Red Sox: Dave Henderson dies at age 57

Former Boston Red Sox outfielder Dave Henderson passes away at the page of 57.

It’s a sad day in Red Sox Nation as we’ve learned that former outfielder Dave Henderson died of cardiac arrest Sunday at the age of 57.

Henderson had been battling kidney disease, which led to him having to get a kidney transplant last month.

His stay in Boston was brief, as he spent parts of the 1986 and 1987 season with the Red Sox. Henderson hit a mere .196 over 36 games after being acquired mid-season, but came up big in the postseason during Boston’s run to the World Series.

The man known as “Hendu” will most fondly be remembered in Boston for the two-out, two-run home run in the 9th inning of Game 5 of the ALCS, keeping the Red Sox alive in a series they would eventually win against the California Angels to advance to the World Series. That hit would prove to be the only one he would record in 12 plate appearances that series, but he certainly made it count.

Henderson would go on to hit 10-for-25 (.400) with a pair of homers and five RBI in the ’86 World Series, which the Red Sox would lose to the New York Mets following a botched ground ball to first base that you may have heard about before.

The Red Sox shipped Henderson to San Francisco during the 1987 season, where he finished out the year before moving across the bay to join the Oakland Athletics. It was there in Oakland that he won a World Series ring when the A’s defeated the Giants in 1989 and also where he made his lone All-Star appearance in 1991.

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Henderson was always known as a great teammate with an infections personality during his stints with five different teams over a career that spanned 14 seasons. He retired after the 1994 season as a career .258 hitter with 197 home runs and 708 RBI.