The best Boston Red Sox player from every era in franchise history
The greatest Boston Red Sox player from every era
The Boston Red Sox have a long and illustrious history dating back to 1901. Since then, the Sox have produced some of the biggest names to ever step foot on the diamond.
Despite an 86-year championship drought that haunted the organization and fans alike, the time of the “curse” produced, arguably, the best Red Sox players in history. Eight of the ten players who have their numbers retired with the Red Sox never won a ring with the team.
Defining an “era” of Red Sox history can be quite difficult as that term is broad. I look at an era as two decades. For example 1901-1920. With the longevity of the organization, there are several eras where there may be multiple players who would top the list of another era, but what is noteworthy is that this list is strictly based on each time frame.
Most of the eras have many highs, but some eras are borderline dreadful to even think about. Looking at the players from the 1921-1940s era, it’s no small task finding one player whose name is even recognizable. Then looking at the 1981-2000s era, it is like you are looking at the entire MLB All-Century team.
1901-1920 Red Sox: Cy Young
The name Cy Young is synonymous with greatness in pitching. Since 1956, the best pitchers in MLB are given an award named after him. Young is one of the greatest pitchers of all time and his stats back him up. He boasts a career 163.6 WAR, which is second most of any pitcher ever; only Walter Johnson tops him. He has 98 more wins than the next man on the leaderboard and that number (511) will never be surpassed.
Young played for the franchise before they were even called the Red Sox. They were the Boston Americans until 1908 when they changed to the Red Sox. In his time with Boston, Young was able to put up some elite numbers, especially considering he was 34 when he left St. Louis.
In that tenure, he held an even 2.00 ERA with 192 wins. Out of 297 games started, he had 275 complete games and 38 shutouts.
He led the Americans to their World Series in 1903 where they defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates five games to three; which was the first World Series between the American and National leagues. During that season, he went 28-9 with a 2.08 ERA and 176 strikeouts.
1921-1940 Red Sox: Jimmie Foxx
This era of Red Sox baseball is by far the worst stretch in Red Sox history. The team was downright horrendous, breaking the .500 mark, barely, only six times during this period. This era can be viewed as the dark ages of Red Sox lore.
Finding a player worth noting during this era is hard because decent players were so few and far between; until the Philadelphia Athletics traded Jimmie Foxx to the Red Sox in the offseason of 1935. Foxx brought life to a team that so desperately needed it. With Foxx’s arrival, the Red Sox went from one of the worst teams in the majors, to consistently being above .500 and placing in the top five teams three out of five of those years.
From 1936-1940, Foxx was the MVP in 1938, placing in the top ten two more times, and was an All-Star in all five years. The slugging first baseman batted .325 in this frame with 198 home runs. He also had a 1.061 OPS.
Foxx’s days of significant impact ended in Boston in 1942 when he went to the Cubs midway through the season. He would go on to only play two more seasons, making zero impact with the Cubs and the Phillies.
Foxx’s career with Boston ended in 1942, which was when the emergence of the greatest Red Sox player of all time began.
1941-1960 Red Sox: Ted Williams
If there were to be a title for the greatest Red Sox player of all time, Ted Williams would wear that crown and it wouldn’t even be arguable. To put it in perspective, if Teddy Ball Game didn’t leave to serve in the military, he could very well be the best baseball player to ever live. However, I don’t think that a person out there isn’t grateful for Williams’ service to our country during World War II and the Korean War.
The two-time MVP and 17-time All-Star is widely considered to be one of the greatest hitters who ever lived. In 1941, he batted .406 in the regular season at the ripe age of 22. That season he took second in MVP voting which is quite ludicrous.
Williams also holds the all-time record with a .482 on-base percentage. To reach base 35% of the time is a significant feat, but to get on almost half the time? That is ridiculous.
Williams’ impact to baseball, and the Red Sox specifically, is what makes our game so special. Take the 1999 All-Star Game for example. It was almost more so a Ted Williams tribute game than an All-Star game. It is fitting though, considering if there were to be a Ted Williams tribute game, the best players in the whole league would need to be on the field.
Williams’ storybook career ended in 1960, where he was able to pass the torch onto a 21-year-old outfielder from Southampton, New York.
1961-1980 Red Sox: Carl Yastrzemski
When Ted Williams announced his retirement in 1960, the future of the Red Sox franchise looked eerie. Lucky for the Red Sox, they had a young outfielder ready to make an immediate impact. His name: Carl Yastrzemski.
“Yaz” started his career at 21, and took off just two years later. The 18-time All-Star would go on to be the cornerstone of the franchise for 23 years.
Yastrzemski won the MVP once and won the batting title three times. He also accomplished one of the greatest feats any athlete in any sport can achieve: he won the triple crown in 1967. Ted Williams was the only other player in Red Sox history to accomplish this feat. It took until 2012 for someone to win the Triple Crown again (Miguel Cabrera). One of the most impressive stats that Yastrzemski produced was that he only played fewer than 100 games once.
His offense isn’t the only great aspect of his game, he, also, saw a lot of success on defense. He managed to bring home 7 Gold Gloves. Protecting the Green Monster is no small feat, and the Red Sox were lucky enough to have two of the greatest players in MLB history guarding it for north of four centuries.
1981-2000 Red Sox: Roger Clemens
Controversy aside, it is simply impossible to look at Roger Clemens‘ career and not be in complete awe. Clemens started his 24-year career in Boston and remained here for 13 seasons. He earned three Cy Young awards during that time frame, won 192 games, had a 3.06 ERA, and tallied a jaw-dropping 2590 strikeouts.
The name Roger Clemens is surrounded by judgment due to allegations of him using performance-enhancing drugs. His name is especially relevant right now because he just fell short of making it into the Hall of Fame in his final year of eligibility. The most egregious part of this whole situation is that he never actually tested positive for PEDs.
While he may not be in the MLB Hall of Fame, his legacy will always remain at Fenway as he is a member of the Red Sox Hall of Fame.
Had he stayed in Boston, it is hard not to ponder the question of how many more World Series the Red Sox would’ve won outside of 2004? However, Clemens’ reign in Boston ended in 1996, and the rotation was taken over by Pedro Martinez in 1998. Martinez’s impact on the mound was nothing short of incredible, but it was a little offseason scouting that turned the franchise around.
2001-2020 Red Sox: David Ortiz
The most famous baseball player in the whole world right now and the newest member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame: David Ortiz. Ortiz is, arguably, the most important player in the history of the franchise. Bringing three championships to Beantown, two of which were some of the most important in the history of the sport, Ortiz will always be viewed as a god in the eyes of Bostonians.
Ortiz slugged 541 home runs over a 20-year career, winning the home run derby in 2010. While his ability to hit home runs was elite, it was his poise that illustrated his Hall of Fame career. In every World Series run, it became almost routine for Ortiz to come up and produce. He is arguably the most clutch performer in baseball history.
The announcement of Ortiz’s retirement was tragic to Red Sox Nation, not just because of his impact, but because of the amount of baseball he still had left in him. In his final season, at 40 years old, he slashed .315/.401/.620.
While every player on this list was significantly impactful on the field, Ortiz was, by far, the most impactful off the field. His speech in 2013 after the tragic bombings at the Boston Marathon will forever live in Boston lore.
Next. David Ortiz is a Hall of Famer. dark