Fred Lynn
From BR Bullpen
Fredric Michael Lynn
- Bats Left, Throws Left
- Height 6' 1", Weight 190 lb.
- School University of Southern California
- Debut September 5, 1974
- Final Game October 3, 1990
- Born February 3, 1952 in Chicago, IL USA
[edit] Biographical Information
"Lynn is the most complete player in our league." - Roy Hartsfield
Fred Lynn was the first player to win the American League MVP and Rookie of the Year Award in the same year, 1975. That year he hit .331/.401/.566 with 21 home runs, 47 doubles, and 105 RBI.
He played 17 seasons in the majors, with 306 home runs and 1111 RBI. His 1979 season may have been even better than his MVP season, as he hit .333/.423/.637 with 39 home runs and 122 RBI.
Lynn is the only player to hit a grand slam in the All-Star Game. He accomplished the feat in 1983 off Atlee Hammaker. He was a nine-time All-Star.
The similarity scores method shows the most similar player to Lynn to be Reggie Smith, another centerfielder for the Boston Red Sox.
Lynn, while on a team of high-school stars that played against the USC team, faced Dave Kingman, who was a fast-throwing pitcher at the time. He is in both the USC Hall of Fame and the Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame and was a two-time All-American at USC.
Lynn played for Team USA in the 1971 Pan American Games. He led the Games with four home runs as the US won Silver. When the US played Gold Medal winner Cuba, Lynn homered in a 4-3 loss.
From 1984 to 1987, he hit 23 home runs each year, four times in a row. An excellent fielder, he won four Gold Glove awards. For the vast majority of his career, his range was well above average. Playing for the California Angels, he hit .611 (11 for 18) in the 1982 ALCS, which the Milwaukee Brewers nevertheless won. He won the ALCS Most Valuable Player Award in spite of being on the losing team.
[edit] Notable Achievements
- 1975 AL Rookie of the Year Award
- 1975 Topps All-Star Rookie Team
- 9-time AL All-Star (1975-1983)
- AL MVP (1975)
- 1982 ALCS MVP
- 1983 All-Star Game MVP
- 4-time AL Gold Glove Winner (1975 & 1978-1980)
- AL Batting Average Leader (1979)
- AL On-Base Percentage Leader (1979)
- 2-time AL Slugging Percentage Leader (1975 & 1979)
- 2-time AL OPS Leader (1975 & 1979)
- AL Runs Scored Leader (1975)
- AL Doubles Leader (1975)
- 20-Home Run Seasons: 10 (1975, 1978, 1979 & 1982-1988)
- 30-Home Run Seasons: 1 (1979)
- 100 RBI Seasons: 2 (1975 & 1979)
- 100 Runs Scored Seasons: 2 (1975 & 1979)
| AL MVP | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1974 | 1975 | 1976 |
| Jeff Burroughs | Fred Lynn | Thurman Munson |
| AL Rookie of the Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1974 | 1975 | 1976 |
| Mike Hargrove | Fred Lynn | Mark Fidrych |
