Boston Red Sox

From BR Bullpen

Also known as Boston Americans, Boston Somersets, and Boston Pilgrims BR Page Franchise Record: 8358-7884 World Series Titles: 7 (1903, 1912, 1915, 1916, 1918, 2004, 2007) American League Pennants: 12 (1903, 1904, 1912, 1915, 1916, 1918, 1946, 1967, 1975, 1986, 2004, 2007) Playoffs: 20 (1903, 1912, 1915, 1916, 1918, 1946, 1967, 1975, 1986, 1988, 1990, 1995, 1998, 1999, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009) Franchise Players: Jimmy Collins, Cy Young, Tris Speaker, Harry Hooper, Babe Ruth, Lefty Grove, Jimmie Foxx, Ted Williams, Bobby Doerr, Carl Yastrzemski, Dwight Evans, Jim Rice, Roger Clemens, Wade Boggs, Pedro Martinez, David Ortiz, Manny Ramirez

Boston Red Sox logo

[edit] Team History

This was the Red Sox logo used in 1908.

The Boston Red Sox were created in 1901 in the American League, when the league decided to claim Major League status as a rival to the National League. They were not known as the Red Sox until 1908; before that time, they were refered to by various unofficial names such as the Boston Americans, Boston Pilgrims or Boston Somersets. Early in the century, the Red Sox won World Series titles in 1903, 1912, 1915, 1916, and 1918. They won the AL pennant in 1904, but New York Giants manager John McGraw refused to play the American League champions in a World Series that year. The 1903 title came in the first modern World Series and was an upset of the National League's Pittsburgh Pirates thanks to the pitching of Cy Young and Bill Dinneen. That win did much to secure the American League's claim as a worthy rival of the senior circuit.

After this early success, the franchise unravelled when owner Harry Frazee began trading or selling most of his top players to the New York Yankees beginning in 1920, in order to meet financial pressures. The most infamous of these deals was the sale of pitcher turned outfielder Babe Ruth to the Yankees, a deal that changed the fate of two franchises. The Yankees won their first pennant in 1921 and immediately became perennial World Series participants, while the Red Sox sank to the bottom of the standings, and did not emerge again as a competitive force until the second half of the 1930s.

The Red Sox got back to the World Series in 1946, but lost in 7 games. In 1948, they tied the Cleveland Indians in the regular season, forcing a one-game playoff, which they lost in part because of Joe McCarthy's controversial decision to start unheralded Denny Galehouse in the deciding game; the loss cost the city of Boston the chance to have an all-local World Series, since the crosstown rival Braves won their last pennant in Boston that year. The Bosox returned to the Fall Classic in 1967, 1975, and 1986, losing each series in 7 games as well. In 1978, the Red Sox blew a nine game lead over the New York Yankees and lost a one-game playoff, which featured Bucky Dent's seventh inning three-run homer over Fenway Park's Green Monster. The Red Sox lost the ALCS in 1988 and 1990 in 4 game sweeps to the Oakland A's, the 1995 ALDS to the Cleveland Indians and the 1999 and 2003 ALCS to the Yankees.

In 2004, the Yankees took a three games to none lead over the Red Sox in the ALCS. However, the Red Sox came back to tie Game 4 in the 9th inning (at Fenway Park) off Yankees' closer Mariano Rivera, highlighted by Dave Roberts's steal of second base followed by a game-tying single from Bill Mueller. Later, David Ortiz won the game with a home run in the bottom of the 12th inning. Boston staged another late-inning rally in Game 5, with Roberts again scoring the tying run. Ortiz won that game with a run-scoring single in the bottom of the 14th inning. The series then moved to Yankee Stadium and Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling, who had a severe ankle injury, was able to win Game 6. The Red Sox would then beat the Yankees in Game 7 to win the ALCS, then swept the St. Louis Cardinals in the World Series to win their first World Championship since 1918.

The Sox were a wild-card entry in the post-season 2005 and lost to the Chicago White Sox in the Division Series. The team finished second in the AL East for 7 consecutive seasons (from 1998 to 2004), and in 2005 tied the Yankees for first in the division, but were awarded the wild card due to a 9-10 head-to-head record against their rivals.

After missing the postseason altogether in 2006, the Sox finished first in the AL East in 2007, going on to sweep the 2007 World Series against the Colorado Rockies. They won the AL wild card in 2008 but fell to the upstart Tampa Bay Rays in a seven-game ALCS match-up. In 2009, they started the season on fire, but were eventually caught and passed by the [[2009 Yankees|Yankees]¸in August, ebnding up once again as the wild card; in the Division Series, they once again faced the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, to which they had never lost in the postseason, but this time were swept in three games, ending a disappointing season.

[edit] Retired Numbers

(Red Sox Policy on Number Retiring: Member of Baseball Hall of Fame & 10 Years as a Red Sox; an exception was made for Pesky)

• 1 Bobby Doerr
• 4 Joe Cronin
• 6 Johnny Pesky
• 8 Carl Yastrzemski
• 9 Ted Williams
• 14 Jim Rice
• 27 Carlton Fisk
• 14 Jim Rice

[edit] Other Notable Players

• Wade Boggs
• Rick Burleson
• Bill Carrigan
• Roger Clemens
• Jimmy Collins
• Tony Conigliaro
• Johnny Damon
• Dom DiMaggio
• Dennis Eckersley
• Dwight Evans
• Rick Ferrell
• Dave Ferriss
• Jimmie Foxx
• Nomar Garciaparra
• Larry Gardner
• Billy Goodman
• Lefty Grove
• Harry Hooper
• Tex Hughson
• Bruce Hurst
• Jackie Jensen
• Duffy Lewis
• Jim Lonborg
• Derek Lowe
• Fred Lynn
• Frank Malzone
• Pedro Martinez
• Bill Monbouquette
• David Ortiz
• Mel Parnell
• Johnny Pesky
• Rico Petrocelli
• Dick Radatz
• Manny Ramirez
• Pete Runnels
• Babe Ruth
• Curt Schilling
• Reggie Smith
• Tris Speaker
• Bob Stanley
• Luis Tiant
• Jason Varitek
• Tim Wakefield
• Smoky Joe Wood
• Cy Young

[edit] Team Executives

[edit] Further Reading

• Gary Gillette and Pete Palmer, ed.: The Ultimate Red Sox Companion: A Complete Statistical and Reference Guide, Maple Street Press, Hingham, MA, 2007.
• Jerry M. Gutlon: It was Never About the Babe: The Red Sox, Racism, Mismanagement, and the Curse of the Bambino, Skyhorse Publishing, New York, NY, 2009.
• Dobnald Hubbard: The Red Sox Before the Babe: Boston's Early Days in the American League, 1901-1914, McFarland, Jefferson, NC, 2009.
• David Laurila: Interviews from Red Sox Nation, Maple Street Press, Hingham, MA, 2006.
• William F. McNeil: Red Sox Nation Guide to the Players, Northeastern University Press, Boston, MA, 2008.
• Bill Nowlin: Red Sox Threads: Odds and Ends from Red Sox History, Rounder Books, Burlington, MA, 2008.
• Bill Nowlin and Jim Pride: The Boston Red Sox World Series Encyclopedia, Rounder Books, Burlington, MA, 2008.
• Joshua R. Pahigian: The Red Sox in the Playoffs: A Postseason History, 1903-2005, McFarland, Jefferson, NC, 2006.
• Chaz Scoggins: Game of My Life: 20 Stories of Red Sox Baseball, Sports Publishing LLC, Champaign, IL, 2006.
• Troy Soos: Before the Curse: The Glory Days of New England Baseball, 1858-1918, McFarland, Jefferson, NC, 2006.