A Red Sox slideshow of historic team collapses
By Rick McNair
1972 and Luis trips up
The 1972 Red Sox was a forgettable team. There were plenty of holes in this squad with defense being a very notable one as the Red Sox managed a -43 in Total Zone. An 11th ranked defense. The hitting wasn’t much better as the Bostonians finished sixth in hitting, but the pitching staff did some decent work by being fourth in the AL.
The Red Sox record for the season was 85-70 and some quick calculations show that the usual 162 game slate was not present. Baseball had a strike in 1972 and baseball decided to go with an unbalanced schedule. This proved costly for Boston.
More from Red Sox History
- Two notable Red Sox anniversaries highlight current organizational failures
- Contemporary Era Committee doesn’t elect any former Red Sox to Hall of Fame
- Johnny Damon calls Red Sox out, reveals hilarious way he skirted Yankees’ grooming policy
- Remembering the best Red Sox Thanksgiving ever
- Red Sox World Series legends headline 2023 Hall of Fame ballot
The last five weeks saw Boston either fall behind by a game or nudge ahead by a game. The Red Sox and Tigers were locked in a battle for the division title and eventually, it came down to a series in Detroit at the end of the season.
The Red Sox arrived for a three game set with a ½ game lead only to lose the first game and fall behind by ½ game. The next day the Red Sox could make a final game of the series a winner takes all. Boston behind Luis Tiant lost and the Sunday game became meaningless. The Tigers played one more game than Boston.
A negative footnote is Luis Aparicio – one of the all-time great baserunners – tripping over third base and contributing to a loss. Another Fellowship entry.