Jim Rice made a rapid rise through the Boston farm system after they made the outfielder from Hanna High School in Anderson, South Carolina the 15th overall pick in the 1971 June Amateur Draft.
He debuted in Boston in August 1974 and the following season took over most of the duties in left field from franchise legend Carl Yastrzemski, who spent more time at first base and DH.
Lost in the shadow of teammate Fred Lynn as a rookie, Rice turned in a spectacular season as well, finishing second to Lynn in the Rookie of the Year voting and third in the MVP race while helping power Boston to its first American League pennant since 1967.
Rice was just getting started. He won the AL home run crown in 1977, also leading the league in total bases (something he did four times) and finishing fourth in the MVP voting.
He won an MVP award of his own in 1978, leading the AL in hits, triples, homers, RBI, slugging, OPS, but the Red Sox fell short of the postseason after losing a one-game playoff to the New York Yankees for the AL East title.
Rie added a third home run crown and second RBI title in 1983, while placing fifth in the MVP voting in 1979, fourth in 1983 and third in 1986, as Boston won its first pennant since 1975.
He transitioned to a full-time DH role in 1988 and retired after the 1989 season.
In parts of 16 seasons with the Red Sox, Rice hit .298/.352/.854, an OPS+ of 128, with 382 home runs, 1,451 RBI and 1.259 runs scored.
He missed the 1975 postseason with a broken hand after being hit by a pitch from Detroit Tigers righthander Vern Ruhle in late September and struggled a bit in two postseasons, hitting .225/.313/.679 with two homers seven RBI and 14 runs in 18 games in 1986 and 1988.
Rice was an eight-time All-Star and in his final year on the ballot in 2009, was selected for induction into the Hall of Fame.
Rice also spent six years with the Red Sox as their hitting coach from 1995-2000.