Manny Ramirez, 2004
Manny Ramirez‘s 2004 numbers don’t jump off the stat sheet when looking at the course of his entire career. He was great, yes, but during the regular season that was just Manny being Manny. He hit .308/.397/.613 with 43 home runs and 130 RBI, which is what we would call a routine season for him in his prime.
The thing that makes 2004 special for Manny is what made it special for that entire Red Sox team; they won 98 games in the regular season and won the World Series for the first time in 86 years, coming back from a 3-0 deficit in the ALCS against the New York Yankees in the process.
It wasn’t until the playoffs started that we began to truly see something special. In 14 playoff games, Ramirez hit .350 with two home runs and 11 RBI. Most importantly, he hit .412 in the World Series and was awarded the World Series MVP for his efforts. Ramirez’s contribution to ending the 86-year championship drought for the Red Sox was his best achievement in a career filled with them.
Ramirez might have been a headache on occasion, but any sane Red Sox fan doesn’t care about that thanks to what he did for the organization, especially in 2004. Manny was one of the players who helped the franchise turn a corner and become perennial World Series contenders.