Red Sox: Top five third basemen in franchise history
By Sean Penney
What, you were expecting Pablo Sandoval? As the only Red Sox third baseman to have their number retired, Wade Boggs is the clear choice for the top spot on this list.
Hanging No. 26 on the right field facade at Fenway Park was a long overdue honor that the Red Sox finally bestowed upon Boggs in May 2016 – over a decade after he had been enshrined in Cooperstown.
Boggs was a master of getting on base long before the baseball world came to appreciate that skill. He won five batting titles, led the league in OBP six times and OPS twice, finishing with a remarkable .338/.428/.462 line over his 11 years in Boston.
At a time when home run power was all the rage, Boggs was wise enough to realize that even though he could hit the ball out of the park, swinging for the fences would come at the expense of his elite on-base ability. Instead of hitting double-digit homers every year, all Boggs did was churn out 200+ hits for seven straight seasons. He racked up 40+ doubles eight times, leading the league twice in that category.
In addition to being the all-time leader among Red Sox first basemen in batting average and on-base percentage, Boggs also tops the list with a .394 wOBA, 142 wRC+ and 70.8 fWAR.
Boggs was a 12-time All-Star, eight of which came as a member of the Red Sox. The issue that skill irks a dwindling population of Red Sox Nation is that those other four appearances came when he played for the hated Yankees.
Next: Red Sox all-time worst infielders
They say time heals all wounds, so over two decades after Boggs left Boston, the franchise and most of its fan base has forgiven him for jumping ship to their biggest rivals. Now one of the greatest hitters in franchise history can take his rightful place among the other legendary figures to wear a Red Sox uniform.