BoSox Injection
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Former Red Sox listed among ESPN’s top 100 MLB players of all time

By Sean Penney

Boston Red Sox David Ortiz (R) is congratulated his solo homer by teammate Manny Ramirez in the top of the first innings against Japan's Hanshin Tigers in an exhibition game in the Tokyo Dome on March 22, 2008.The Boston Red Sox managed a narrow 6-5 victory against Tigers in an exhibition game here, days ahead of the official season opening games against the Oakland Athletics. AFP PHOTO / KAZUHIRO NOGI (Photo credit should read KAZUHIRO NOGI/AFP via Getty Images)
Boston Red Sox David Ortiz (R) is congratulated his solo homer by teammate Manny Ramirez in the top of the first innings against Japan's Hanshin Tigers in an exhibition game in the Tokyo Dome on March 22, 2008.The Boston Red Sox managed a narrow 6-5 victory against Tigers in an exhibition game here, days ahead of the official season opening games against the Oakland Athletics. AFP PHOTO / KAZUHIRO NOGI (Photo credit should read KAZUHIRO NOGI/AFP via Getty Images) /
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Boston Red Sox Jimmie Foxx
BRONX, NY – 1955: Joe McCarthy, Bill Terry, Cy Young, Rogers Hornsby, Joe DiMaggio, Jimmie Foxx, unidentified, Carl Hubbell, Mickey Cochrane, Al Simmons, Robert “Lefty” Grove, Joe Cronin, Dazzy Vance, George Sisler, Unidentified, George “Hooks” Wiltse, and Ted Lyons pose for a portrait in the dugout prior to Old Timer’s Day in 1955 at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, New York. (Photo by Olen Collection/Diamond Images/Getty Images) /

Red Sox first baseman Jimmie Foxx – No. 40

Jimmie Foxx spent his first 11 seasons with the Philadelphia A’s. He won consecutive MVP awards in 1932-33, winning the Triple Crown in the latter season. When the A’s fell into financial peril, the Red Sox took advantage by purchasing his contract.

The Red Sox had been struggling for the better part of two decades but Foxx’s arrival helped bring the club back to respectability. They never won the pennant during his tenure but finished as the runner-up in consecutive seasons from 1938-39.

Foxx set the Red Sox single-season record with 50 home runs in 1938, a record that stood for nearly 70 years until it was broken by David Ortiz. The Beast captured the MVP award that year while leading the league with 175 RBI, which still stands as a single-season franchise record.

Over a 20 year career, Foxx hit .325/.428/.609. His 534 home runs rank 19th in MLB history. He cracks the top-10 in Red Sox history for home runs and RBI despite spending less than half his career in Boston. His .605 SLG in a Red Sox uniform ranks second in franchise history.

Health issues derailed his career when he was only 34 years old, prompting the Red Sox to trade him to the Chicago Cubs in 1942. His production fell off a cliff and he retired a few years later. While it felt that his career was cut short, Foxx enjoyed a lengthy Hall of Fame career considering he broke into the majors as a 17-year-old.

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