― Mark Twain
Boy, Twain wasn't kidding, was he? As a fan of the Red Sox we certainly had to face a number of ignominious failings until finally exercising those demons in 2004. Nevertheless, this doesn't change the fact that Boston has been one of the most prominent offensive teams in Major League Baseball history. When we look deeper into the numbers that have been put up by some of the the iconic members of this franchise, there is certainly much to be proud of despite the absence of championships.
Before we pry open the lid and descend into the catacombs of statistical lore, I found an interesting connection between Mark Twain and Boston baseball. Ironically, one of the first indictors that Twain had an active interest in baseball came from an article in the Hartford Courant. It seems that Twain apparently lost his umbrella while rooting for the home team, the Hartford Dark Blues as they were entertaining a Boston based team nicknamed the Red Stockings. Ol' Sammy had an acerbic wit for sure. Check out this article he posted in an attempt to recover his property.
May 15, 1875 - To the Public
TWO HUNDRED & FIVE DOLLARS REWARD
At the great baseball match on Tuesday, while I was engaged in hurrahing, a small boy walked off with an English-made brown silk UMBRELLA belonging to me, & forgot to bring it back. I will pay $5 for the return of that umbrella in good condition to my house on Farmington avenue. I do not want the boy (in an active state) but will pay two hundred dollars for his remains.
Samuel L. Clemens.
At the great baseball match on Tuesday, while I was engaged in hurrahing, a small boy walked off with an English-made brown silk UMBRELLA belonging to me, & forgot to bring it back. I will pay $5 for the return of that umbrella in good condition to my house on Farmington avenue. I do not want the boy (in an active state) but will pay two hundred dollars for his remains.
Samuel L. Clemens.
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| Al Spalding helped establish the National League in 1876 and went on the write the first rule book in 1878. After he retired, he also organized the first world baseball tour in 1888-1889 and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1939. |
The Boston Red Stockings would eventually become the Boston Braves, leaving the Red Stockings nickname behind. They then relocated two more times before becoming the modern day Atlanta Braves. In 1908, after 7 seasons as the Boston Americans, the American League franchise would adopt the monicker of Red Sox, reminiscent of the Red Stockings years earlier.
Throughout their illustrious history, the Red Sox would bid "Goodbye, Mr. Spalding" to many of Al's creations as Boston ranks fourth all time in homers in the last 100 years. In this same time frame, they also sit second in runs scored, batting average, total bases and OPS. The St, Louis Cardinals didn't make the top ten all time in homers but edge out both the Red Sox and Yankees hitting at a .269 mark.
| Rk | From | To | G | HR | R | H | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | NYY | 1914 | 2014 | 176512 | 14806 | 78417 | 145485 | .268 | .342 | .412 | .755 |
| 2 | NYG | 1914 | 2014 | 202751 | 13003 | 71213 | 142249 | .263 | .328 | .394 | .722 |
| 3 | DET | 1914 | 2014 | 179172 | 12762 | 74264 | 144577 | .266 | .337 | .401 | .738 |
| 4 | BOS | 1914 | 2014 | 177466 | 12351 | 74411 | 145444 | .268 | .340 | .403 | .743 |
| 5 | SLB | 1914 | 2014 | 180533 | 12196 | 69733 | 140664 | .261 | .331 | .389 | .720 |
| 6 | CHC | 1914 | 2014 | 201629 | 12033 | 68653 | 141393 | .261 | .325 | .389 | .714 |
| 7 | CLE | 1914 | 2014 | 179137 | 11963 | 72437 | 144084 | .266 | .335 | .396 | .731 |
| 8 | PHA | 1914 | 2014 | 180470 | 11909 | 69841 | 138740 | .258 | .329 | .384 | .713 |
| 9 | BSN | 1914 | 2014 | 199286 | 11874 | 67268 | 139684 | .259 | .324 | .382 | .706 |
| 10 | CIN | 1914 | 2014 | 200675 | 11581 | 68558 | 141199 | .262 | .326 | .388 | .714 |
Despite the much heralded and well publicized heartaches that we've all experienced as fans, the franchise certainly has had its share of successful campaigns. For some, the focus has been on the past fifteen years as the Red Sox have registered some huge offensive statistics to go along with three world titles. Other older diehard fans, like myself, will remember earlier years when the thunder was present but the cleansing rain to wash away the grime of failure didn't materialize. My Red Sox fandom did not begin until the mid seventies with some pretty powerful squads. My aim was initially to highlight the decades of the 70's, 80's, and 90's, but I got to thinking "Where did it all start?" I had heard many stories about those iconic sluggers of the past and their Red Sox experience and was curious about the run production those players brought to the various franchise editions down through history. In order to make some connections, lets turn the dial all the way back to the turn of the 20th century to explore the "ancestory of power".
As the Red Sox prepare to begin the second half of their twelfth decade of existence, Boston owns a .517 winning percentage since 1901 which good enough for fifth all time in Major League Baseball history and second best overall in American League. Below are all the franchises that feature a lifetime .500 mark.
| Tm | G | W | L | RS | RA | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NYY | 17496 | 9913 | 7495 | .569 | 84943 | 72972 |
| NYG | 17804 | 9506 | 8208 | .537 | 79867 | 73739 |
| BRO | 17804 | 9275 | 8440 | .524 | 76332 | 72748 |
| STL | 17816 | 9225 | 8487 | .521 | 79073 | 75708 |
| BOS | 17783 | 9146 | 8554 | .517 | 82574 | 79558 |
| CLE | 17797 | 9016 | 8690 | .509 | 80446 | 79020 |
| DET | 17823 | 9011 | 8719 | .508 | 82534 | 81237 |
| PIT | 17803 | 8997 | 8712 | .508 | 77608 | 75893 |
| CHW | 17792 | 8928 | 8761 | .505 | 77605 | 76848 |
| CIN | 17820 | 8917 | 8813 | .503 | 76667 | 76633 |
| CHC | 17822 | 8891 | 8831 | .502 | 77217 | 76801 |
| LAA | 8621 | 4318 | 4300 | .501 | 37292 | 37422 |
By rolling the clock back with the above data to Boston's inception, the Red Sox now vault to second in the runs scored column with 82 574, trailing only the Yankees. What makes this achievement even more admirable is that Boston stumbled badly out of the "Dead Ball Era" sitting last in runs scored and homers from 1920-1929 and registered winning percentages under .500 for 14 consecutive years. Looking at the franchise geneology, the Red Sox power surge would begin in the downtrodden 1930s.
Offensive prominence didn't really begin in Boston until about 80 years ago with the arrival of Jimmie Foxx. After spending 11 years with the Connie Mack's Philadelphia Athletics, Foxx was traded to Boston on December 10th,1935 with pitcher Johnny Marcum for George Savino, Gordon Rhodes and $150 000. Savino was a catcher who would never play at the major league level and Rhodes was a RHP coming off a 2-10 campaign in 1935 with a portly 5.42 ERA. Rhodes would lose 20 games with the Athletics the following year, his last in the Majors. The key component of the deal for Mack was the money. Mack had built a powerhouse as the Athletics averaged 101 wins between 1928 - 1932, and Foxx was the centerpiece of this offensive juggernaut. Known as "The Beast", Foxx averaged 34 homers and 128 RBI and batted .334 during this period of dominance. He made a run at Babe Ruth's single season home run record clubbing 58 in 1932 and was named the American League MVP. Philadelphia would appear in the World Series three consecutive years (1929-1931) winning the first two and losing in to the St. Louis Cardinals in seven games in their final appearance. However, due to the Depression and declining attendance Mack was forced to sell off his star players as he had fallen on hard times financially. Tom Yawkey had made him an offer he simply couldn't refuse.
Foxx didn't disappoint his new employer as he was an all-star in six of his seven seasons in Boston and nabbed his second American League MVP award in 1938. Jimmie drove in an incredible 175 runs that year which is a team franchise record that still stands today. In 1939, a brash 20 year old youngster came along by the name of Ted Williams, and both he and Foxx would become one of the most lethal lefty/righty combinations in Red Sox history. Between 1939-1941 both Williams and Foxx combined to hit 181 homers and drive in 707 runs. This duo also had an average OPS of 1.067 to go along with a .337 BA which was buoyed in larger part to Williams 1941 campaign and his legendary .406 clip. Another eye popping stat to further demonstrate their impact: Williams (1.116) and Foxx (1.034) sit first and second respectively in all-time OPS in Red Sox history. Guess who is third and fourth? Yep, it would be the second greatest lefty/righty combo of Manny Ramirez third (.999) and David Ortiz fourth (.954).
Unfortunately, this partnership was all too brief as Foxx's on and off again feud with then player/manager Joe Cronin came to a head in 1942. Cronin informed Foxx he'd have to win the job out of Spring Training, which he did, but Foxx broke his rib in a freak batting practice accident forcing Boston to place him on waivers. The Chicago Cubs claimed Foxx, but because of diminishing eyesight and other nagging injuries, he was never the same again. Foxx was out of baseball after the 1945 season.
The scepter of power had now been passed to Williams, but one year after Foxx's departure, World War II pressed Williams to focus his attention and energy with the US Marine Corps. One can only wonder to what extent Williams would have impacted the offensive numbers in the 1940's had he been playing during three of his prime years. After leading the American League in batting average, walks and runs scored in both 1941 and 1942, Williams enlisted for military service at the age of 23. Even with his three year hiatus, Williams was still top dog in the 40's as can be seen below.
"Teddy Ballgame" was the leader in homers, batting average, OPS, and the runs created category. Another stat that is truly astonishing to note is Williams strikeout percentage. He registered a miniscule 6.7% while his BB% was a mind boggling 21.3%. It is also not surprising that the Red Sox played their worst baseball in Ted's absence. From 1943-1945, Boston posting a winning percentage of .470 (216-244). When Williams returned, Boston also hit the century mark in wins in 1946 for the first time since 1915 and made their first World Series appearance since 1918. Boston hasn't reached the 100 win plateau since.
Williams was also capably flanked by his buddy and Hall of Fame second baseman Bobby Doerr. As can be seen in the above table, he ranked sixth in the '40s in runs created and was second on the Red Sox during the decade in homers. This nine time all-star also served in the military during World War II as both he and Williams would miss the 1945 season.
Boston was bolstered with another potent bat in their lineup with the arrival of Vern
Stephens.He, along with Doerr and Williams, formed a deadly trident in the late 1940s.The cash strapped St. Louis Browns shipped him and Jack Kramer to Boston for 6 other players and $310 000. While Stephens isn't exactly a name that jumps out at you consider this - in the entire 20th century a shortstop has knocked in more than 130 runs only four times. Stephens performed this feat three times with the Red Sox during his tenure with the club from 1948-1952. The only other shortstop to do this was "Mr. Cub" Ernie Banks. From 1948 - 1950 Vern or "Little Slug" as he was called had 440 RBI. As far as offensive production from the shortstop position, this was a new frontier. Stephens would be second only to Ted Williams in home runs in the Majors during his years with the Red Sox. He also placed third in runs created and led in RBI with 562. Many whispered that he could have been Hall of Fame worthy as his numbers were better than two of his positional contemporaries that had been enshrined: Phil Rizzuto and Lou Boudreau, but his injury shortened career probably derailed his chances in this regard. His knees eventually ended his career prematurely. Boston traded him to the White Sox in 1953 and his declining health relegated him to a part time role for the remainder of his big league career. Stephens was finished after the 1955 campaign at the age of 34.
It was a renaissance decade for Boston in the 1940s. To go along with their first place finish in 1946, they would place second four times: 1941, 1942, 1948 and 1949. Unfortunately, Enos Slaughter's "Mad Dash" coupled with Johnny Pesky's double clutch in game seven of the '46 World Series unleashed the fury of the "Curse of the Bambino" to epic proportions. Even the best pure hitter in baseball history would be unable to sway the specter of the Babe, and Williams was forced to play the lead role in a few of the classic Greek tragedies in baseball history. The last two second place finishes were bitter pills to swallow as the Red Sox would come up 1 game short in the most excruciating of ways.
In 1948, Boston won their last four games of the season including a victory against the Yankees on the last day of the regular season to pull into a share of first place with the mighty Cleveland Indians. This would force a one game playoff, but Boston didn't have any answers for the Indians' twenty game winner Gene Beardon as Cleveland defeated the Red Sox 8-3, thwarting an all Boston World Series. Cleveland went on to defeat the Boston Braves in six games. The following year was even more crude as Boston went on an 11 game winning streak from Sept.13th to Sept.27th to move one game up on the hated Yankees. Before the beginning of their winning ways, Boston was 2.5 games out of first place. The Red Sox went into New York for the last game of the regular season up by 1 game. The Yankees trailed 4-0 after 3 innings but would post 2 runs efforts in the fourth and fifth innings to tie the game. In the bottom of the eight, Yankee left fielder Johnny Lindell would drive a two out solo shot to left field off Boston's Joe Dobson to complete the New York comeback. For the second consecutive year, Boston was involved in yet another one game playoff the following day in New York. Despite a valiant effort in the ninth that saw Boston score three times, it wouldn't be enough and the Yankees would go on to take the playoff game 5-3 and went on to win the World Series.
The 1950s were uneventful as Boston never finished higher than third place. Ted was still the big horse, outdistancing Jackie Jensen in the runs created category by more than 300 during the decade. Williams also was the decade's leader in batting average (.336) and OPS (1.098).Global conflict once again interrupted William's career as he would miss time fighting in the Korean War in 1952-53. While gearing up for the 1954 season, he was slowed by a broken collarbone during spring training and pondered retirement. However, Williams would stay on and see the 50's through waiting to hand the burden of power off to another left fielder, Carl Yastrzemski. Williams last season of professional baseball as a player was 1960 fittingly ending it with a home run in is last at bat. Yaz would begin his storied career in 1961.
The 60's were the second worst decade in the Sawx existence as they would finish below .500 seven times from 1959 - 1966. Then the unthinkable happened. An unexpected and magical 1967 season would be the benchmark for the "Shock and Awe" decade of the seventies. Be sure to check back for my next post on this memorable era in Red Sox history.
Offensive prominence didn't really begin in Boston until about 80 years ago with the arrival of Jimmie Foxx. After spending 11 years with the Connie Mack's Philadelphia Athletics, Foxx was traded to Boston on December 10th,1935 with pitcher Johnny Marcum for George Savino, Gordon Rhodes and $150 000. Savino was a catcher who would never play at the major league level and Rhodes was a RHP coming off a 2-10 campaign in 1935 with a portly 5.42 ERA. Rhodes would lose 20 games with the Athletics the following year, his last in the Majors. The key component of the deal for Mack was the money. Mack had built a powerhouse as the Athletics averaged 101 wins between 1928 - 1932, and Foxx was the centerpiece of this offensive juggernaut. Known as "The Beast", Foxx averaged 34 homers and 128 RBI and batted .334 during this period of dominance. He made a run at Babe Ruth's single season home run record clubbing 58 in 1932 and was named the American League MVP. Philadelphia would appear in the World Series three consecutive years (1929-1931) winning the first two and losing in to the St. Louis Cardinals in seven games in their final appearance. However, due to the Depression and declining attendance Mack was forced to sell off his star players as he had fallen on hard times financially. Tom Yawkey had made him an offer he simply couldn't refuse.
Foxx didn't disappoint his new employer as he was an all-star in six of his seven seasons in Boston and nabbed his second American League MVP award in 1938. Jimmie drove in an incredible 175 runs that year which is a team franchise record that still stands today. In 1939, a brash 20 year old youngster came along by the name of Ted Williams, and both he and Foxx would become one of the most lethal lefty/righty combinations in Red Sox history. Between 1939-1941 both Williams and Foxx combined to hit 181 homers and drive in 707 runs. This duo also had an average OPS of 1.067 to go along with a .337 BA which was buoyed in larger part to Williams 1941 campaign and his legendary .406 clip. Another eye popping stat to further demonstrate their impact: Williams (1.116) and Foxx (1.034) sit first and second respectively in all-time OPS in Red Sox history. Guess who is third and fourth? Yep, it would be the second greatest lefty/righty combo of Manny Ramirez third (.999) and David Ortiz fourth (.954).
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| "The Beast" and "The Splendid Splinter" |
The scepter of power had now been passed to Williams, but one year after Foxx's departure, World War II pressed Williams to focus his attention and energy with the US Marine Corps. One can only wonder to what extent Williams would have impacted the offensive numbers in the 1940's had he been playing during three of his prime years. After leading the American League in batting average, walks and runs scored in both 1941 and 1942, Williams enlisted for military service at the age of 23. Even with his three year hiatus, Williams was still top dog in the 40's as can be seen below.
| Rk | Player | RC | From | To | R | HR | RBI | BB | SO | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ted Williams | 1168 | 1940 | 1949 | 951 | 234 | 893 | 994 | 312 | .356 | .496 | .647 | 1.143 |
| 2 | Stan Musial | 1019 | 1941 | 1949 | 815 | 146 | 706 | 565 | 199 | .346 | .428 | .578 | 1.005 |
| 3 | Bob Elliott | 885 | 1940 | 1949 | 803 | 109 | 903 | 728 | 418 | .292 | .377 | .437 | .814 |
| 4 | Lou Boudreau | 847 | 1940 | 1949 | 758 | 62 | 692 | 706 | 268 | .300 | .385 | .422 | .807 |
| 5 | Bill Nicholson | 838 | 1940 | 1949 | 743 | 211 | 835 | 721 | 708 | .269 | .368 | .467 | .834 |
| 6 | Bobby Doerr | 825 | 1940 | 1949 | 764 | 164 | 887 | 570 | 437 | .286 | .361 | .468 | .828 |
| 7 | Dixie Walker | 822 | 1940 | 1949 | 704 | 68 | 759 | 597 | 204 | .311 | .388 | .436 | .825 |
| 8 | Joe DiMaggio | 813 | 1940 | 1949 | 684 | 180 | 786 | 450 | 183 | .325 | .404 | .568 | .972 |
| 9 | Johnny Mize | 773 | 1940 | 1949 | 655 | 217 | 744 | 496 | 259 | .304 | .394 | .561 | .954 |
| 10 | Rudy York | 764 | 1940 | 1948 | 652 | 189 | 854 | 617 | 688 | .268 | .354 | .457 | .811 |
"Teddy Ballgame" was the leader in homers, batting average, OPS, and the runs created category. Another stat that is truly astonishing to note is Williams strikeout percentage. He registered a miniscule 6.7% while his BB% was a mind boggling 21.3%. It is also not surprising that the Red Sox played their worst baseball in Ted's absence. From 1943-1945, Boston posting a winning percentage of .470 (216-244). When Williams returned, Boston also hit the century mark in wins in 1946 for the first time since 1915 and made their first World Series appearance since 1918. Boston hasn't reached the 100 win plateau since.
In games Ted Williams won, he hit .385/.525/.728 (5,613 PAs). pic.twitter.com/aFpsJWgmsZ
— Stirrups Now! (@uniformcritic) December 7, 2014
Williams was also capably flanked by his buddy and Hall of Fame second baseman Bobby Doerr. As can be seen in the above table, he ranked sixth in the '40s in runs created and was second on the Red Sox during the decade in homers. This nine time all-star also served in the military during World War II as both he and Williams would miss the 1945 season.
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| William with the camera and Doerr seated with Dom DiMaggio. DiMaggio or "The Little Professor" as he was called was also an important cog of those teams of the 40's. The seven time all-star offered more along the lines as a table setter with a lifetime batting average of .298 and an OBP of .383 in 11 seasons with the Red Sox. |
Boston was bolstered with another potent bat in their lineup with the arrival of Vern
In 1948, Boston won their last four games of the season including a victory against the Yankees on the last day of the regular season to pull into a share of first place with the mighty Cleveland Indians. This would force a one game playoff, but Boston didn't have any answers for the Indians' twenty game winner Gene Beardon as Cleveland defeated the Red Sox 8-3, thwarting an all Boston World Series. Cleveland went on to defeat the Boston Braves in six games. The following year was even more crude as Boston went on an 11 game winning streak from Sept.13th to Sept.27th to move one game up on the hated Yankees. Before the beginning of their winning ways, Boston was 2.5 games out of first place. The Red Sox went into New York for the last game of the regular season up by 1 game. The Yankees trailed 4-0 after 3 innings but would post 2 runs efforts in the fourth and fifth innings to tie the game. In the bottom of the eight, Yankee left fielder Johnny Lindell would drive a two out solo shot to left field off Boston's Joe Dobson to complete the New York comeback. For the second consecutive year, Boston was involved in yet another one game playoff the following day in New York. Despite a valiant effort in the ninth that saw Boston score three times, it wouldn't be enough and the Yankees would go on to take the playoff game 5-3 and went on to win the World Series.
The 1950s were uneventful as Boston never finished higher than third place. Ted was still the big horse, outdistancing Jackie Jensen in the runs created category by more than 300 during the decade. Williams also was the decade's leader in batting average (.336) and OPS (1.098).Global conflict once again interrupted William's career as he would miss time fighting in the Korean War in 1952-53. While gearing up for the 1954 season, he was slowed by a broken collarbone during spring training and pondered retirement. However, Williams would stay on and see the 50's through waiting to hand the burden of power off to another left fielder, Carl Yastrzemski. Williams last season of professional baseball as a player was 1960 fittingly ending it with a home run in is last at bat. Yaz would begin his storied career in 1961.
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