May 5, 2015; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Red Sox hall of famers Jim Rice and Carl Yastrzemski stand in left field as part of the pregame ceremony before the game between the Tampa Bay Rays and the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports
Even though Betts, Bradley, and Benintendi haven’t played a full season together yet, there is so much hype going into this season that I couldn’t wait to do a comparison myself. In order to get a fair comparison, I took the individual seasons of Lynn, Rice, and Evans in 1975, which was the first full year that they played together. It’s not fair to compare their legendary careers to the brief careers of this Betts, Bradley, and Benintendi.
Let’s go position by position and compare the players:
Left Field
Jim Rice
1975 marked Jim Rice’s first full season in the big leagues. He had a great rookie season. Throughout the year, he provided a substantial amount of power, hitting 5th in the order for most of the year. His slash lines were .309/.350/.491 to go along with 22 HR and 102 RBI. He also had 174 hits, 29 of which were doubles. Not bad for a rookie.
Defensively speaking Rice was average. He wasn’t a stud, but he wasn’t a liability. Rice finished 2nd in the Rookie of the Year voting, losing to teammate Fred Lynn. He also finished 3rd in the MVP voting that year, again losing to Lynn and also John Mayberry.
Andrew Benintendi
Since Benintendi only played 34 games last year, I took his stats and averaged them out among 144 games – the same amount of games that Jim Rice played in ’75. He finished with a .295/.359/.476 slash line. His other stats project out as: 132 hits, 47 doubles, 9 HR, and 60 RBI.
Benintendi showed that he is a capable defender in left field, probably with more upside than Jim Rice. However, we haven’t truly seen if he can handle a full season of the Green Monster. Overall, he had a nice showing and is arguably the front-runner for Rookie of the Year this upcoming season.
Who’s better? – Jim Rice
Benintendi clearly has a lot of hype. After all, he did have a good audition last year, he was drafted 7th overall, and flew through the minor leagues because he was such a great hitter. However, I have to side with Jim Rice because we know exactly what he did and how well he played.
Had Fred Lynn not had a historic season, Rice would have won Rookie of the Year. Plus, Rice hit in the middle of the order the entire season. Benintendi has been eased into the fold, hitting primarily out of the 9th spot. In my opinion, there is too small of a sample size to even consider Benintendi as the better left fielder.
Center field
Fred Lynn
Fred Lynn’s 1975 season was one of the greatest seasons in Red Sox history. He ran the gambit of honors winning the Gold Glove, MVP and Rookie of the Year awards, and he was an all-star. Lynn had a slash line of .331/.401/.566 to go along with 21 HR and 105 RBI. He led the league with 103 runs scored and 47 doubles.
He was a staple in the Red Sox lineup, hitting 4th the whole year. Lynn was known for his spectacular plays in center field, which was reflected in his Gold Glove award. The season that Fred Lynn put together was remarkable and he made it clear that he was the best player in the league.
Jackie Bradley Jr.
Last year, Jackie Bradley Jr. lived up to his hype, putting together a breakthrough season. His defense has never been put into question. He has proven to be one of the game’s best defenders, with a unique and an exceptional blend of speed, range, instincts, and arm strength. It was his offense that took so long to come to fruition.
Bradley’s line was .267/.349/.486, but it was the unexpected power that surprised everyone. He had 26 HR, 87 RBI, and 30 doubles. JBJ also had a 29 game hit streak during the year and was named a starter in the All-Star game.
Who’s better? – Fred Lynn
I don’t think this is even close, and that’s not a knock on Jackie Bradley Jr. He had a good season, but Fred Lynn’s 1975 season was magical. Lynn was the best player on the planet in 1975. He did everything: played great defense, hit for average, hit for power, and he only struck out 90 times. Bradley was inconsistent at the plate at times during the season. It’s obvious that 1975 Fred Lynn is the better player.
Right field
Dwight Evans
Dewey is sort of the forgotten member of the ’75 trio. His season consisted of a .274/.353/.456 line with 13 HR and 56 RBI. Not bad considering he only played 128 games.
However, Evans was known for his defense, which was on display throughout the ’75 season. To illustrate this point, let’s take his WAR numbers. He finished the season with a 4.5 WAR. This was comprised of an offensive WAR of 0.1, and a defensive WAR of 4.4. I don’t know how he didn’t win a Gold Glove that year.
Mookie Betts
Mookie Betts was incredible last year. He showed that, like Fred Lynn, he could do everything. He had a slash line of .318/.363/.534 with 31 HR, 113 RBI, 42 doubles. He also had 42 doubles and finished the year with 214 hits.
Mookie was named a starter in the All-Star game and also won a Gold Glove and a Silver Slugger. He finished 2nd in the MVP, but many fans and analysts thought he should have won the award.
I think one of the more overlooked parts of his season last year was his versatility in the order. He started the year as the leadoff hitter, but also hit 3rd and 4th towards the end of the year. It didn’t matter where he hit, his numbers were pretty much the same.
Who’s better? – Mookie Betts
Another no-brainer here. Evans may have had a better defensive year statistically, but Betts still ended up winning the Gold Glove. Plus he was a much better hitter. Coming off of the monster season last year, it’s easy to say that Mookie right now is better than 1975 Dwight Evans.
So which collective outfield is better?
Even though I was not around to see them play, I personally think that the ’75 Red Sox outfield was better than this year’s Red Sox outfield. It’s a tough call to make.
Offensively I think ’75 outfield just barely edges out this year’s outfield. There are arguments for both sides, but I think the ’75 trio had better and more consistent averages and hit for more power. This is still taking into account Benintendi’s projected numbers.
Lynn, Rice, and Evans also hit 4-5-6 for most of the season. They made up the heart of the order and thrived there. Mookie Betts was the only one of the new trio to thrive in the top/middle of the order. Even though Jackie Bradley ended the year hitting 6th, his numbers were much better hitting 9th, and Benintendi almost primarily hit 9th.
Defensively I also believe that the ’75 outfield is better than this year’s outfield. Bradley is great and Mookie won a Gold Glove, but Fred Lynn also won a Gold Glove and Dwight Evans should have too. They didn’t really need a left fielder because they were so good.
I think there is a strong argument either way, but I ultimately think that the 1975 outfield was better. That being said, this year’s outfield is still very good and has the long-term potential to be just as good, or better, than the legendary trio of Fred Lynn, Jim Rice, and Dwight Evans. Hopefully, Betts, Bradley, and Benintendi will remain Red Sox for many years to come.
