These stats prove Xander Bogaerts’ immense value to Red Sox
There are many reasons the Boston Red Sox need to keep Xander Bogaerts in uniform for years to come, if not his entire career.
He’s a proven winner, with two World Series rings, four Silver Slugger awards, and four All-Star seasons, including this year.
He’s a leader in the clubhouse, the undisputed unofficial captain of the team, and a mentor to many younger players, especially Rafael Devers, who considers him a big brother.
His current and former teammates want to play with him, and media members and executives around the league cannot believe the Sox would even consider letting him go. Trevor Story has been campaigning on his behalf all year, as has David Ortiz.
Here’s another one: Bogaerts rakes at Fenway Park.
Over 631 career regular-season games at America’s Most Beloved Ballpark, Bogaerts is a .312/.374/.495 hitter. He’s collected 748 hits, including 165 doubles, seven triples, and 87 home runs. He’s scored 405 times, driven in 392 runs, and stolen 31 bases.
Despite playing through injury this season, Bogaerts is having a solid year at the plate. And once again, he’s hitting better at home than on the road, slashing .313/.380/.493 with 23 of his 38 doubles and nine of his 14 homers collected over 75 games in the ballpark he’s called home since he was a 20-year-old rookie in 2013.
In several lengthy public pleas for the Sox to retain Bogaerts (and Rafael Devers) long-term, Ortiz has reminded the world that not every player thrives under the Boston microscope:
“When you have a guy like [Devers] or Bogaerts in your lineup, that means you’re going to take pressure away from everybody else. They know how to handle it. They know how it is to play in Boston. Trust me, playing in Boston is not for every type of player. I played there for so long, it’s a distraction for a lot of players. They don’t know how to handle it.I played with a lot of superstars and they’ve been great somewhere else and when they got to Boston, they struggled because they couldn’t put up with what is going on out there. These two guys, they grew up there. You know what to expect from them. You know what they’re going to give you. That’s why sometimes I don’t understand why organizations sometimes walk away from that. They prefer to explore other options. I would go with what I know. I’d keep it simple.As a fan, and that’s who I am right now, I don’t play the game anymore, but I know what to expect from those guys. I know exactly what I’m going to get from the two of them. They are the best players that can represent the Red Sox better than anyone else as of right now. We need to lock them in.”via MLB.com
Throughout Ortiz’s lengthy career in Boston, he saw many stars fade upon arrival, withering under the harsh spotlight. The media and fans are involved to an almost-rabid degree, and many players sink, rather than swim; Bogaerts isn’t one of them.
The intensity here is rarely conducive to success, so when the Sox have a player who doesn’t just survive but actually thrives, they should never let him go.
