players in the Hall.

4.  Kristian Campbell.  Campbell had a nice season in the minors.  Hopefully he can make that translate to success in the Majors next season, but I have no idea where he will play.

5.  Pedro Martinez.  I definitely like getting retired players in sets, but I would like to see Topps think outside the box a little bit more.  We still get a lot of cards of guys like Pedro Martinez.  Let's see Bruce Hurst or someone.

6.  Garrett Crochet.  Man, it was a mistake to bring Crochet into the last game of the postseason.  Hopefully he will be healthy next season, though with the development of Payton Tolle, it is not as dire.

7.  Roman Anthony.  

1.  Payton Tolle.  Tolle is quickly becoming one of my favorite players.  He had a great rookie season that could get him finishing third in the Rookie of the Year vote.  He became one of the Red Sox best pitchers this year.

2.  Jarren Duran.

3.  Aroldis Chapman.

4.  Roger Clemens.  I don't know what it will take to get Clemens into the Hall of Fame at this point.  I think something that could be done is to have a special committee formed to consider the Steroid Era one time and determine which players should get in, notwithstanding whether or not there is evidence that they used.  Clemens still maintains his innocence, he never tested positive during his playing career.  He is a player that absolutely should be in the Hall of Fame.

5.  Franklin Arias.  Arias is Boston's top prospect and will hopefully be in the big leagues next season.  

6.  Payton Tolle.

7.  Carlton Fisk.  Fisk was the A.L.'s first unanimous Rookie of the Year.  He is also one of two Red Sox first-round picks to be named to the Hall of Fame.  If Clemens ever gets in, there will be three.

8.  Franklin Arias.

9.  Connelly Early.  I don't love the trade of Early for Curtis Mead.  Especially since Mead had two at-bats before getting hurt.  I don't expect Early to be an ace, but I think he will be better than Jake Bennett ultimately.  He had been pretty good for Boston.  Mead better be good next year.

10.  Roman Anthony.

11.  Walker Buehler.  I really thought Buehler was going to have a good season in 2025.  He was really bad though.  He has gotten better since leaving Boston.  I have no idea what went so wrong for him in Boston.

12.  David Ortiz.  Another player like Martinez who appears a lot in sets.  I never complain about getting cards of Ortiz though.

13.  Jim Rice.  Rice is the other first-round pick of the Red Sox to make the Hall of Fame.  I've been interested in first-round draft picks lately after some arguments on Twitter.

14.  Nomar Garciaparra.  Garciaparra is another first-round pick by the Red Sox.  I have not given up on the chance that he could make it in the Hall.  He had a very high peak.  

15.  Franklin Arias.  

16.  Kristian Campbell.

17.  Roman Anthony.  This is the kind of card that I would not have gotten in a trade at this time last year.  This is how much Anthony's stock has fallen lately.

18.  Manny Ramirez.  Ramirez is another player I think should be in, PED suspensions be damned.  I just don't think that PED use should disqualify a player from the Hall.  Especially in a case like Ramirez's, who wasn't caught until he was well past his prime.

19.  Jim Rice. 

20.  Isaiah Campbell.  I was disappointed Campbell was not a better pitcher than he was.  He seemed like someone with some good stuff, but he could not harness it.

21.  Masataka Yoshida.  Yoshida, like Duran, is a player I could see Boston moving this offseason.  I don't expect a big return, but I don't think he will be in Boston in 2027.  I like him, but things did not really work out for him.

22.  Trevor Story.  Story is also in the category with Duran and Yoshida.  The Red Sox need to find a way to get more flexibility into the lineup and Duran, Story and Yoshida handcuff the team somewhat.  Story was great in 2025, but that has been the only successful season since he signed a big free agent deal.

23.  Jarren Duran.

24.  Jarren Duran.

25.  Jarren Duran.

26.  Bobby Dalbec.  It's strange to look at Dalbec's first two seasons in Boston when he had an .819 OPS and 114 OPS+ and slugged 33 homers in 156 games.  He dropped off severely.  There was always a lot of swing-and-miss in his game, but it got out of hand.  

Topps Now: July 22 and 18th

Sorry, I received the cards in reverse chronological order, so for those obsessive-compulsives out there, you're just going to have to get over this. 

The highlight of the season for the Red Sox was a 15-game winning streak that was part of a larger hot streak in which they were almost unbeatable for 40 games.  The win that sealed the streak was a 6-3 victory over the Orioles in the first game of a double header.  The Red Sox took a 4-0 lead in the first innings and never let that up, winning 6-3 behind rookie Jake Bennett's strong start and a save by Aroldis Chapman.  Ceddanne Rafaela homered and Jarren Duran drove in three runs.  The card features Duran, Rafaela and Wilyer Abreu.

One of the biggest wins during the 15-game winning streak was the 18th against the Rays, in which the Red Sox were losing 6-3 in the bottom of the seventh before erupting for four runs, capped off by the go-ahead homer by Wilyer Abreu, his second home run of the game.  The Rays brought in a lefty reliever to pitch to Abreu, who at the time, was one of the best hitters against lefties in the game.  Rule 5 pick Ryan Watson got the win.  

I am going to choose to remember how great Boston was in the summer when I remember this season, instead of the way it ended.

More TCDB Trades

Here is another post full of cards I acquired through TCDB. 

1.  Carl Yastrzemski.  The single greatest season by WAR by a Red Sox player was Yaz's 1967 Triple Crown-winning season.  What separated him from Ted Williams was his defense.  On top of being a fantastic hitter, he was a great fielder as well.

2.  Mo Vaughn.  First-basemen get penalized in bWAR for playing the position.  Even though Vaughn was not a good first-baseman in the first place, the penalty drops his 1995 season to a 4.3.  By fWAR, it was 5.1.  Either way, it is unlikely we would see a season like that win the MVP at this point in time.  By either metric, his 1996 and 1998 seasons were better.

3.  Jarren Duran.  Duran's 2024 season was 9.0 by bWAR and 6.9 by fWAR.  No, I don't know why there is such a discrepancy there.

4.  Jack Lopez.  It's weird sometimes how I get cards of certain players in clusters.  Lopez has very few cards, yet I have gotten two in a very short amount of time.

5.  Martin Perez.  I really liked Perez during his two-year stint with the Red Sox.  He was one of the team's best pitchers in 2020 and was a decent role player in 2021.  He returned to Texas in 2022 and had the best season of his career, being named to his only All Star team.

6.  Alex Verdugo.  Verdugo was an incredibly talented player who just never lived up to it.  It's crazy that he has not played at all this year, at just 30 years of age.  He had All Star talent, but was such a head case that he could never harness it.

7.  Connor Seabold.  I thought Seabold was going to be the best player the team received in the trade of Brandon Workman to the Phillies.  Seabold could never stick in the Majors, and so the better player ended up being Nick Pivetta.

8.  Connor Seabold.

9.  Josh Winckowski.  Winckowski ended up being the best player the Red Sox acquired in the Andrew Benintendi deal.  Franchy Cordero was also a part of that trade, but he never really hit well in the Majors.  Winckowski was great in 2023 when he had a 2.88 ERA in 60 games.

10.  Dustin Pedroia.  There's always a player on the Hall of Fame ballot whose candidacy I monitor closely.  Since Billy Wagner was elected, that player is Pedroia, with apologies to Jon Lester who will be eligible for the first time with the next ballot (though I think he will be elected fairly quickly).  Pedroia was one of my favorite players while he was active.  He is in a better position than Wagner was at the same time in their eligibility.  He gained a lot of votes this year.  If he has another big gain, it may help determine if he is going to be elected.

11.  Kenley Jansen.  The Red Sox have had three closers over the last ten years that all look like they could make it into the Hall of Fame between Craig Kimbrel, Jansen and Aroldis Chapman.  Jansen looks like he could be the safest bet.  His 495 career saves at the moment is enough to put him in third place of all time.  He is not likely to make it into second place, but he should make it in.

12.  Masataka Yoshida.  He is probably out for the season, but Yoshida hit .274/.347/.399 for a 111 OPS+, one of the better seasons of his career in the Majors.  He also had five home runs.

13.  Bill Lee.  I have to grab cards of someone like Bill Lee when he appears in sets.  Lee was an eccentric southpaw with the Red Sox in the 1970's.  He was an All Star in 1973 when he was 17-11 with a 2.75 ERA.

14.  Tris Speaker.  Speaker was Boston's first homegrown superstar, inasmuch as players could be homegrown prior to the draft and minor league systems becoming common.  Speaker was the first player who made his Major League debut with the Red Sox to become a superstar.  He spent more time with Cleveland, but he had more great seasons with the Red Sox and first made his mark in Boston.

15.  Alex Bregman.  His only season in Boston saw Bregman make the All Star team and hit .273/.360/.462 with 18 home runs and 62 RBIs.  It was a nice season, but he played in just 114 games.

1.  Kristian Campbell.  Campbell has really turned it on this year in the minors.  Hopefully that is a sign of things to come for him and he can make it back to the Majors next season.

2.  Wally the Green Monster.  I am not a fan of mascot cards.  I didn't pick this out, I just didn't turn it down.

3.  Pedro Martinez.  Martinez was not the first player to make the Hall of Fame whose entire time in Boston I got to experience as a fan, but he was the first one to wear a Red Sox cap on his plaque.  The first player was Rickey Henderson.

4.  Tessie.  Another mascot card.

5.  Roman Anthony.  Anthony won the game Sunday night, with a clutch base hit that scored the winning run.  Boston is going to be counting on him a lot in the postseason.

6.  Masataka Yoshida.

7.  Wilyer Abreu.  Abreu is one of the most underrated players in the game.  He is third in position player WAR and looks likely to win his third straight Gold Glove Award this year.

8.  Ted Williams.  Williams's best year according to bWAR was his 1946 season.  Not the year he hit .400.  Not either of the years he won the Triple Crown.  That year he hit .342/.497/.667 with 38 home runs and 123 RBIs and won the MVP for the first time.

9.  Sonny Gray.  I am finally starting to add a few cards of Gray.  It's been slow getting any of the new players acquired by the Red Sox for the year.  Gray, with his third card, is the most.  I need to fix that.

10.  Pedro Martinez.

11.  Connor Wong.  This was the card that started this trade.  As I said the other day, I still add cards of Wong when I can find them.

12.  Brayan Bello.  Bello has had a perplexing year.  He has been terrible in the first innings of games, but when used as a bulk reliever, he has been lights out.  I don't get it.  

13.  Jenn Tran.  I don't care for these first pitch cards either.  I have no idea who this is.  She's pretty, but I don't know who she is.

14.  Enmanuel Valdez.  The other player acquired in the trade that brough Wilyer Abreu to Boston.  Valdez last appeared in the Majors with the Pirates in 2025.

15.  Carlos Narvaez.  I'm finally starting to get a few Narvaez cards, of course after he was traded away.

16.  David Ortiz.

The next scan is actually three separate two-card trades.

1.  Pablo Reyes.  Reyes had a huge moment when he walked off the Royals with a grand slam in 2023.  He had a nice year that year, but couldn't keep the success going.

2.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Rafaela's injury keeps him from making the 20/20 mark.  Unless he goes on a real tear, which is possible, but unlikely.

1.  Pedro Martinez.

2.  Masataka Yoshida.

1.  Masataka Yoshida.  I am beginning to think Yoshida is one of those players traders are perfectly willing to include in deals to get rid of.  

2.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Yes, I consider this a Rafaela card.  This is from one of his walk-offs.

1.  Roger Clemens.  Clemens's best season by WAR with the Red Sox was 1990, the year he was robbed of the Cy Young Award by Bob Welch, because Welch won 27 games for a great A's team while Clemens won 21 for Boston.

2.  Roman Anthony.

1.  Triston Casas.  It will be interesting to see what happens with Casas going into next season.  He has not played since early last year, but at some point he just has to get healthy again.

2.  Rafael Devers.  He had been on fire lately until hitting the IL and ending his season.  He will have to wait another year to see if he can beat his personal record of 38 home runs.  I still wish Boston hadn't traded him away, but I have moved on.

3.  J.D. Martinez.  It appears that his career is over.  Martinez finished with a line of .283/.348/.516 with 331 home runs and 1,071 RBIs.  Those numbers are not going to get him into the Hall of Fame.  He had some Hall of Fame-worthy seasons, but not enough of them.  

4.  Ceddanne Rafaela.

5.  Paul Quantrill.  The Canadian-born Quantrill made his Major League debut with the Red Sox and pitched his first couple years there before being traded to the Phillies in the deal that brough Wes Chamberlain to the Red Sox.  Quantrill went on to some big success with the Blue Jays, Dodgers and Yankees.

6.  Rob Refnsyder.  It's strange.  I had some arguments with a Yankees fan early in Refsnyder's career about how good he was going to be.  I was correct by and large because I said he would not be a star (the other guy definitely drank the Yankees prospect Kool-Aid, you know what I'm talking about).  It's odd though because Refsnyder's best years actually came with the Red Sox. 

7.  Trevor Story.  Story is also healthy for the first time all year and has had some big moments with the team this year.  Hopefully he can produce similar to what he was doing when healthy last season.  We need that version of Story for the postseason.

1.  Vaughn Grissom.  Grissom has bounced back in his first full season in the Majors to become something close to the kind of player he was expected to be when the Red Sox traded Chris Sale for him.  Unfortunately, it comes too late to salvage that trade as anything less than a total disaster.

2.  Payton Tolle.  I think Tolle might be my second-favorite player for the team currently.  Just above Wilyer Abreu and behind Ceddanne Rafaeala.  Roman Anthony could climb quickly if he stays healthy and productive.

3.  Caleb Durbin.  This is my first card of Durbin, who was a major acquisition by the Red Sox this year.  He had a horrifically slow start to his Red Sox career, but has come around to be a reliable contributor who plays Gold Glove-worthy defense.  

4.  Yoelin Cespedes.  Cespedes is an interesting prospect.  He could be a top prospect, but just does not seem to take the lep forward necessary to make it.  He's just 21 though, so it could still be coming.

5.  Juan Marichal.  Panini put Marichal with the Red Sox?  Yes, they did.  Of course I had to grab it.

Topps Now: June 28, 2026

 

Sonny Gray hit a major career milestone on June 28, 2026 when he struck out the 2,000th batter of his career, something that I can use on my Immaculate Grids in the future (I always do all-Red Sox grids).  Gray has had a great season in Boston.  Unfortunately, he is not going to win 20 games this year after the offense couldn't get it going Friday night against the Royals and they lost 3-2.  

Gray has been Boston's most consistent starter this season.  He should finish in the mix for the Cy Young Award, most likely around third.  He is currently 17-5 with a 2.76 ERA and 140 strikeouts in 156.2 innings pitched.  He has likely about two more games to pitch this season.  

A Handful of TCDB Trades

TCDB has become my primary method of acquiring cards these days.  I still buy stuff on Ebay occasionally, primarily to grab cards I really want, such as Ceddanne Rafaela cards, relics and autos that I can't track down easily otherwise.  

And so, here are a bunch of trades I made recently. 

1.  Connor Wong.  Yes, I still add Wong cards when I can.  He was having a decent enough year that the Red Sox kept him around when they acquired Adley Rutschman, but he is having a deep slump and Mickey Gasper has turned out to be a hell of a hitter recently.  So, Wong's playing time has decreased.  I think there is a good chance he does not return next year.  That's sad.

2.  Masataka Yoshida.  Yoshida had been having a nice season before an injury put him on the shelf.  He has a year left on his contract, but I could see Boston cutting bait with him next year as well.

3.  Michael Wacha.  Wacha had a great year in his sole season with the Red Sox, going 11-2 with a 3.32 ERA.  He has turned that into a pretty good second half of his career, continuing to have impressive seasons with the Padres and Royals since then.

4.  Quinn Priester.  Priester was acquired in a deadline deal with the Pirates for Nick Yorke back in 2024.  He was then traded to the Brewers before the 2025 season, who promptly turned him into a pretty good starter.  He has been injured all year this year though.

5.  Justin Slaten.  Slaten has been a real find.  Like Garrett Whitlock, he was acquired in the Rule V Draft.  He has been injured for awhile this year, but other than having some rough outings, he has been pretty good.  

6.  Garrett Crochet.  Crochet is getting close to coming back this year.  Hopefully he can make an impact in the postseason.

7.  Nick Sogard.  Sogard has become the primary second-baseman down the stretch.  He has an excellent eye at the plate and has shown some surprising power at times.  He has been good enough that he has even hit leadoff at times.

8.  Jarren Duran.  Duran is one stolen base away from his second 20/20 season.  Despite that, his hitting metrics are mostly terrible.  He is another player I could see Boston moving on from next season, but he has definitely had some great times in Boston.

9.  Garrett Crochet.

10.  Wilyer Abreu.  Since Rafaela's injury, Abreu has turned into the Red Sox's best player.  He recently eclipsed the 6 WAR mark for the season.  Assuming he doesn't slump late, that is a damn good player.

11.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  Hopefully he will come back strong from his injury and be ready to lock in for the postseason.  He should win his second Gold Glove at any rate.

1.  Alex Bregman.  Bregman has been on a tear lately for the Cubs.  I am still not that worked up that he did not return to the Red Sox though.  He had a good year, and likely would have been even better had injuries not caused issues.

2.  Marcelo Mayer.  Mayer's inability to stay healthy is one of the reasons the Red Sox traded him.  He has yet to return to action and has been out since June 20.

3.  Jhostynxon Garcia.  Garcia was a big prospect for the Red Sox, but was traded due to the outfield logjam.  He has not shown much in his first year in the Pirates organization this year though.

4.  Jim Rice.  Rice made the Hall of Fame his final year on the writer's ballot.  His outfield teammate Dwight Evans should make the Hall of Fame some day.

5.  Carlos Narvaez.  I don't know what happened to Narvaez this year.  Last year he looked like one of the best catchers in the league.  This year he never got going.  He was part of the package sent to the Orioles for Rutschman.

This was just a one-card trade for a nice Marcelo Mayer insert.  These cards were based on a design from the 1980's oddball box sets.

1.  Isaiah Campbell.  I really thought Campbell was going to be a nice bullpen addition.  He was mostly terrible during his stint with the Red Sox though.

2.  Roger Clemens.  I am not sure what it is going to take to get Clemens into the Hall of Fame at this point.  The fact that he and Bonds are not in for things that a lot of players were doing at the time is an absolute travesty.  Clemens is one of the greatest pitchers in the game.

3.  David Ortiz.  Ortiz is probably the greatest designated hitter of all time.  I was slightly shocked he was elected his first year on the ballot, but I am glad he was.  To me, it was a pretty easy choice.

4.  Jack Lopez.  Lopez made it into a handful of games with the Red Sox in 2021, primarily when the team was dealing with a COVID outbreak.  He didn't hit much.  He made it back to the Majors with the Angels in 2024 and did a bit better, but he hasn't been back since.

5.  Marcus Phillips.  Phillips was one of my favorite draft picks by the Red Sox in 2025.  He was selected 33rd overall, in the first round, out of Iowa Western College in Council Bluffs, Iowa, just a few miles east of Omaha, Nebraska.  He is originally from Sioux Falls, South Dakota, just about two and a half hours from where I currently live.  He has had a bit of a rough start to his career this year, but I really hope he makes it.

6.  Kyson Witherspoon.  Witherspoon was another player in the package sent to the Orioles for Rutschman.  I was disappointed that he was traded after he was Boston's top draft pick last year, but he is not the one that hurts the most.  That would be Anthony Eyanson.

7.  Roman Anthony.  Anthony hit the ground running when he returned to the Red Sox from injury.  He slumped a bit after awhile, but seems to have gotten going again.  Strikeouts will probably always be a part of his game, but he is an incredibly talented hitter.

8.  Jason Varitek.  I love that Panini has been including Jason Varitek cards in their sets lately.  I need to start grabbing them again.  

9.  Payton Tolle.  Tolle has been a lot of fun to watch this year.  He has been one of the team's best pitchers and has a lot of potential to be one of the best pitchers in the league.  

10.  Jason Varitek.  Here is another parallel of Varitek.

11.  Franklin Arias.  I really hoped the Red Sox would call him up to take over at shortstop.  That may have to wait until next season.

Topps Now: May 18, 2026

 

I do not think I have made much of a secret about not liking Aroldis Chapman prior to him signing with the Red Sox.  Maybe not on this blog, but certainly in personal conversations I have had with people.  Chapman was suspended by Major League Baseball for violating the domestic abuse policies back in 2016.  As a defense attorney, I understand these things are often not black and white, so I do tend to be a little more open-minded about these kinds of things, and it is my understanding that no criminal charges were ever pursued, but it's still kind of concerning.  Plus, he was a Yankee.  

Nevertheless, over the two seasons he has been in Boston, he has impressed me with his apparent work ethic and there have not been any issues off the field.  Chapman has certainly put together a potential Hall of Fame career.  His two seasons in Boston have elevated that possibility as he has hit several career landmarks.  This card celebrates one of those landmarks.  Chapman moved into the top ten all time in saves.  He has since made it up to 400 career saves, which means he is now ninth all-time.  He has also broken the all-time career strikeouts record for a reliever. 

45 New Cards

Today's trade from TCDB contained 45 new Red Sox cards, and a lot of thoughts. 

1.  Roman Anthony.  Anthony finally made his return to the Red Sox lineup on Sunday and has returned to the form that he showed last season, rather than the slow start he was going through at the beginning of this season.  It will be massively helpful to have his bat back in the lineup, particularly if he is going to produce the way he has.

2.  Franklin Arias.  That didn't take long to add a relic of Arias.  It's not often I get a relic of a player before they even play in the Majors.

3.  Mickey Hall.  Hall was the Red Sox second round pick in the 2003 draft out of high school.  Unfortunately, he never made it to the Majors.

4.  Johnny Damon.  I was looking at 20/20 players recently.  Damon did it as a member of the Yankees, but not with the Red Sox.  The closest he came was in 2004 when he hit 20 home runs, but stole 19 bases.  

5.  Shea Hillenbrand.  Hillenbrand is one of the more random players to be an All Star twice.  He was an All Star with the Red Sox in 2002 when he hit .293/.330/.459 with 18 homers and 83 RBIs and then in 2005 with the Blue Jays.

6.  Keith Foulke.  Foulke had an argument to be the World Series MVP in 2004 when he appeared in all four games, saving one and winning one while striking out eight batters in five innings.  He had a 1.80 ERA.

7.  Roger Clemens.  Clemens was the second of five Red Sox to win the All Star Game MVP in 1986.  That game, he started and pitched three perfect innings, striking out two and getting the win.  There must have been different rules for determining the winning pitcher.

8.  Xander Bogaerts.  The closest Bogaerts came to MVP was fifth in voting in 2019.  That year, he hit .309/.384/.555 with 190 hits, 52 doubles, 33 home runs and 117 RBIs.  It was by far his greatest offensive season.  He won the Silver Slugger and was an All Star.  

9.  Roger Clemens.

10.  Jim Rice.  Rice was probably the first player I remember arguing passionately about for the Hall of Fame.  He took until his 15th year on the ballot to get elected.  He was the third player to wear a Red Sox cap on his plaque since I started watching baseball.  I just missed Carl Yazstrzemski, so the first one was Carlton Fisk in 2000 and then Wade Boggs in 2005.  

11.  Tony Perez.  Perez was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2000, the same year as Carlton Fisk, meaning we had a player from each side of the legendary 1975 World Series elected at the same time.  Which is really cool, but also not the first time that that specific thing happened.  In 1989, both Carl Yastrzemski and Johnny Bench were elected at the same time.

12.  Terry Francona.  One of these years Francona will get elected to the Hall of Fame.  But he has to retire first.  Since he's currently managing the Reds, it won't be real soon.

13.  Jim Rice.

14.  Franklin Arias.

15.  Terry Francona.

16.  Juan Valera.  With the trade of Anthony Eyanson and Kyson Witherspoon, Valera has become Boston's top pitching prospect.  He is still in A-ball though, so he is a ways away.

17.  Yordanny Monegro.  Monegro has had difficulty staying on the field.  He has been a top prospect in the past, but his stock has fallen greatly due to injuries.  Hopefully he can repair his position.

18.  Jedixson Paez.  Paez was taken by the White Sox in the Rule V Draft coming into this season.  I remember a White Sox fan getting pissed at me for speculating that it was likely he would be returned to Boston.  I was right as Paez was not close to ready for the Majors after appearing in three disastrous games.  Tonight, he made his debut in Boston, and showed he is still not close to ready.

19.  Lucas Giolito.  Giolito had a nice season for the Red Sox in 2025 after missing the entire 2024 season due to injury.  I thought he should have been given a chance to come back, but Boston went with Sonny Gray and Ranger Suarez instead, which has worked out fine.  Giolito has struggled this season.

20.  Roman Anthony.

21.  Roman Anthony.

22.  Kristian Campbell/Marcelo Mayer.  Here we have two players who were expected to be a big part of the next core for the Red Sox.  A lot has changed.  Campbell seems stuck in the minors, though he has been playing much better lately, and Mayer was traded away.  

23.  Aneudis Mateo.  I remember getting a bunch of cards of Mateo in 2003.  He never made the Majors.  I think he was one of the players who turned out to be older than he claimed at some point.  

24.  Richard Fitts.  Fitts was acquired in the trade with the Yankees that sent Alex Verdugo to New York.  He was then traded away in the deal that brought Sonny Gray to Boston.  In the middle, he had some decent performances, going 2-5 with a 3.97 ERA in 15 games.  He has yet to appear with the Cardinals.

25.  Zach Penrod.  Penrod pitched in just seven games with the Red Sox in 2024, but had a 2.25 ERA.  I am not really sure why he never made it back to the Majors.

26.  Alex Bregman.  I promise I still have a One-Year Wonder post coming for Bregman.  He is one of the better ones, but it won't be enough to unseat Adrian Beltre.

27.  David Hamilton.  Hamilton started the year off hot for the Brewers after being involved in the deal that brought Caleb Durbin to Boston.  He has cooled off, but is still a valuable bench player, especially with his speed.  He stole 34 bases for the Red Sox in 2024.

28.  Cy Young.  The namesake of the pitching award, Young pitched the first no-hitter in Red Sox history, and still the only perfect game in Red Sox history.  

29.  David Ortiz.  This card actually celebrates the 2004 ALCS.  I thought this set was just for World Series victories, so I was a little surprised by this.  

30.  Alex Bregman.

31.  Ceddanne Rafaela.  It's always fun when a Rafaela card sneaks into a big trade package.

32.  Walker Buehler.  I really had high hopes for Buehler when he came to Boston.  After his 2024 World Series performance, I thought he would be a good mid-rotation starter.  He was terrible in Boston though.

33.  Jarren Duran.  Duran could become a 20/20 man this season.  He is currently one home run and two stolen bases away.  The stolen bases SHOULD be easy to get.

34.  Romy Gonzalez.  After his great season in 2025, Gonzalez has been slowed by injuries all season.  He came back briefly, but struggled and is in the minors currently.  Hopefully he rebounds next season.

35.  Payton Tolle.  Tolle has pitched really well this year.  I don't know why he is getting no hype as a potential Rookie of the Year candidate.  I don't think he should win, but he should be mentioned more.

36.  Roger Clemens.

37.  Payton Tolle.

38.  Franklin Arias.

39.  Andruw Monasterio.  This is my first Monasterio card.  He was acquired in the deal with the Brewers along with Caleb Durbin and Anthony Seigler that sent Kyle Harrison, David Hamilton and Shane Drohan to Milwaukee.  Monasterio has had some big clutch hits this season.  He has been much better offensively than I thought he would, though he is prone to errors in the field, particularly at shortstop.

40.  Ranger Suarez.  This is my first Suarez card.  Suarez has struggled lately, but he was an All Star this season after signing a big free agent contract.  Injuries have taken a toll.  Hopefully he can right the ship soon.

41.  Garrett Crochet.  Crochet has missed a huge chunk of the season due to injury after finishing second in the Cy Young vote last year.  

42.  Jhostynxon Garcia.  Garcia was a big prospect, but with a crowded outfield, he was sent to Pittsburgh before the season for Johan Oviedo and Tyler Samaniego.

43.  Aroldis Chapman.  Chapman could be a Hall of Famer when all is said and done.  I think he will wear a Reds cap on his plaque, but if he pitches a couple more years in Boston and keeps up the way he has been pitching, it could make things interesting.

44.  Antonio Anderson.  Anderson was a third-round pick in the 2023 draft and was paid overslot.  He is 21 and in High-A, but he has been playing reasonably well.  Tough to say where he may go at this point.  I don't think it is likely he will make the Majors, but things could change.

45.  Justin Riemer.  Riemer was a fourth-round pick in the 2023 draft and was traded in December for Ryan Watson.

I Got a New Scanner

Now, my pictures of cards will be much clearer.  I don't have to take pics on my phone anymore.  I had an Office Space moment with my previous printer/fax/scanner.  Those that know what I am talking about, know.  It kept jamming.  Much like the printer in Office Space.  It had it coming. 

Is Ceddanne Rafaela the team MVP this year?  I think there is a very good argument that he is.  He leads the team in WAR, though it's been a lot closer lately with Wilyer Abreu.  He leads the league in doubles, and is among the top ten in average and hits.  He is playing his typical elite defense.  If he finishes strong, there is no doubt he is right up there.  I have not been getting as many of his cards lately (though this post would seem to argue otherwise) just because his stuff is in higher demand.

1.  Kevin Youkilis.  I love it when Panini thinks outside the box a little bit for player selection.  Youkilis was a very good player for several years, but he's pretty far removed from Hall of Fame-worthy.  It's a lot of fun to see him make it into a recent set though.  He was certainly a fan favorite.  He won a Gold Glove and was an All Star a few times, and he was in the top ten in MVP voting twice.

2.  Franklin Arias.  It's safe to say Arias is going to be getting a lot of cards soon.  Boston's top prospect hasn't made his Major League debut yet, but if his minor league play translates in the Majors, he is going to be exciting. 

And here are a bunch more Ceddanne Rafaela cards to round out the post.  

2001 Fleer Red Sox 100th

 

NAME: Boo Ferriss

POSITION: Starting Pitcher

WHY IS HE HERE? Ferriss was one of the two top pitchers on the team during the 1946 season in which the Red Sox steamrolled their way to the World Series.  His Major League debut was delayed a bit due to service in World War II, but he won 20+ games in each of this first two seasons and finished in the top ten in the MVP vote both years.  

WOULD I PUT HIM IN IN 2001?: Yes.

ANY BETTER CHOICES IN 2001?: Any of the better choices are already here.

WOULD I PUT HIM IN NOW?: Yes.

ANY BETTER CHOICES NOW?: Of course there are other pitchers that should be in, but Ferriss was a big part of the team at a certain point. In order to tell a full history of the team, he has to be in.  He was one of the aces of a team that went to the World Series and that means something.

The Worst Red Sox Team of All Time Pt. 38: Johnny Watwood

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

Watwood had a couple good years with the White Sox in the early 1930's, including hitting .302 in 1930.  He played a variety of positions, including first base and center field.  He started the 1932 season still with the White Sox, but after playing 13 games, he was sent to the Red Sox as part of the trade that brought Smead Jolley to Boston.  The full details were Watwood, Jolley, Bennie Tate and $75,000.00 to the Red Sox for Charlie Berry and Jack Rothrock.  Watwood finished the 1932 season with the Red Sox.

Unfortunately for Boston, Watwood was not very good in 1932.  After a couple of seasons of decent hitting lines, he hit just .248/.301/.289.  He also had a power outage, not homering and contributing just eleven doubles.  He stole seven bases and walked 20 times versus eleven strikeouts, but that was about the most positive thing about his season.  

Watwood played in only 13 games in 1933 and his numbers were awful.  In May, he was traded along with Marv Olson to the Yankees for Dusty Cooke, a deal that worked out much better for Boston.  Watwood never played for the Yankees and later appeared in a couple games with the Phillies in 1939 after several years in the minor leagues.    

Donruss Elite Blaster

A few days after my three-blaster purchase, I went back and the only thing available was Donruss Elite.  And so I grabbed one.  Chances were pretty low on this.  I think there were only 32-40 cards in the entire thing.  But, as with most Panini products, I tend to have decent luck. 

I said before I seem to be pulling a lot of Marcelo Mayer cards.  It's kind of annoying since he is no longer with the team, but I never turn down Red Sox cards.  Obviously.  This is the Green Disco parallel.  So, my one Red Sox card was not even a base card, it was a parallel.  I will definitely take that.

A Bunch of Trades

Just putting a few trades together in one post here. 

1.  Eduardo Rodriguez.  E-Rod is having a great year this year.  Unfortunately, it's for Arizona.  He was always one of my favorites.  I thought after his 19-win, 200+ strikeout season in 2019, he was finally going to break out, but he missed the 2020 COVID season and was good but not great in 2021 and 2022 before leaving as a free agent.

2.  Jeter Downs.  Downs was a casualty of the lost 2020 season.  Losing an entire year of development was brutal for him.  He was supposed to be the top prospect in the Mookie Betts trade.

3.  Masataka Yoshida.  Yoshida is quietly having a nice season.  He has one more year on his contract, which has largely been a miss.

4.  Garrett Crochet.  Crochet has been injured most of the season, but the team has survived with the emergence of Payton Tolle in particular, as well as great seasons from Sonny Gray and Ranger Suarez.

5.  Nomar Garciaparra.  I am very curious to see how Nomar does on an Eras Committee.  I think he is close to being eligible.  Maybe by the time the next Today's Game Era Committee meets again.  

1.  Triston Casas.  Casas hasn't played since early in 2025 and hasn't played a whole season since his rookie year in 2023.  It's a shame.  His power could really come in handy on this team.

2.  Pedro Martinez.  It's always fun to add another Martinez card.

3.  Cy Young.  I like it when card companies dip back into the turn of the 20th century for players.  I would love to see a company release a set with throwback designs and cover all players from this era.  Let's see Bill Dinneen, Buck Freeman, Chick Stahl, Jimmy Collins and other great Boston players from that era.

4.  Chris Sale.  I think it is safe to say that Sale is back on track for the Hall of Fame.  The question is which hat will he wear on his plaque?  He seems like a good one to have a blank cap because he has been great for three teams.  This card celebrates his strikeout of Manny Machado to win the 2018 World Series.

5.  Manny Ramirez.  Ramirez was the 2004 World Series MVP, the first Red Sox player to win the award.

6.  Kristian Campbell.  Campbell has been showing up a lot in my posts lately.

1.  John Valentin.  Valentin remains one of the most underrated players in Red Sox history.  He was never an All Star, though he did win a Silver Slugger.  He probably should have won a Gold Glove.  For Boston, he hit .281/.361/.460 with 121 home runs as an infielder.

2.  John Valentin.  Yep, two Valentin cards in one trade.

3.  Brian Rose.  Another reason to be skeptical of prospects.  There was a time when Brian Rose was Boston's top prospect.  He had a 5.86 ERA in his Major League career.

1.  Tanner Houck.  Houck is another player whose Major League career has been on hold for over a year.  He had Tommy John surgery last year.  He might be getting close to a return.  He was an All Star in 2024.

2.  Joe Wood.  Smoky Joe Wood has one of the greatest pitching seasons in Red Sox history in 1912 when he was 34-5 with a 1.91 ERA and 258 strikeouts in 344 innings pitched.  Unfortunately, arm injuries (most likely stemming from overuse) derailed his career.

3.  Josh Taylor.  Taylor was a great southpaw in the Red Sox bullpen in 2019 and 2021.  He was traded to the Royals for Adalberto Mondesi (Raul Mondesi's son), but the trade was a bust for both teams.  Taylor was terrible in Kansas City and Mondesi never played for the Red Sox due to injuries.

4.  Wade Boggs.  Boggs is obviously a first-ballot Hall of Famer, but he was actually kind of underrated.  Modern analytics would have identified him as one of the best players in the game, but because he played in the 1980's, his lack of power kept him out of that conversation.  He had an OPS of .890 during his time in Boston.

5.  David Ortiz.  An All Star card of Ortiz.  He was an All Star ten times.  All with the Red Sox.

6.  Payton Tolle.  I think I am going to be getting a lot of Tolle cards from now on.  I just really like him.  I'm definitely glad Boston kept him.  He has a lower floor, but a higher ceiling than Connelly Early.

7.  Jarren Duran.  I want Duran to succeed, but I do think it would be better for all parties if he is traded this offseason.  Boston could use the roster spot and Duran could use a fresh start.

Closing things out with a Ceddy mini.