What can you say about the Gator that hasn’t already been said? Should have been the 1988 AL MVP. The guy who won that trophy was on steroids and just shot one of his fingers off. Gator had a beard later in his playing career and in the mid-90’s went over to a goatee, but it all started with an MVP-level ‘stache.
One of my favorite memories is of a fading Greenwell, his team playing out the string during his last month in the Majors, driving in nine runs in a single game at the Kingdome.
While Nipper was never more than a fifth starter for the Sox, he and his mustache later resurfaced as Red Sox pitching coach from 1995 to ’96. Nipper has coached for Boston and other organizations much of his post-playing career. He’s currently the pitching coach for the Toledo Mud Hens.