The Boston Red Sox are an American professional
baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...
team based in
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
. The Red Sox compete in
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
(MLB) as a member club of the
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...
(AL)
East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox' home
ballpark
A ballpark, or baseball park, is a type of sports venue where baseball is played. The playing field is divided into the infield, an area whose dimensions are rigidly defined, and the outfield, where dimensions can vary widely from place to pla ...
has been
Fenway Park
Fenway Park is a baseball stadium located in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, near Kenmore Square. Since 1912, it has been the home of the Boston Red Sox, the city's American League baseball team, and since 1953, its only Major League Base ...
since . The "Red Sox" name was chosen by the team owner,
John I. Taylor, , following the lead of previous teams that had been known as the "Boston Red Stockings," including the
Boston Braves
The Atlanta Braves, a current Major League Baseball franchise, originated in Boston, Massachusetts. This article details the history of the Boston Braves, from 1871 to 1952, after which they moved to Milwaukee, and then to Atlanta.
During it ...
(now the
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. The Braves ...
). The team has won nine
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...
championships, tied for the third-most of any MLB team, and has played in 13 World Series. Their most recent World Series appearance and win was in . In addition, they won the American League
pennant, but were not able to defend their
1903 World Series
The 1903 World Series was the first modern World Series to be played in Major League Baseball. It matched the American League (AL) champion Boston Americans against the National League (NL) champion Pittsburgh Pirates in a best-of-nine series, wit ...
championship when the
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...
refused to participate in the
1904 World Series
In 1904, there was no World Series played between the champions of the two major leagues, the Boston Americans (now the Boston Red Sox) of the American League (AL) and the New York Giants (now the San Francisco Giants) of the National League (NL ...
.
The Red Sox were a dominant team in the new league, defeating the
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...
in the first
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...
in
1903 and winning four more championships by 1918. However, they then went into one of the longest championship
droughts
A drought is defined as drier than normal conditions.Douville, H., K. Raghavan, J. Renwick, R.P. Allan, P.A. Arias, M. Barlow, R. Cerezo-Mota, A. Cherchi, T.Y. Gan, J. Gergis, D. Jiang, A. Khan, W. Pokam Mba, D. Rosenfeld, J. Tierney, an ...
in baseball history, dubbed the "
Curse of the Bambino
The Curse of the Bambino was a superstitious sports curse in Major League Baseball (MLB) derived from the 86-year championship drought of the Boston Red Sox between and . The superstition was named after Babe Ruth, colloquially known as " Th ...
" after its alleged inception due to the Red Sox' sale of star player
Babe Ruth
George Herman "Babe" Ruth Jr. (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948) was an American professional baseball player whose career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanned 22 seasons, from 1914 through 1935. Nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Su ...
to the rival
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...
two years after their World Championship in 1918. The Sox endured an 86-year wait before the team's sixth World Championship in . The team's history during that period was punctuated with some of the most memorable moments in World Series history, including
Enos Slaughter
Enos Bradsher Slaughter (April 27, 1916 – August 12, 2002), nicknamed "Country", was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) right fielder. He played for 19 seasons on four major league teams from 1938 to 1942 and 1946 to 1959. He is noted prima ...
's "
mad dash" in , the "
Impossible Dream
''Impossible Dream'' is the fourth studio album (fifth album overall) by the American folk musician Patty Griffin, released on April 20, 2004. The album features an unlisted song – Griffin’s mother and father singing “The Impossible Dream ...
" of ,
Carlton Fisk
Carlton Ernest Fisk (born December 26, 1947), nicknamed "Pudge" and "The Commander", is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher from 1969 to 1993 for the Boston Red Sox (1969, 1971–1980) a ...
's home run in , and
Bill Buckner
William Joseph Buckner (December 14, 1949 – May 27, 2019) was an American first baseman and left fielder in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played for five teams from through , most notably the Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Dodgers and Boston Red ...
's error in . Following their victory in the
2018 World Series, they became the first team to win four
World Series trophies in the 21st century, with championships in , , and 2018. The team's history has also been marked by the team's
intense rivalry with the
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...
, arguably the fiercest and most historic in
North American professional sports.
The Red Sox are owned by
Fenway Sports Group
Fenway Sports Group Holdings, LLC (FSG), is an American multinational sports holding conglomerate who own Major League Baseball's Boston Red Sox, Premier League club Liverpool F.C., and the National Hockey League's Pittsburgh Penguins.
FSG wa ...
, which also owns
Liverpool F.C.
Liverpool Football Club is a professional football club based in Liverpool, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. Founded in 1892, the club joined the Football League the following year and has p ...
of the
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
in England. They are consistently one of the top MLB teams in average road attendance, while the small capacity of Fenway Park prevents them from leading in overall attendance.
From May 15, 2003, to April 10, 2013, the Red Sox sold out every home game—a total of 820 games (794 regular season) for a major professional sports record. Both
Neil Diamond
Neil Leslie Diamond (born January 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. He has sold more than 130 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling musicians of all time. He has had ten No. 1 singles on the Hot 100 and Adul ...
's "
Sweet Caroline
"Sweet Caroline" is a song written and performed by American singer Neil Diamond and released in May 1969 as a single with the title "Sweet Caroline (Good Times Never Seemed So Good)". It was arranged by Charles Calello, and recorded at Americ ...
" and
The Standells
The Standells are an American garage rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in the 1960s, who have been referred to as a "punk band of the 1960s", and said to have inspired such groups as the Sex Pistols and Ramones. They are best known ...
' "
Dirty Water
"Dirty Water" is a song by the American rock band The Standells, written by their producer Ed Cobb.
The song is a mock paean to the city of Boston, Massachusetts, and its then-famously polluted Boston Harbor and Charles River.
History
Accordi ...
" have become anthems for the Red Sox.
As of the end of the 2022 season, the franchise's all-time regular-season record is 9,796–9,098 ().
Nickname
The name ''Red Sox'', chosen by owner
John I. Taylor after the 1907 season, refers to the red hose in the team uniform beginning in 1908. ''Sox'' had been previously adopted for the
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and p ...
by newspapers needing a headline-friendly form of ''Stockings'', as "Stockings Win!" in
large type did not fit in a column. The team name "Red Sox" had previously been used as early as 1888 by a 'colored' team from Norfolk, Virginia. The
Spanish language
Spanish ( or , Castilian) is a Romance languages, Romance language of the Indo-European language family that evolved from colloquial Latin spoken on the Iberian peninsula. Today, it is a world language, global language with more than 500 millio ...
media sometimes refers to the team as ''Medias Rojas'', a translation of "red socks". The official Spanish site uses the variant "Los Red Sox".
The Red Stockings nickname was previously used by the
Cincinnati Red Stockings
The Cincinnati Red Stockings of were baseball's first all-professional team, with ten salaried players. The Cincinnati Base Ball Club formed in 1866 and fielded competitive teams in the National Association of Base Ball Players (NABBP) 1867– ...
, who were members of the pioneering
National Association of Base Ball Players
The National Association of Base Ball Players (NABBP) was the first organization governing American baseball. (The sport was spelled with two words in the 19th century.)
The first convention of sixteen New York City area clubs in 1857 effecti ...
. Managed by
Harry Wright
William Henry "Harry" Wright (January 10, 1835 – October 3, 1895) was an English-born American professional baseball player, manager, and developer. He assembled, managed, and played center field for baseball's first fully professional team, t ...
, Cincinnati adopted a uniform with white knickers and red stockings and earned the famous nickname, a year or two before hiring the first fully professional team in 1869. When the club folded after the 1870 season, Wright was hired by Boston businessman
Ivers Whitney Adams
Ivers Whitney Adams (May 20, 1838 – October 10, 1914) was an American baseball executive and businessperson, and founder of the first professional baseball team in Boston, the Boston Red Stockings.
Baseball
Adams was the founder, organize ...
to organize a new team in Boston, and he brought three teammates and the "Red Stockings" nickname along. (Most nicknames were then unofficial — neither club names nor registered trademarks — so the migration was informal.) The
Boston Red Stockings won four championships in the five seasons of the new
National Association, the first professional league.
When a new Cincinnati club was formed as a charter member of the
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...
in 1876, the "Red Stockings" nickname was commonly reserved for them once again, and the Boston team was referred to as the "Red Caps". Other names were sometimes used before Boston officially adopted the nickname "Braves" in 1912; the club
eventually left Boston for Milwaukee and is now playing in
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
.
![BostonRedSox1908logo](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/50/BostonRedSox1908logo.svg)
In 1901, the upstart
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...
established a competing club in Boston. (Originally, a team was supposed to be started in
Buffalo, but league ownership at the last minute removed that city from their plans in favor of the expansion Boston franchise.) For seven seasons, the AL team wore ''dark blue'' stockings and had no official nickname. They were simply "Boston", "Bostonians" or "the Bostons"; or the "Americans" or "Boston Americans" as in "American Leaguers", Boston being a two-team city. Their 1901–1907 jerseys, both home, and road, just read "Boston", except for 1902 when they sported large letters "B" and "A" denoting "Boston" and "American." Newspaper writers of the time used other nicknames for the club, including "Somersets" (for owner
Charles Somers
Charles W. Somers (October 13, 1868 – June 29, 1934) was an American executive in the coal industry in Cleveland, Ohio, who also achieved prominence in professional baseball. The financial resources from his business interests allowed Somers to ...
), "Plymouth Rocks", "Beaneaters", the "Collinsites" (for manager
Jimmy Collins
James Joseph Collins (January 16, 1870 – March 6, 1943) was an American professional baseball player. He played 14 seasons in Major League Baseball. Collins was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1945.
Collins was especially regarded for ...
)", and "Pilgrims."
For years many sources have listed "Pilgrims" as the early Boston AL team's ''official'' nickname, but researcher Bill Nowlin has demonstrated that the name was barely used, if at all, during the team's early years. The origin of the nickname appears to be a poem entitled "The Pilgrims At Home" written by Edwin Fitzwilliam that was sung at the 1907 home opener ("Rory O'More" melody). This nickname was commonly used during that season, perhaps because the team had a new manager and several rookie players.
John I. Taylor had said in December 1907 that the Pilgrims "sounded too much like homeless wanderers."
The National League club in Boston, though seldom called the "Red Stockings" anymore, still wore red trim. In 1907, the National League club adopted an all-white uniform, and the American League team saw an opportunity. On December 18, 1907, Taylor announced that the club had officially adopted red as its new team color. The 1908 uniforms featured a large icon of a red stocking angling across the shirt front. For 1908, the National League club returned to wearing red trim, but the American League team finally had an official nickname and remained the "Red Sox" for good.
The name is often
shortened to "Bosox" or "BoSox", a combination of "Boston" and "Sox" (similar to the
"ChiSox" in Chicago or the minor league
"PawSox" of Pawtucket). Sportswriters sometimes refer to the Red Sox as the ''Crimson Hose'' and ''the Olde Towne Team''. Recently, media have begun to call them the "Sawx" casually, reflecting how the word is pronounced with a
New England accent
New England English is, collectively, the various distinct dialects and varieties of American English
American English, sometimes called United States English or U.S. English, is the set of varieties of the English language native to the U ...
. However, most fans simply refer to the team as the "Sox" when the context is understood to mean Red Sox.
The formal name of the entity which owns the team is "Boston Red Sox Baseball Club Limited Partnership". The name shown on a door near the main entrance to Fenway Park, "Boston American League Baseball Company", was used prior to the team's reorganization as a limited partnership on May 26, 1978. The entrance also figures in
Robert B. Parker
Robert Brown Parker (September 17, 1932 – January 18, 2010) was an American writer, primarily of fiction within the mystery/detective genre. His most famous works were the 40 novels written about the fictional private detective Spenser. AB ...
's
Spenser-and-baseball novel ''
Mortal Stakes''.
History
1901–1919: The Golden Era
![Boston Americans team picture](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6b/Boston_Americans_team_picture.jpg)
In 1901, the minor Western League, led by
Ban Johnson
Byron Bancroft Johnson (January 5, 1864 – March 28, 1931) was an American executive in professional baseball who served as the founder and first president of the American League (AL).
Johnson developed the AL—a descendant of the mino ...
, declared itself to be equal to the
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...
, then the only major league in baseball. Johnson had changed the name of the league to the
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...
prior to the 1900 season. In 1901, the league created a franchise in Boston, called the "Boston Americans", to compete with the National League team there.
![Boston Americans logo](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a8/Boston_Americans_logo.png)
Playing their home games at
Huntington Avenue Grounds
Huntington Avenue American League Baseball Grounds is the full name of the baseball stadium that formerly stood in Boston, Massachusetts, and was the first home field for the Boston Red Sox (known informally as the "Boston Americans" before 1908 ...
, the Boston franchise finished second in the league in 1901 and third in 1902. The team was originally owned by
C.W. Somers.
In January 1902, he sold all but one share of the team to
Henry Killilea
Henry James Killilea (June 30, 1863January 23, 1929) was an American baseball team owner and attorney. He was one of the founders of baseball's American League. He also played college football and baseball at the University of Michigan.
Early y ...
.
The early teams were led by manager and star
third baseman
A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the scoring system us ...
Jimmy Collins
James Joseph Collins (January 16, 1870 – March 6, 1943) was an American professional baseball player. He played 14 seasons in Major League Baseball. Collins was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1945.
Collins was especially regarded for ...
, outfielders
Chick Stahl
Charles Sylvester "Chick" Stahl (January 10, 1873 – March 28, 1907) was an American outfielder in Major League Baseball who was among the most feared and consistent hitters in his time. Stahl was an active major-league player when he committed ...
,
Buck Freeman
John Frank "Buck" Freeman (October 30, 1871 – June 25, 1949) was an American right fielder in Major League Baseball at the turn of the 20th century. Listed at and , he both batted and threw left-handed. Freeman was one of the top sluggers of ...
, and
Patsy Dougherty
Patrick Henry "Patsy" Dougherty (October 27, 1876 – April 30, 1940) was a Major League Baseball outfielder from 1902 to 1911. He played for the Boston Americans (now the Boston Red Sox), the New York Highlanders (now the New York Yankees), and ...
, and
pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...
Cy Young
Denton True "Cy" Young (March 29, 1867 – November 4, 1955) was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher. Born in Gilmore, Ohio, he worked on his family's farm as a youth before starting his professional baseball career. Young entered th ...
, who in 1901 won the pitching
Triple Crown
Triple Crown may refer to:
Sports Horse racing
* Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing
* Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing (United States)
** Triple Crown Trophy
** Triple Crown Productions
* Canadian Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing
* Trip ...
with 33 wins (41.8% of the team's 79 wins), 1.62 ERA and 158 strikeouts.
In 1903, the team won their first American League pennant
and, as a result,
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
participated in the
first modern World Series, going up against the
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...
.
Aided by the modified chants of "
Tessie
"Tessie" is both the longtime anthem of the Boston Red Sox and a 2004 song by the punk rock group Dropkick Murphys. The original "Tessie" was from the 1902 Broadway musical ''The Silver Slipper''. The newer song, written in 2004, recounts how th ...
" by the
Royal Rooters
The Royal Rooters were a fan club for Boston's professional baseball team in the American League in the early 20th century. The team was known as the Boston Americans during the 1901–1907 seasons, and has been known as the Boston Red Sox sinc ...
fan club
A fans club is an organized group of fans, generally of a celebrity. Most fans clubs are run by fans who devote considerable time and resources to support them. There are also "official" fan clubs that are run by someone associated with the per ...
and by its stronger pitching staff, the Americans won the best-of-nine series five games to three.
![WorldSeries1903-640](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5d/WorldSeries1903-640.jpg)
In April 1904, the team was purchased by
John I. Taylor of Boston. The 1904 team found itself in a pennant race against the
New York Highlanders
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...
. A predecessor to what became a storied rivalry, this race featured the trade of Patsy Dougherty to the Highlanders for
Bob Unglaub
Robert Alexander Unglaub (July 31, 1880 – November 29, 1916) was an American first baseman, utility infielder and manager in Major League Baseball who played for the New York Highlanders, Boston Americans, and Washington Senators. He batte ...
. In order to win the pennant, the Highlanders needed to win both games of their final doubleheader with the Americans at the Highlanders' home stadium,
Hilltop Park
Hilltop Park was the nickname of a baseball park that stood in the Washington Heights neighborhood of New York City. It was the home of the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball from 1903 to 1912, when they were known as the "Highlanders". ...
. With
Jack Chesbro on the mound, and the score tied 2–2 with a man on third in the top of the ninth, a spitball got away from Chesbro and
Lou Criger
Louis Criger (February 3, 1872 – May 14, 1934) was an American professional baseball catcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1896 to 1912 for the Cleveland Spiders, St. Louis Perfectos / Cardinals, Boston Americans / Red Sox, ...
scored the go-ahead run and the Americans won their second pennant. However, the NL champion
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...
declined to play any
postseason series, but a sharp public reaction led the two leagues to make the World Series a permanent championship, starting in 1905.
![Boston_Americans_season_pass,_1906](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/15/Boston_Americans_season_pass%2C_1906.jpg)
In
1906
Events
January–February
* January 12 – Persian Constitutional Revolution: A nationalistic coalition of merchants, religious leaders and intellectuals in Persia forces the shah Mozaffar ad-Din Shah Qajar to grant a constitution, ...
, Boston lost 105 games and finished last in the league. In December 1907, Taylor proposed that the Boston Americans name change to the Boston Red Sox.
By 1909,
center fielder
A center fielder, abbreviated CF, is the outfielder in baseball who plays defense in center field – the baseball and softball fielding position between left field and right field. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the c ...
Tris Speaker
Tristram Edgar Speaker (April 4, 1888 – December 8, 1958), nicknamed "the Gray Eagle", was an American professional baseball player. Considered one of the greatest players in the history of Major League Baseball (MLB), he compiled a career bat ...
had become a fixture in the Boston outfield, and the team finished the season in third place. In
1912
Events January
* January 1 – The Republic of China (1912–49), Republic of China is established.
* January 5 – The Prague Conference (6th All-Russian Conference of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party) opens.
* January 6 ...
, the Red Sox won 105 games and the pennant. The 105 wins stood as the club record until the 2018 club won 108. Anchored by an outfield including Tris Speaker,
Harry Hooper
Harry Bartholomew Hooper (August 24, 1887 – December 18, 1974) was an American professional baseball right fielder who played in Major League Baseball (MLB). Hooper batted left-handed and threw right-handed. Hooper was born in Bell Station, Ca ...
and
Duffy Lewis
George Edward "Duffy" Lewis (April 18, 1888 – June 17, 1979) was an American professional baseball left fielder who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston Red Sox, the New York Yankees, and the Washington Senators from 1910 to ...
, and pitcher
Smoky Joe Wood
Howard Ellsworth "Smoky Joe" Wood (October 25, 1889 – July 27, 1985) was an American professional baseball player for 14 years. He played for the Boston Red Sox from 1908 to 1915, where he was primarily a pitcher, and for the Cleveland Indi ...
, the Red Sox beat the New York Giants 4–3–1 in the
1912 World Series best known for
Snodgrass's Muff
Frederick Carlisle Snodgrass (October 19, 1887 – April 5, 1974) was an American center fielder in Major League Baseball from to . He is best known for dropping a key fly ball in the 1912 World Series.
New York Giants Early years
Snodgrass wa ...
.
From 1913 to 1916 the Red Sox were owned by
Joseph Lannin
Joseph John Lannin (April 23, 1866 – May 15, 1928) was a Canadian-born American baseball entrepreneur. He was the sole owner of the Boston Red Sox of Major League Baseball for most of the 1914 through 1916 seasons, during which the team won two W ...
. In 1914, Lannin signed a young up-and-coming pitcher named
Babe Ruth
George Herman "Babe" Ruth Jr. (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948) was an American professional baseball player whose career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanned 22 seasons, from 1914 through 1935. Nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Su ...
from the
Baltimore Orioles
The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...
of the
International League
The International League (IL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the United States. Along with the Pacific Coast League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major League Baseball ...
. In 1915, the team won 101 games and went on to the
1915 World Series, where they beat the
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...
four games to one. Following the 1915 season, Tris Speaker was traded to the
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...
. The
Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...
went on to win the
1916 World Series, defeating the
Brooklyn Robins
The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1884 as a member of the American Association before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brooklyn until 1957, after which the club moved to Los Angeles, Californi ...
.
Harry Frazee
Harry Herbert Frazee (June 29, 1880 – June 4, 1929) was an American theatrical agent, producer, and director, and owner of Major League Baseball's Boston Red Sox from 1916 to 1923. He is well known for selling Babe Ruth to the New York Yanke ...
bought the Red Sox from Joseph Lannin in 1916 for about $675,000. In 1918, Babe Ruth led the team to another
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...
championship over the
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...
.
Sale of Babe Ruth and Aftermath (1920–1938)
Prior to the sale of Babe Ruth, multiple trades occurred between the Red Sox and the Yankees. On December 18, 1918, outfielder
Duffy Lewis
George Edward "Duffy" Lewis (April 18, 1888 – June 17, 1979) was an American professional baseball left fielder who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston Red Sox, the New York Yankees, and the Washington Senators from 1910 to ...
, pitcher
Dutch Leonard and pitcher
Ernie Shore
Ernest Grady Shore (March 24, 1891 – September 24, 1980) was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball for the Boston Red Sox during some of their best years in the 1910s.
He was born near East Bend, North Carolina.
Shore gradu ...
were traded to the Yankees for pitcher
Ray Caldwell
Raymond Benjamin Caldwell (April 26, 1888 – August 17, 1967) was an American professional baseball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball for the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, and Cleveland Indians from 1910 to 1921. He was known f ...
,
Slim Love
Edward Haughton "Slim" Love (August 1, 1890 – November 30, 1942) was an American professional baseball pitcher from approximately 1910 to 1930. He played six seasons in Major League Baseball for the Washington Senators (1913), New York Yankees ...
,
Roxy Walters
Alfred John Walters (November 5, 1892 – June 3, 1956) born in San Francisco, California, was a catcher in Major League Baseball for the New York Yankees (1915–18), Boston Red Sox (1919–23) and Cleveland Indians (1924–25).
Biography
He was ...
,
Frank Gilhooley and $15,000. In July 1919, pitcher
Carl Mays
Carl William Mays (November 12, 1891 – April 4, 1971) was an American baseball pitcher who played 15 seasons in Major League Baseball from 1915 to 1929. During his career, he won over 200 games, 27 in 1921 alone, and was a member of four Wor ...
quit the team and then was traded to the Yankees for Bob McGraw, Allan Russell and $40,000.
After Mays was traded, league president Ban Johnson suspended him due to his breaking of his contract with the Red Sox.
The Yankees went to court after Johnson suspended Mays.
After the Yankees were able to play Mays, the American League split into two factions: the Yankees, Red Sox and White Sox, known as the "Insurrectos," versus Johnson and the remaining five clubs, a.k.a. the "Loyal Five".
![1915 Babe Ruth](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/25/1915_Babe_Ruth.jpeg)
On December 26, 1919, the team sold Babe Ruth, who had played the previous six seasons for the Red Sox, to the rival New York Yankees. The sale was announced on January 6, 1920. In 1919, Ruth had broken the single-season home run record, hitting 29 home runs. It was believed that Frazee sold Ruth to finance the
Broadway
Broadway may refer to:
Theatre
* Broadway Theatre (disambiguation)
* Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
** Broadway (Manhattan), the street
**Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
musical ''
No, No, Nanette
''No, No, Nanette'' is a musical comedy with lyrics by Irving Caesar and Otto Harbach, music by Vincent Youmans, and a book by Otto Harbach and Frank Mandel, based on Mandel's 1919 Broadway play ''My Lady Friends''. The farcical story involves th ...
''.
While No, No, Nanette did not open on Broadway until 1925, Leigh Montville's book, ''The Big Bam: The Life and Times of Babe Ruth'',
reports that ''No, No, Nanette'' had originated as a non-musical stage play called ''My Lady Friends'', which opened on Broadway in December 1919.
According to the book, ''My Lady Friends'' had been financed by Ruth's sale to the Yankees.
The sale of Babe Ruth came to be viewed as the beginning of the
Yankees–Red Sox rivalry
The Yankees–Red Sox rivalry is a Major League Baseball (MLB) rivalry between the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox. Both teams have competed in MLB's American League (AL) for over 120 seasons and have since developed what is arguably ...
, considered the "best rivalry" by American sports journalists.
In the December 1920,
Wally Schang
Walter Henry Schang (August 22, 1889 – March 6, 1965) was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher from to for the Philadelphia Athletics, Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, St. Lou ...
,
Waite Hoyt
Waite Charles Hoyt (September 9, 1899 – August 25, 1984) was an American right-handed professional baseball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball for seven different teams during 1918–1938. He was one of the dominant pitchers of the 19 ...
,
Harry Harper
Harry Clayton Harper (April 24, 1895 – April 23, 1963) was an American professional baseball pitcher, businessman, and politician. He played in Major League Baseball for the Washington Senators, Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, and Brookly ...
and Mike McNally were traded to the Yankees for
Del Pratt
Derrill Burnham "Del" Pratt (January 10, 1888 – September 30, 1977) was a star running back for the University of Alabama before becoming a professional baseball player. Pratt signed with the St. Louis Browns in . He was a star second basema ...
,
Muddy Ruel
Herold Dominic "Muddy" Ruel (February 20, 1896 – November 13, 1963) was an American professional baseball player, coach, manager and general manager. He played as a catcher in Major League Baseball from 1915 to 1934. One of the top defensive ca ...
, Hank Thormahlen, Sammy Vick. The following winter,
shortstop
Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball or softball fielding position between second and third base, which is considered to be among the most demanding defensive positions. Historically the position was assigned to defensive specialists who ...
Everett Scott
Lewis Everett Scott (November 19, 1892 – November 2, 1960), nicknamed "Deacon", was an American professional baseball player. A shortstop, Scott played in Major League Baseball for 12 seasons as a member of the Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees ...
, and pitchers
Bullet Joe Bush
Leslie Ambrose "Bullet Joe" Bush (November 27, 1892 – November 1, 1974) was an American Major League Baseball pitcher with the Philadelphia Athletics, Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in ...
and
Sad Sam Jones
Samuel Pond "Sad Sam" Jones (July 26, 1892 – July 6, 1966) was an American Major League Baseball pitcher with the Cleveland Indians, Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, St. Louis Browns, Washington Senators and the Chicago White Sox between 1914 ...
were traded to the Yankees for
Roger Peckinpaugh
Roger Thorpe Peckinpaugh (February 5, 1891 – November 17, 1977) was an American professional baseball player shortstop and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1910 through 1927, during which he played for the Cleveland Nap ...
, who was immediately traded to the
Washington Senators,
Jack Quinn,
Rip Collins, Bill Piercy.
On July 23, 1922,
Joe Dugan
Joseph Anthony Dugan (May 12, 1897 – July 7, 1982), was an American professional baseball player. Nicknamed "Jumping Joe", he was considered one of the best defensive third basemen of his era. He played in Major League Baseball as a shortstop ...
and
Elmer Smith were traded to the Yankees for Elmer Miller, Chick Fewster,
Johnny Mitchell
Johnny Mitchell Jr. (born January 20, 1971) is a former American football tight end in the National Football League for the New York Jets, Dallas Cowboys and New Orleans Saints. He played college football at the University of Nebraska.
Early ye ...
, and
Lefty O'Doul
Francis Joseph "Lefty" O'Doul (March 4, 1897 – December 7, 1969) was an American Major League Baseball player who went on to become an extraordinarily successful manager in the minor leagues. He was also a vital figure in the establishmen ...
. Acquiring Dugan helped the Yankees edge the
St. Louis Browns
The St. Louis Browns were a Major League Baseball team that originated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as the Milwaukee Brewers. A charter member of the American League (AL), the Brewers moved to St. Louis, Missouri, after the 1901 season, where they p ...
in a tight pennant race. After late trades in 1922, a June 15 trading deadline went into effect. In 1923,
Herb Pennock
Herbert Jefferis Pennock (February 10, 1894 – January 30, 1948) was an American professional baseball pitcher and front-office executive. He played in Major League Baseball from 1912 through 1933, and is best known for his time spent with the ...
was traded by the Red Sox to the Yankees for Camp Skinner, Norm McMillan, and
George Murray.
The loss of several top players sent the Red Sox into free fall.
During the 1920s and early 1930s, the Red Sox were fixtures in the second division, never finishing closer than 20 games out of first.
The losses increased after Frazee sold the team to
Bob Quinn in 1923.
The team bottomed out in 1932 with a record of 43–111, still the worst record in franchise history. However, in 1931,
Earl Webb
William Earl Webb (September 17, 1897 – May 23, 1965) was an American right fielder in Major League Baseball, playing from 1925 to 1933. He played for five teams, including the Boston Red Sox for three years. He batted left-handed, and threw rig ...
set the all-time mark for most doubles in a season with 67.
In 1933,
Tom Yawkey
Thomas Austin Yawkey, born Thomas Yawkey Austin (February 21, 1903 – July 9, 1976), was an American industrialist, philanthropist, conservationist and Major League Baseball executive. Born in Detroit, Yawkey became president of the Boston Red S ...
bought the team.
Yawkey acquired pitchers
Wes Ferrell
Wesley Cheek Ferrell (February 2, 1908 – December 9, 1976) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball from 1927 through 1941. Primarily a starting pitcher, Ferrell played for the Cleveland Indians (192 ...
and
Lefty Grove
Robert Moses "Lefty" Grove (March 6, 1900 – May 22, 1975) was an American professional baseball pitcher. After having success in the minor leagues during the early 1920s, Grove became a star in Major League Baseball with the American League's P ...
,
Joe Cronin
Joseph Edward Cronin (October 12, 1906 – September 7, 1984) was an American professional baseball player, manager and executive. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a shortstop, most notably as a member of the Boston Red Sox. Cronin spe ...
, a shortstop and manager,
and
first baseman
A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...
Jimmie Foxx
James Emory Foxx (October 22, 1907 – July 21, 1967), nicknamed "Double X" and "The Beast", was an American professional baseball first baseman who played 20 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Athletics, Boston Red Sox, ...
. In 1938, Foxx hit 50 home runs, which stood as a club record for 68 years. That year Foxx also set a club-record of 175 runs.
1939–1960: The Ted Williams Era
![Ted Williams 1954 Bowman](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5b/Ted_Williams_1954_Bowman.jpg)
In 1939, the Red Sox purchased the contract of
outfielder
An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to cat ...
Ted Williams
Theodore Samuel Williams (August 30, 1918 – July 5, 2002) was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played his entire 19-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career, primarily as a left fielder, for the Boston Red Sox from 1939 ...
from the minor league
San Diego Padres
The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penna ...
of the
Pacific Coast League
The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...
, ushering in an era of the team sometimes called the "Ted Sox." Williams consistently hit for both high power and high average, and is generally considered one of the greatest hitters of all time. The right-field bullpens in Fenway were built in part for Williams' left-handed swing, and are sometimes called "Williamsburg." Before this addition, it was over to right field. He served two stints in the
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...
as a pilot and saw
active duty
Active duty, in contrast to reserve duty, is a full-time occupation as part of a military force. In the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth of Nations, the equivalent term is active service.
India
The Indian Armed Forces are considered to be one ...
in both World War II and the
Korean War
, date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
, missing at least five full seasons of baseball. His book ''The Science of Hitting'' is widely read by students of baseball. He is currently the last player to hit over .400 for a full season, batting .406 in 1941. Williams feuded with sports writers his whole career, calling them "The Knights of the Keyboard", and his relationship with the fans was often rocky as he was seen spitting towards the stands on more than one occasion.
With Williams, the Red Sox reached the
1946 World Series
The 1946 World Series was played in October 1946 between the St. Louis Cardinals (representing the National League) and the Boston Red Sox (representing the American League). This was the Red Sox's first appearance in a World Series since their c ...
but lost to the
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...
in seven games in part because of the use of the "Williams Shift", a defensive tactic in which the shortstop moves to the right side of the infield to make it harder for the left-handed-hitting Williams to hit to that side of the field. Some have claimed that he was too proud to hit to the other side of the field, not wanting to let the Cardinals take away his game. His performance may have also been affected by a pitch he took in the elbow in an exhibition game a few days earlier. Either way, in his only World Series, Williams gathered just five singles in 25
at-bats
In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens during their turn at bat, but a batt ...
for a .200 average.
The Cardinals won the 1946 Series when
Enos Slaughter
Enos Bradsher Slaughter (April 27, 1916 – August 12, 2002), nicknamed "Country", was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) right fielder. He played for 19 seasons on four major league teams from 1938 to 1942 and 1946 to 1959. He is noted prima ...
scored the go-ahead run all the way from first base on a
base hit
In baseball statistics, a hit (denoted by H), also called a base hit, is credited to a batter when the batter safely reaches or passes first base after hitting the ball into fair territory with neither the benefit of an error nor a fielder's ch ...
to left field. The throw from
Leon Culberson
Delbert Leon Culberson (August 6, 1919 – September 17, 1989) was an American professional baseball player. He played as an outfielder in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1943 to 1948 for the Boston Red Sox and the Washington Senators. Listed a ...
was cut off by shortstop
Johnny Pesky
John Michael Pesky (born John Michael Paveskovich; February 27, 1919 – August 13, 2012), nicknamed "The Needle" and "Mr. Red Sox", was an American professional baseball player, manager and coach. He was a shortstop and third baseman during a t ...
, who relayed the ball to the plate just a hair too late. Some say Pesky hesitated or "held the ball" before he turned to throw the ball, but this has been disputed.
Along with Williams and Pesky, the Red Sox featured several other star players during the 1940s, including second baseman
Bobby Doerr
Robert Pershing Doerr (April 7, 1918 – November 13, 2017) was an American professional baseball second baseman and coach. He played his entire 14-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career for the Boston Red Sox (1937–1951). A nine-time MLB A ...
and center fielder
Dom DiMaggio
Dominic Paul DiMaggio (February 12, 1917 – May 8, 2009), nicknamed "The Little Professor", was an American Major League Baseball center fielder. He played his entire 11-year baseball career for the Boston Red Sox (1940–1953). DiMaggio wa ...
(the younger brother of
Joe DiMaggio
Joseph Paul DiMaggio (November 25, 1914 – March 8, 1999), nicknamed "Joltin' Joe", "The Yankee Clipper" and "Joe D.", was an American baseball center fielder who played his entire 13-year career in Major League Baseball for the New York Yank ...
).
The Red Sox narrowly lost the AL pennant in 1948 and 1949. In 1948,
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
finished in a tie with
Cleveland
Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
, and their loss to Cleveland in a
one-game playoff
A one-game playoff, sometimes known as a pennant playoff, tiebreaker game or knockout game, is a tiebreaker in certain sports—usually but not always professional—to determine which of two teams, tied in the final standings, will qualify for a ...
ended hopes of an all-Boston World Series. Curiously, manager
Joseph McCarthy
Joseph Raymond McCarthy (November 14, 1908 – May 2, 1957) was an American politician who served as a Republican U.S. Senator from the state of Wisconsin from 1947 until his death in 1957. Beginning in 1950, McCarthy became the most visi ...
chose journeyman
Denny Galehouse
Dennis Ward Galehouse (December 7, 1911 – December 12, 1998) was an American Major League Baseball pitcher with the Cleveland Indians, Boston Red Sox and the St. Louis Browns between 1934 and 1949. Galehouse batted and threw right-handed.
...
to start the playoff game when the young lefty phenom
Mel Parnell
Melvin Lloyd Parnell (June 13, 1922 – March 20, 2012) was a professional baseball pitcher who spent his entire Major League Baseball (MLB) career with the Boston Red Sox. Listed at and , he threw and batted left-handed.
Playing career
Parne ...
was available to pitch. In 1949, the
Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...
were one game ahead of the
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...
, with the only two games left for both teams being against each other, and they lost both of those games.
The 1950s were viewed as a time of tribulation for the Red Sox. After Williams returned from the Korean War in 1953, many of the best players from the late 1940s had retired or been traded. The stark contrast in the team led critics to call the Red Sox' daily lineup "Ted Williams and the Seven Dwarfs."
Jackie Robinson
Jack Roosevelt Robinson (January 31, 1919 – October 24, 1972) was an American professional baseball player who became the first African American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. Robinson broke the baseball color line ...
was even worked out by the team at Fenway Park, however, owner Tom Yawkey did not want an African American player on his team. Willie Mays also tried out for Boston and was highly praised by team scouts. In 1955, Frank Malzone debuted at third base and Ted Williams hit .388 at the age of 38 in 1957, but there was little else for Boston fans to root for. Williams retired at the end of the 1960 1960 Major League Baseball season, season, famously hitting a home run in his final at-bat as memorialized in the John Updike story "Hub fans bid Kid adieu." The Red Sox finally became the last Major League team to field an African American player when they promoted infielder Pumpsie Green from their AAA farm team in 1959.
1960s: Yaz and the Impossible Dream
The 1960s also started poorly for the Red Sox, though 1961 saw the debut of Carl Yastrzemski, Carl "Yaz" Yastrzemski, Williams' replacement in left field, who developed into one of the better hitters of a pitching-rich decade.
Red Sox fans know 1967 as the 1967 Boston Red Sox season, season of the "Impossible Dream." The slogan refers to the hit song from the popular Musical theatre, musical play "Man of La Mancha". 1967 saw one of the great pennant races in History of baseball, baseball history with four teams in the AL pennant race until almost the last game. The BoSox had finished the 1966 1966 Major League Baseball season, season in ninth place, but they found new life with Yastrzemski as the team won the pennant to reach the 1967 World Series. Yastrzemski won the American League Triple Crown (the most recent player to accomplish such a feat until Miguel Cabrera did so in 2012), hitting .326 with 44 home runs and 121 runs batted in. He was named the league's Most Valuable Player, just one vote shy of a unanimous selection as a Minnesota sportswriter placed Twins center fielder César Tovar first on his ballot. But the Red Sox lost the series to the St. Louis Cardinals in seven games. Cardinals pitcher Bob Gibson stymied the Red Sox, winning three games.
![Red_Sox_Bullpen_Cart_(7224550882)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a7/Red_Sox_Bullpen_Cart_%287224550882%29.jpg)
An 18-year-old Bostonian rookie named Tony Conigliaro slugged 24 home runs in 1964. "Tony C" became the youngest player in Major League Baseball to hit his 100th home run, a record that stands today. He was struck just above the left Zygomatic bone, cheek bone by a fastball thrown by Jack Hamilton (baseball), Jack Hamilton of the 1967 California Angels season, California Angels on Friday, August 18, 1967, and sat out the entire next season with headaches and blurred vision. Although he did have a productive season in 1970, he was never the same.
1970s: The Red Hat Era
Although the Red Sox were competitive for much of the late 1960s and early 1970s, they never finished higher than second place in their division. The closest they came to a divisional title was 1972 when they lost by a half-game to the 1972 Detroit Tigers season, Detroit Tigers. The start of the season was delayed by a players' strike, and the Red Sox had lost one more game to the strike than the Tigers had. Games lost to the strike were not made up. The Red Sox went to Detroit with a half-game lead for the final series of the season, but lost the first two of those three and were eliminated from the pennant race.
1975
The Red Sox won the AL pennant in 1975. The 1975 Boston Red Sox season, 1975 Red Sox were as colorful as they were talented, with Yastrzemski and rookie outfielders Jim Rice and Fred Lynn, veteran outfielder Dwight Evans (Baseball), Dwight Evans, catcher
Carlton Fisk
Carlton Ernest Fisk (born December 26, 1947), nicknamed "Pudge" and "The Commander", is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher from 1969 to 1993 for the Boston Red Sox (1969, 1971–1980) a ...
, and pitchers Luis Tiant and eccentric junkballer Bill Lee (left-handed pitcher), Bill "The Spaceman" Lee. Fred Lynn won both the American League Major League Baseball Rookie of the Year Award, Rookie of the Year award and the Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player, Most Valuable Player award, a feat which had never previously been accomplished, and was not duplicated until Ichiro Suzuki did it in 2001.
In the 1975 American League Championship Series, the Red Sox swept the 1975 Oakland Athletics season, Oakland A's.
![Carlton Fisk 1976](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fd/Carlton_Fisk_1976.jpg)
In the 1975 World Series, they faced the heavily favored 1975 Cincinnati Reds season, Cincinnati Reds, also known as The Big Red Machine. Luis Tiant won games 1 and 4 of the World Series but after five games, the Red Sox trailed the series 3 games to 2. Game 6 at Fenway Park is considered among the greatest games in postseason history. Down 6–3 in the bottom of the eighth inning, Red Sox pinch hitter Bernie Carbo hit a three-run homer into the center field bleachers off Reds fireman Rawly Eastwick to tie the game. In the top of the 11th inning, right fielder Dwight Evans made a spectacular catch of a Joe Morgan line drive and doubled off Ken Griffey, Sr., Ken Griffey at first base to preserve the tie. In the bottom of the 12th inning, Carlton Fisk hit a deep fly ball that sliced towards the left-field foul pole above the Green Monster. As the ball sailed into the night, Fisk waved his arms frantically towards fair territory, seemingly pleading with the ball not to go foul. The ball complied, and bedlam ensued at Fenway as Fisk rounded the bases to win the game for the Red Sox 7–6.
The Red Sox lost game 7, 4–3 even though they had an early 3–0 lead. Starting pitcher Bill Lee threw a slow looping curve which he called a "Leephus pitch" or "space ball" to Reds first baseman Tony Pérez who hit the ball over the Green Monster and across the street. The Reds scored the winning run in the 9th inning. Carlton Fisk said famously about the 1975 World Series, "We won that thing 3 games to 4."
1978 pennant race
In 1978, the Red Sox and the Yankees were involved in a tight pennant race. The Yankees were games behind the Red Sox in July, and on September 10, after completing a 4-game sweep of the Red Sox (known as "The Boston Massacre"), the Yankees tied for the divisional lead.
On September 16 the Yankees held a game lead over the Red Sox, but the Sox won 11 of their next 13 games and by the final day of the season, the Yankees' magic number to win the division was one—with a win over Cleveland or a Boston loss to the 1978 Toronto Blue Jays season, Toronto Blue Jays clinching the division. However, 1978 New York Yankees season, New York lost 9–2 and Boston won 5–0, forcing a one-game playoff to be held at Fenway Park on Monday, October 2.
The most remembered moment from the game was Bucky Dent's 7th inning three-run home run in off Mike Torrez just over the Green Monster, giving the Yankees their first lead. The dejected Boston manager, Don Zimmer, gave Mr. Dent a new middle name which lives on in Boston sports lore to this day, uttering three words as the ball sailed over the left-field wall: "Bucky Fucking Dent!" Reggie Jackson provided a solo home run in the 8th that proved to be the difference in the Yankees' 5–4 win, which ended with Yastrzemski popping out to Graig Nettles in foul territory with Rick Burleson representing the tying run at third. Although Dent became a Red Sox demon, the Red Sox got retribution in 1990 when the Yankees fired Dent as their manager during a series at Fenway Park.
1986 World Series and Game Six
Carl Yastrzemski retired after the 1983 season, during which the 1983 Boston Red Sox season, Red Sox finished sixth in the seven-team AL East, posting their worst record since 1966.
However, in 1986, it appeared that the team's fortunes were about to change. The offense had remained strong with Jim Rice, Dwight Evans, Don Baylor and Wade Boggs. Roger Clemens led the pitching staff, going 24–4 with a 2.48 Earned run average, ERA, and had a 20-strikeout game to win both the
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...
Cy Young Award, Cy Young and Most Valuable Player awards. Clemens became the first starting pitcher to win both awards since Vida Blue in 1971.
Despite spending a month and a half on the disabled list in the middle of the season, left-hander Bruce Hurst went 13–8, striking out 167 and pitching four shutout games. Boston sportswriters that season compared Clemens and Hurst to Don Drysdale and Sandy Koufax from the 1960s Los Angeles Dodgers.
The 1986 Boston Red Sox season, Red Sox won the AL East for the first time in 11 seasons, and faced the 1986 California Angels season, California Angels in the 1986 American League Championship Series, ALCS. The teams split the first two games in Boston, but the Angels won the next two home games, taking a 3–1 lead in the series. With the Angels poised to win the series, the Red Sox trailed 5–2 heading into the ninth inning of Game 5. A two-run homer by Baylor cut the lead to one. With two outs and a runner on, and one strike away from elimination, Dave Henderson homered off Donnie Moore to put Boston up 6–5. Although the Angels tied the game in the bottom of the ninth, the Red Sox won in the 11th on a Henderson sacrifice fly off Moore. The Red Sox then found themselves with six- and seven-run wins at Fenway Park in Games 6 and 7 to win the American League title.
The Red Sox faced a heavily favored 1986 New York Mets season, New York Mets team that had won 108 games in the regular season in the 1986 World Series. Boston won the first two games in Shea Stadium but lost the next two at Fenway, knotting the series at 2 games apiece. After Bruce Hurst recorded his second victory of the series in Game 5, the Red Sox returned to Shea Stadium looking to garner their first championship in 68 years. However, Game 6 became one of the most devastating losses in club history. After pitching seven strong innings, Clemens was lifted from the game with a 3–2 lead. Years later, Manager John McNamara (baseball), John McNamara said Clemens was suffering from a blister and asked to be taken out of the game, a claim Clemens denied. The Mets then scored a run off relief pitcher, reliever and former Met Calvin Schiraldi to tie the score 3–3. The game went to extra innings, where the Red Sox took a 5–3 lead in the top of the 10th on a solo home run by Henderson, a double by Boggs and an RBI single by second baseman Marty Barrett (second baseman), Marty Barrett.
After recording two outs in the bottom of the 10th, a graphic appeared on the Major League Baseball on NBC, NBC telecast hailing Barrett as the Player of the Game and Bruce Hurst as Most Valuable Player of the World Series. A message even appeared briefly on the Shea Stadium scoreboard congratulating the Red Sox as world champions. After so many years of abject frustration, Red Sox fans around the world could taste victory. With the count at two balls and one strike, Mets catcher Gary Carter hit a single. It was followed by singles by Kevin Mitchell (baseball), Kevin Mitchell and Ray Knight. With Mookie Wilson batting, a wild pitch by Bob Stanley (baseball), Bob Stanley tied the game at 5. Wilson then hit a slow ground ball to first; the ball rolled through
Bill Buckner
William Joseph Buckner (December 14, 1949 – May 27, 2019) was an American first baseman and left fielder in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played for five teams from through , most notably the Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Dodgers and Boston Red ...
's legs, allowing Knight to score the winning run from second.
![Roger Clemens 1996](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/10/Roger_Clemens_1996.jpg)
While Buckner was singled out as responsible for the loss, many observers—as well as both Wilson and Buckner—have noted that even if Buckner had fielded the ball cleanly, the speedy Wilson probably would have still been safe, leaving the game-winning run at third with two out.
Many observers questioned why Buckner was in the game at that point considering he had bad knees and that Dave Stapleton (infielder), Dave Stapleton had come in as a late-inning defensive replacement in prior series games. It appeared as though McNamara was trying to reward Buckner for his long and illustrious career by leaving him in the game. After falling behind 3–0, the Mets then won Game 7, concluding the devastating collapse and feeding the myth that the Red Sox were "cursed."
This World Series loss had a strange twist: Red Sox General Manager Lou Gorman was vice-president, player personnel, of the Mets from 1980 to 1983.
Working under Mets' GM Frank Cashen, with whom Gorman served with the Orioles, he helped lay the foundation for the Mets' championship.
1988–1991: Morgan Magic
The 1988 Boston Red Sox season, Red Sox returned to the postseason in 1988. With the club in fourth place midway through the 1988 season at the All-Star break, manager John McNamara was fired and replaced by Walpole, Massachusetts, Walpole resident and longtime minor-league manager Joe Morgan (manager), Joe Morgan on July 15. The club immediately won 12 games in a row, and 19 of 20 overall, to surge to the AL East title in what was called ''Morgan Magic''. But the magic was short-lived, as the team was swept by the 1988 Oakland Athletics season, Oakland Athletics in the 1988 American League Championship Series, ALCS. The Most Valuable Player of that Series was former Red Sox pitcher and Baseball Hall of Fame player Dennis Eckersley, who saved all four wins for Oakland. Two years later, in 1990, the 1990 Boston Red Sox season, Red Sox again won the division and face the 1990 Oakland Athletics season, Athletics in the 1990 American League Championship Series, ALCS. However, the outcome was the same, with the A's sweeping the ALCS in four straight.
In 1990, Yankees fans started to chant "1918!" to taunt the Red Sox. The demeaning chant echoed at Yankee Stadium (1923), Yankee Stadium each time the Red Sox were there. Also, Fenway Park became the scene of Bucky Dent's worst moment as a manager, although it was where he had his greatest triumph.
[ In June, when the Red Sox swept the Yankees during a four-game series at Fenway Park, the Yankees fired Dent as their manager. Red Sox fans felt retribution to Dent being fired on their field, but the Yankees used him as a scapegoat.][ However, Dan Shaughnessy of ''The Boston Globe'' severely criticized Yankees owner George Steinbrenner for firing Dent—his 18th managerial change in as many years since becoming owner—in Boston and said he should "have waited until the Yankees got to Baltimore" to fire Dent.] He said that "if Dent had been fired in Seattle or Milwaukee, this would have been just another event in an endless line of George's jettisons. But it happened in Boston and the nightly news had its hook." "The firing was only special because ... it's the first time a Yankee manager—who was also a Red Sox demon—was purged on the ancient Indian burial grounds of the Back Bay." However, Bill Pennington called the firing of Dent "merciless."
1992–2001: Mixed results
Tom Yawkey died in 1976, and his wife Jean R. Yawkey took control of the team until her death in 1992. Their initials are shown in two stripes on the Green Monster, left field wall in Morse code. Upon Jean's death, control of the team passed to the Yawkey Trust, led by John Harrington (Red Sox CEO), John Harrington. The trust sold the team in 2002, concluding 70 years of Yawkey ownership.
In 1994, General Manager Lou Gorman was replaced by Dan Duquette, a Massachusetts native who had worked for the Montreal Expos. Duquette revived the team's minor league baseball, farm system, which during his tenure produced players such as Nomar Garciaparra, Carl Pavano and David Eckstein. Duquette also spent money on free agents, notably an 8-year, $160 million deal for Manny Ramírez after the 2000 2000 Major League Baseball season, season.
The 1995 Boston Red Sox season, Red Sox won the newly realigned American League East in 1995, finishing seven games ahead of the 1995 New York Yankees season, Yankees. However, they were swept in three games in the 1995 American League Division Series, ALDS by the 1995 Cleveland Indians season, Cleveland Indians. Their postseason losing streak reached 13 straight games, dating back to the 1986 World Series.
Roger Clemens tied his major league record by fanning 20 1996 Detroit Tigers season, Detroit Tigers on September 18, 1996, in one of his final appearances in a Red Sox uniform. After Clemens had turned 30 and then had four seasons, 1993–96, which were by his standards mediocre at best, Duquette said the pitcher was entering "the twilight of his career". Clemens went on to pitch well for another ten years and win four more Cy Young Awards.
Out of contention in 1997, the team traded closer Heathcliff Slocumb to Seattle for catching prospect Jason Varitek and right-handed pitcher Derek Lowe. Prior to the start of the 1998 1998 Major League Baseball season, season, the Red Sox dealt pitchers Tony Armas Jr. and Carl Pavano to the Montreal Expos for pitcher Pedro Martínez. Martínez became the anchor of the team's pitching staff and turned in several outstanding seasons. In 1998, the 1998 Boston Red Sox season, team won the American League MLB Wild Card, Wild Card but again lost the 1998 American League Division Series, American League Division Series to the 1998 Cleveland Indians season, Indians.
In 1999, Duquette called Fenway Park "economically obsolete" and, along with Red Sox ownership, led a push for a new stadium.
On the field, the 1999 Boston Red Sox season, 1999 Red Sox were finally able to overturn their fortunes against the Indians. 1999 Cleveland Indians season, Cleveland took a 2–0 series lead, but Boston won the next three games behind strong pitching by Derek Lowe, Pedro Martínez and his brother Ramón Martínez (pitcher), Ramón Martínez. Game 4's 23–7 win by the Red Sox was the highest-scoring playoff game in major league history. Game 5 began with the Indians taking a 5–2 lead after two innings, but Pedro Martínez, nursing a shoulder injury, came on in the fourth inning and pitched six innings without allowing a hit while the team's offense rallied for a 12–8 win behind two home runs and seven runs batted in from outfielder Troy O'Leary. After the ALDS victory, the Red Sox lost the 1999 American League Championship Series, American League Championship Series to the Yankees, four games to one. The one bright spot was a lopsided win for the Red Sox in the much-hyped Martinez-Clemens game.
2002–present: John Henry era
2002–03
In 2002, the Red Sox were sold by Yawkey trustee and president Harrington to New England Sports Ventures, a consortium headed by principal owner John W. Henry, John Henry. Tom Werner served as executive chairman, Larry Lucchino served as president and CEO, and serving as vice-chairman was Les Otten. Dan Duquette was fired as GM of the club on February 28, with former Angels GM Mike Port taking the helm for the 2002 season. A week later, manager Joe Kerrigan was fired and was replaced by Grady Little.
While nearly all offseason moves were made under Duquette, such as signing outfielder Johnny Damon away from the Oakland Athletics, the new ownership made additions such as outfielder Cliff Floyd and relief pitcher Alan Embree. Nomar Garciaparra, Manny Ramírez, and Floyd all hit well, while Pedro Martínez put up his usual outstanding numbers. Derek Lowe, newly converted into a starter, won 20 games—becoming the first player to save 20 games and win 20 games in back-to-back seasons.
After failing to reach the playoffs, Port was replaced by Yale University graduate Theo Epstein. Epstein, raised in Brookline, Massachusetts, and just 28 at the time of his hiring, became the youngest general manager in MLB history.
The 2003 Boston Red Sox season, 2003 team was known as the "Cowboy Up" team, a nickname derived from first baseman Kevin Millar's challenge to his teammates to show more determination. In the 2003 American League Division Series, the Red Sox rallied from a 0–2 series deficit against the 2003 Oakland Athletics season, Athletics to win the best-of-five series. Derek Lowe returned to his former relief pitching role to save Game 5, a 4–3 victory. The team then faced the 2003 New York Yankees season, Yankees in the 2003 American League Championship Series. In Game 7, Boston led 5–2 in the eighth inning, but Pedro Martínez allowed three runs to tie the game. The Red Sox could not score off Mariano Rivera over the last three innings and eventually lost the game 6–5 when Yankee third baseman Aaron Boone hit a solo home run off Tim Wakefield. Some placed the blame for the loss on manager Grady Little for failing to remove starting pitcher Martínez in the 8th inning after some observers believe he began to show signs of tiring. It was stated by Epstein that the decision on not renew Little's contract was "made on a body of work after careful contemplation of the big picture...did not depend on any one decision in any one postseason game." Boston would hire former Philadelphia Phillies manager Terry Francona to manage the 2004 season.
"The Idiots": 2004 World Series Championship
During the 2003–04 offseason, the Red Sox acquired another ace pitcher, Curt Schilling, and a closer, Keith Foulke. Due to some midseason struggles with injuries, management shook up the team at the July 31 trading deadline as part of a four-team trade. The Red Sox traded the team's popular, yet oft-injured, shortstop Nomar Garciaparra and outfielder Matt Murton to the Chicago Cubs, and received first baseman Doug Mientkiewicz from the Minnesota Twins, and shortstop Orlando Cabrera from the Montreal Expos. In a separate transaction, the Red Sox acquired center fielder Dave Roberts (outfielder), Dave Roberts from the Los Angeles Dodgers. Following the trades, the club won 22 out of 25 games and qualified for the playoffs as the AL Wild Card. Players and fans affectionately referred to the players as "the Idiots", a term coined by Damon and Millar during the playoff push to describe the team's eclectic roster and devil-may-care attitude toward their supposed "curse."
Boston began the postseason by sweeping the American League West, AL West champion 2004 Anaheim Angels season, Anaheim Angels in the 2004 American League Division Series, ALDS. In the third game of the series, David Ortiz hit a walk-off two-run homer in the 10th inning to win the game and the series to advance to a rematch of the previous year's ALCS in the 2004 American League Championship Series, ALCS against the 2004 New York Yankees season, Yankees. The ALCS started very poorly for the Red Sox, as they lost the first three games (including a crushing 19–8 home loss in game 3). In Game 4, the Red Sox found themselves facing elimination, trailing 4–3 in the ninth with Mariano Rivera in to close for the Yankees. After Rivera issued a walk to Millar, Roberts came on to pinch run and promptly stole second base. He then scored on an RBI single by Bill Mueller, sending the game into extra innings. The Red Sox went on to win the game 6–4 on a two-run home run by Ortiz in the 12th inning. The odds were still very much against the Sox in the series, but Ortiz also made the walk-off hit in the 14th inning of Game 5. The comeback continued with a victory from an injured Schilling in Game 6. Three sutures being used to stabilize the tendon in Schilling's right ankle bled throughout the game, famously making his sock appear bloody red. With it, Boston became the first team in MLB history to force a series-deciding Game 7 after trailing 3–0 in games. The Red Sox completed their historic comeback in Game 7 with a 10–3 victory over the Yankees. Ortiz began the scoring with a two-run homer. Along with his game-winning runs batted in during games 4 and 5, he was named ALCS Most Valuable Player. The Red Sox joined the 1941–42 Toronto Maple Leafs season, 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs and the 1974–75 New York Islanders season, 1975 New York Islanders as the only Major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada, North American professional sports teams in history at the time to win a best-of-seven games series after being down 3–0. (The 2009–10 Philadelphia Flyers season, 2010 Philadelphia Flyers and the 2013–14 Los Angeles Kings season, 2014 Los Angeles Kings would later accomplish the feat).
The Red Sox swept the 2004 St. Louis Cardinals season, St. Louis Cardinals in the 2004 World Series. The Red Sox never trailed throughout the series; Mark Bellhorn hit a game-winning home run off Pesky's Pole in game 1, and Schilling pitched another bloodied-sock victory in game 2, followed by similarly masterful pitching performances by Martinez and Derek Lowe. It was the Red Sox' first championship in 86 years. Manny Ramírez was named World Series MVP. To add a final, surreal touch to Boston's championship season, on the night of Game 4 a October 2004 lunar eclipse, total lunar eclipse colored the moon red over Busch Memorial Stadium, Busch Stadium. The Red Sox earned many accolades from the sports media and throughout the nation for their season, such as in December, when ''Sports Illustrated'' named the Boston Red Sox the 2004 Sportsman of the Year, Sportsmen of the Year.
2007: World Series Championship
The 2005 AL East was decided on the last weekend of the season, with the 2005 New York Yankees season, Yankees coming to Fenway Park with a one-game lead in the standings. The Red Sox won two of the three games to finish the season with the same record as the Yankees, 95–67. However, a playoff was not needed, as the loser of such a playoff would still make the playoffs as a wild card team. As the Yankees had won the season series, they were awarded the division title, and the Red Sox competed in the playoffs as the wild card team. Boston failed to defend their championship, and was swept in three games by the eventual 2005 World Series champion 2005 Chicago White Sox season, Chicago White Sox in the 2005 American League Division Series, first round of the playoffs. In 2006 David Ortiz broke Jimmie Foxx
James Emory Foxx (October 22, 1907 – July 21, 1967), nicknamed "Double X" and "The Beast", was an American professional baseball first baseman who played 20 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Athletics, Boston Red Sox, ...
's single-season Red Sox home run record by hitting 54 homers. However, Boston failed to make the playoffs after compiling a 9–21 record in the month of August due to several injuries in the club's roster.
Theo Epstein's first step toward restocking the team for 2007 was to pursue one of the most anticipated acquisitions in baseball history. On November 14, MLB announced that Boston had won the bid for the rights to negotiate a contract with Japanese Nippon Professional Baseball superstar pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka. Boston placed a bid of $51.1 million to negotiate with Matsuzaka and completed a 6-year, $52 million contract after they were announced as the winning bid.
The Red Sox moved into first place in the AL East by mid-April and never relinquished their division lead. Initially, rookie second baseman Dustin Pedroia under-performed, hitting below .200 in April. Manager Terry Francona refused to bench him and his patience paid off as Pedroia eventually won the Major League Baseball Rookie of the Year Award, AL Rookie of the Year Award for his performance that season, which included 165 hits and a .317 batting average. On the mound, Josh Beckett emerged as the ace of the staff with his first 20-win season, as fellow starting pitchers Schilling, Matsuzaka, Wakefield and Julián Tavárez all struggled at times. Relief pitcher Hideki Okajima, another recent arrival from the NPB, posted an ERA of 0.88 through the first half and was selected for the All-Star Game. Okajima finished the season with a 2.22 ERA and 5 saves, emerging as one of baseball's top relievers. Minor league call-up Clay Buchholz provided a spark on September 1 by pitching a no-hitter in his second career start. The Red Sox captured their first AL East title since 1995.
The Red Sox swept the 2007 Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim season, Angels in the 2007 American League Division Series, ALDS. Facing the 2007 Cleveland Indians season, Cleveland Indians in the 2007 American League Championship Series, ALCS, the Red Sox fell in games 2, 3, and 4 before Beckett picked up his second victory of the series in game 5, starting a comeback. The Red Sox captured their twelfth American League pennant by outscoring the Indians 30–5 over the final three games. The Red Sox faced the 2007 Colorado Rockies season, Colorado Rockies in the 2007 World Series, and swept the Rockies in four games. In Game 4, Wakefield gave up his spot in the rotation to a recovered Jon Lester, who gave the Red Sox an impressive start, pitching shutout innings. Key home runs late in the game by third baseman Mike Lowell and pinch-hitter Bobby Kielty secured the Red Sox' second title in four years, as Lowell was named Most Valuable Player in the World Series.
2008–2012: Injuries and collapses
The Red Sox began their season by participating in the third opening day game in MLB history to be played in Japan, where they defeated the 2008 Oakland Athletics season, Oakland A's in the Tokyo Dome. On May 19, Jon Lester threw the 18th no-hitter in team history, defeating the 2008 Kansas City Royals season, Kansas City Royals 7–0. Down the stretch, outfielder Manny Ramirez became embroiled in controversy surrounding public incidents with fellow players and other team employees, as well as criticism of ownership and not playing, which some claimed was due to laziness and nonexistent injuries. The front office decided to move the disgruntled outfielder at the July 31 trade deadline, shipping him to the Dodgers in a three-way deal with the Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...
that landed them Jason Bay to replace him in left field. With Ramirez gone, and Bay providing a new spark in the lineup, the Red Sox improved vastly and made the playoffs as the AL Wild Card. The Red Sox defeated the 2008 Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim season, Angels in the 2008 American League Division Series, 2008 ALDS three games to one. The Red Sox then took on their AL East rivals the 2008 Tampa Bay Rays season, Tampa Bay Rays in the 2008 American League Championship Series, ALCS. Down three games to one in the 5th game of the ALCS, Boston mounted a comeback from trailing 7–0 in the 7th inning to win 8–7. They tied the series at three games apiece with a Game 6 victory before losing Game 7, 3–1, thus becoming the eighth team in a row since 2000 to fail to repeat as world champions.
The Red Sox returned to postseason play in 2009 but were swept in the ALDS by the 2009 Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim season, Los Angeles Angels. In 2010 they placed third in the division and failed to make the playoffs. In 2011 the 2011 Boston Red Sox season#Collapse, Red Sox collapsed, becoming the first team in MLB history to blow a 9-game lead in the division heading into September, as they went 7–20 in the final month and failed again to make the playoffs. In December 2011, Bobby Valentine was hired as a new manager. The 2012 season marked the centennial of Fenway Park
Fenway Park is a baseball stadium located in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, near Kenmore Square. Since 1912, it has been the home of the Boston Red Sox, the city's American League baseball team, and since 1953, its only Major League Base ...
, and on April 20, past and present Red Sox players and coaches assembled to celebrate the park's anniversary. However, the collapse that they endured in September 2011 carried over into the season. The Red Sox struggled throughout the season due to injuries, inconsistent play, and off-field news. They finished 69–93 for their first losing season since 1997, and their worst season since 1965.
Boston Strong: 2013 World Series Champions
Boston, which finished last in the American League East with a 69–93 record in 2012–26 games behind the New York Yankees, Yankees, became the 11th team in major league history to go from worst in the division to first the next season when it clinched the A.L. East division title on September 20, 2013. Many credit the team's turnaround with the hiring of manager John Farrell (pitcher), John Farrell, the former Red Sox pitching coach under Terry Francona from 2007 to 2010. As a former member of the staff, he had the respect of influential players such as Lester, Pedroia, and Ortiz. But there were other moves made in the offseason by general manager Ben Cherington who targeted "character" players to fill the team's needs. These acquisitions included veteran catcher David Ross (baseball), David Ross, Jonny Gomes, Mike Napoli, and Shane Victorino. While some questioned these players as "re-treads", it was clear that Cherington was trying to move past 2011–2012 by bringing in "clubhouse players". Essential to the turnaround, however, was the pitching staff. With ace veteran John Lackey coming off Tommy John surgery and both Jon Lester and Clay Buchholz returning to their prior form, this allowed the team to rely less on their bullpen. Everything seemed in danger of collapsing, however, when both closer (baseball), closers, Joel Hanrahan and Andrew Bailey (baseball), Andrew Bailey, went down early with season-ending injuries. Farrell gave the closing job to Koji Uehara on June 21 who delivered with a 1.09 ERA and an MLB record 0.565 Walks plus hits per inning pitched, WHIP. On September 11, the 37-year-old right-hander set a new Red Sox record when he retired 33 straight batters. Other reasons include the trade deadline acquisition of pitcher Jake Peavy when the Red Sox were in second place in the AL East, the depth of the bench with players such as Mike Carp and rookies Jackie Bradley Jr. and Xander Bogaerts, and the re-emergence of players such as Will Middlebrooks and Daniel Nava. On September 28, 2013, the team secured home field advantage throughout the American League playoffs when their closest competition, the Oakland Athletics, lost. The next day, the team finished the season going 97–65, the best record in the American League and tied with the St. Louis Cardinals for the best record in baseball. They proceeded to defeat the St. Louis Cardinals in the 2013 World Series, four games to two. The Red Sox became the first team since the 1991 Minnesota Twins season, 1991 Minnesota Twins to win the World Series a year after finishing in last place, and the second overall. The 2012 Red Sox's .426 winning percentage was the lowest for a team in a season prior to a World Series championship.
Throughout the season, the Red Sox players and organization formed a close association with the city of Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
and its people in relation to the Boston Marathon bombing that occurred on April 15, 2013. On April 20, the day after the alleged bombers were captured, David Ortiz gave a pre-game speech following a ceremony honoring the victims and the local law enforcement, in which he stated, "This is our fucking city! And nobody is going to dictate our freedom! Stay strong!" For the entirety of the season, the team wore an additional arm patch that exhibited the Red Sox "B" logo and the word "Strong" within a blue circle. The team also hung up in the dugout (baseball), dugout a custom jersey that read "Boston Strong" with the number 617, representing the city of Boston's area code. On many occasions during the season, victims of the attack and law enforcement involved were given the honor of throwing the ceremonial first pitch. Following their victory in the 2013 World Series, the first one clinched at home in Fenway Park since 1918, Red Sox players Jonny Gomes and Jarrod Saltalamacchia performed a ceremony during the team's traditional duck tour, duck boat victory parade, in which they placed the World Series trophy and the custom 617 jersey on the Boston Marathon finish line on Boylston Street, followed by a moment of silence and the singing of "God Bless America". This ceremony helped the city "reclaim" its spirit that was lost after the bombing. Overall, the Red Sox team and organization played a role in the healing process after the tragedy, owing to the team's unifying effect on the city.
2014–2017
Following the 2013 championship, the team finished last in the AL East during 2014 with a record of 71–91, and again in 2015 with a record of 78–84. On September 12, 2015, David Ortiz hit his 500th career home run off Matt Moore (baseball), Matt Moore in Tropicana Field becoming the 27th player in MLB history to achieve that prestigious milestone; in November 2015, Ortiz announced that the 2016 season was to be his last.
The Red Sox had a record of 93–69 and won their division in 2016, with six American League All-Stars, the AL Cy Young Award winner in Rick Porcello, and the runner-up for the AL Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Award, Most Valuable Player Award, Mookie Betts. Rookie Andrew Benintendi established himself in the Red Sox outfield, and Steven Wright (baseball), Steven Wright emerged as one of the year's biggest surprises. The Red Sox grabbed the lead in the AL East early and held on to it throughout the year, which included many teams honoring Ortiz throughout the season. Despite the success, the team lost five of their last six games of the regular season and were swept in the 2016 American League Division Series, ALDS by the eventual American League Champion 2016 Cleveland Indians season, Cleveland Indians. The Red Sox once again finished with a record of 93–69 in 2017 and repeated as division champions. The team went 5–5 in their last ten regular-season games and were eliminated by the Houston Astros in the 2017 American League Division Series, ALDS in four games. The Red Sox subsequently fired their manager, John Farrell (manager), John Farrell, and hired Alex Cora, signing him to a three-year deal.
"Damage done": 2018 World Series Championship
The Red Sox finished with a record, winning the American League East division title for the third consecutive season, eight games ahead of the second-place 2018 New York Yankees season, New York Yankees, and were the first team to clinch a berth in the 2018 MLB Postseason, 2018 postseason. The Red Sox surpassed the 100-win mark for the first time since 1946 Boston Red Sox season, 1946, broke the franchise record of 105 wins that had been set in 1912 Boston Red Sox season, 1912, and won the most games of any MLB team since the 2001 Seattle Mariners season, 2001 Seattle Mariners won 116. The 2018 Red Sox were highlighted by All-Stars Mookie Betts, J. D. Martinez, Chris Sale, and Craig Kimbrel. Betts led baseball in batting average and slugging percentage, while Martinez led in runs batted in. Sale tossed only 158 innings due to a shoulder injury late in the year, but was otherwise superb, posting a 2.11 earned run average to go along with 237 strikeouts. Kimbrel Save (baseball), saved 42 games and struck out 96 batters.
The Red Sox entered the postseason as the top seed in the American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...
, and defeated the New York Yankees (100–62) in four games in the 2018 American League Division Series, Division Series. Next, they defeated the defending champion 2018 Houston Astros season, Houston Astros (103–59) in five games in the 2018 American League Championship Series, League Championship Series. Boston then defeated the 2018 Los Angeles Dodgers season, Los Angeles Dodgers (92–71) in five games in the 2018 World Series, World Series, for the team's fourth championship in 15 years and ninth in franchise history. The team's motto during the season, "do damage", became "damage done" upon their victory.
Based on these exploits, the team is considered the best MLB team of the 2010s, one of the best Red Sox teams ever, and one of the best baseball teams since the 1998 New York Yankees season, 1998 New York Yankees.
2019–present
Despite retaining most players from the 2018 championship team, the 2019 Boston Red Sox season, 2019 Red Sox won 24 fewer games, finishing third in the division and missing the playoffs for the first time since 2015. President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski was dismissed following a September loss to the Yankees. On October 28, the Red Sox hired Chaim Bloom as his replacement, with the title of Chief Baseball Officer.
On January 7, 2020, it was reported in ''The Athletic'' that the Red Sox had used their video replay room to steal signs during their 2018 Boston Red Sox season, 2018 season. On January 15, the Red Sox and manager Alex Cora agreed to mutually part ways after he was named in MLB's report about the Houston Astros sign stealing scandal, which occurred during his tenure as bench coach with the 2017 Houston Astros season, 2017 Astros. Ron Roenicke was subsequently named Boston's interim manager. On February 10, a trade of Mookie Betts and David Price (baseball), David Price to the Los Angeles Dodgers was made official, in a move seen as a salary dump by analysts, although denied by Red Sox executives. In March, the start of the MLB season was indefinitely postponed, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In April, MLB's investigation into 2018 sign-stealing resulted in a finding of improper actions by the team's replay operator, who as a result was suspended for the 2020 season, and the team forfeited their second-round selection in the 2020 Major League Baseball draft, 2020 MLB draft. The "interim" tag was subsequently removed from Roenicke's title. The team struggled throughout their abbreviated 60-game regular season, contested July 24 through September 27, finishing in last place in the AL East division, with a record of 24–36. Prior to the final regular season game, management announced that Roenicke would not return as manager for the 2021 season.
Alex Cora returned as manager for the 2021 Boston Red Sox season, 2021 season, with the team finishing at 92–70 and qualifying for the postseason as the fourth seed in the AL. The Red Sox defeated the Yankees in the 2021 American League Wild Card Game, AL Wild Card Game, and defeated the Rays in the 2021 American League Division Series, Division Series, but were eliminated by the Astros in the 2021 American League Championship Series, League Championship Series. The 2022 season was much less successful, with the team finishing in last place within their division with a 78–84 record, the first losing record for the team in a 162-game season since 2015.
Awards
For major MLB awards, voted by the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA), Red Sox players have won the Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Award, MVP Award 12 times, most recently by Mookie Betts in 2018; the Cy Young Award seven times, most recently by Rick Porcello in 2016; Major League Baseball Rookie of the Year Award, Rookie of the Year six times, most recently by Dustin Pedroia in 2007; and Major League Baseball Manager of the Year Award, Manager of the Year twice, most recently by Jimy Williams in 1999.
Roster
Regular season home attendance
Fenway Park
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, COVID-19 pandemic: 2020 season contested Behind closed doors (sport), behind closed doors, and some 2021 games contested with limited attendance per local ordinances.
Figures through 80 of 81 home games.
Source:
Uniforms
Spring training
The franchise's first spring training was held in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 1901, when the team was known as the Boston Americans. Since 1993, the city of Fort Myers, Florida, has hosted Boston's spring training, first at City of Palms Park, and since 2012 at JetBlue Park at Fenway South.
JetBlue Park
In October 2008, the Lee County, Florida, Board of Commissioners approved an agreement with the Red Sox to build a new spring training facility for the team. In November 2008, the Red Sox signed an agreement with Lee County intended to keep their spring training home in the Fort Myers area for 30 more years. In April 2009, the Red Sox announced that the new stadium would be located on a lot north of Southwest Florida International Airport. In March 2011, the team and JetBlue Airlines officials announced that the new field would be named JetBlue Park at Fenway South.
JetBlue Park opened in March 2012. Many characteristics of the stadium have been taken from Fenway Park
Fenway Park is a baseball stadium located in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, near Kenmore Square. Since 1912, it has been the home of the Boston Red Sox, the city's American League baseball team, and since 1953, its only Major League Base ...
, including a Green Monster wall in left field. Included in the wall is a restored version of the manual scoreboard that was housed at Fenway for almost 30 years, beginning in the 1970s. The field dimensions are identical to those at Fenway.
Truck Day
The unofficial beginning of the spring training season for the Red Sox is Truck Day, the day a Semi-trailer truck, tractor-trailer filled with equipment leaves Fenway Park bound for the team's spring training facility in Florida. 2021's Truck Day was February 8.
Rivalries
New York Yankees
The Yankees–Red Sox rivalry often considered is one of the oldest, most famous, and fiercest List of sports rivalries, rivalries in professional sports.[ For over 100 years, the Red Sox and ]New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...
have been rivals.
The rivalry is often a heated subject of conversation in the Northeastern United States. Since the inception of the Major League Baseball wild card, wild card team and an added Division Series, every postseason except for 2014 Major League Baseball season#Postseason, 2014 has featured one or both of the American League East rivals. The two teams have squared off in the American League Championship Series (ALCS) three times, with the Yankees winning in 1999 American League Championship Series, 1999 and 2003 American League Championship Series, 2003 and the Sox winning in 2004 American League Championship Series, 2004. The teams have faced off in one American League Division Series (ALDS); 2018 American League Division Series, 2018, won by the Red Sox in four games. The teams have played one American League Wild Card Game on October 5, 2021, which the Red Sox won as well.
The teams have twice met in the last regular-season series to decide the league title, in 1904 (which the Red Sox won) and 1949 (which the Yankees won). The teams also finished tied for first in 1978, when the Yankees won a high-profile 1978 American League East tie-breaker game, one-game playoff for the division title. The 1978 division race is memorable for the Red Sox having held a 14-game lead over the Yankees more than halfway through the season. In 2003, The Red Sox lost in Game 7 of the ALCS on Aaron Boone's walk-off home run. Similarly, the 2004 ALCS is notable for the Yankees leading 3 games to 0 and ultimately losing the best-of-seven series. The Red Sox comeback was the first time in major league history that a team came back from an 0–3 deficit to win a series.
The rivalry is often termed "the best" and "greatest rivalry in all of sports." Games between the two teams often generate a great deal of interest and get extensive media coverage, including being broadcast on national television.
Tampa Bay Rays
The Rays–Red Sox rivalry developed in the late 2000s, after the two clubs had their first postseason meeting in the 2008 American League Championship Series, 2008 ALCS. Since then, both teams have won the American League East division a combined seven times. While the rivalry is more recent than Sox' rivalry with the Yankees, it has been called one of the most competitive in modern baseball.
The teams have met three times in the MLB postseason, with the Rays winning the 2008 ALCS and the Red Sox winning the 2013_American_League_Division_Series#Boston_Red_Sox_vs._Tampa_Bay_Rays, 2013 ALDS and 2021_American_League_Division_Series#Tampa_Bay_Rays_vs._Boston_Red_Sox, 2021 ALDS.
Radio and television
The flagship station, flagship radio station of the Red Sox is WEEI-FM 93.7. Joe Castiglione has broadcast Red Sox games since 1983 (initially assisting Ken Coleman) and has been the lead play-by-play announcer since 1993. Tim Neverett worked with him from 2016 through 2018, but in 2019, WEEI opted for a more conversational format with a variety of commentators (see the above link) alongside Castiglione. Former Red Sox player Lou Merloni has provided color commentary since 2013. Castiglione's predecessors include Curt Gowdy and Ned Martin. He has also worked with play-by-play veterans Bob Starr and Jerry Trupiano. Many stations throughout New England and beyond carry the broadcasts.
All Red Sox telecasts not shown nationally on Major League Baseball on Fox, Fox or ESPN Major League Baseball, ESPN are seen on New England Sports Network (NESN), with Dave O'Brien (sportscaster), Dave O'Brien calling play-by-play. Former Red Sox second baseman, Jerry Remy served as color analyst from 1988 up until his death in 2021. Remy had lung cancer, and would at times step away from broadcasting duties to focus on his health. Former Red Sox pitcher Dennis Eckersley has filled in for Remy on a regular basis, and frequently joined the crew as a third commentator when Remy returned. NESN became exclusive in 2006; before then, games were shown on such local stations as WHDH-TV (defunct), the original WHDH-TV, WNAC-TV (Boston), WNAC-TV (now the current WHDH (TV), WHDH), WBZ-TV, WSBK-TV, WLVI, WBPX, WABU, and WFXT.
Music
The integration of music into the culture of the Red Sox dates back to the Americans era, which saw the first use of the popular 1902 showtune ''Tessie
"Tessie" is both the longtime anthem of the Boston Red Sox and a 2004 song by the punk rock group Dropkick Murphys. The original "Tessie" was from the 1902 Broadway musical ''The Silver Slipper''. The newer song, written in 2004, recounts how th ...
'' as a rallying cry by fans. The tune saw a resurgence in popularity when a new version by Boston area band The Dropkick Murphys was featured in the 2005 film ''Fever Pitch (2005 film), Fever Pitch'', which tells the story of an obsessive Red Sox fan. The song is frequently played after home wins and inspired the name of Red Sox mascot Wally the Green Monster's "sister" ''Tessie''. Their song "I'm Shipping Up to Boston" was used to signify the entrance of Boston's closing pitcher.
Another song associated with the team and its fanbase is Neil Diamond
Neil Leslie Diamond (born January 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. He has sold more than 130 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling musicians of all time. He has had ten No. 1 singles on the Hot 100 and Adul ...
's 1969 single "Sweet Caroline
"Sweet Caroline" is a song written and performed by American singer Neil Diamond and released in May 1969 as a single with the title "Sweet Caroline (Good Times Never Seemed So Good)". It was arranged by Charles Calello, and recorded at Americ ...
". The song was first introduced to Fenway Park in 1997. By 2002, its play had been established as a nightly occurrence. It continues to be played at every home game during the 8th inning, sung along to by those in attendance. In 2007, Diamond revealed that the song was written for Caroline Kennedy, American diplomat and daughter of Boston icon President of the United States, President John F. Kennedy. Caroline Kennedy's great-grandfather, John F. Fitzgerald, threw Fenway Park's first-ever ceremonial opening pitch on April 20, 1912.[ When Diamond was named a Kennedy Center Honors recipient in 2011, Red Sox executive assistant Claire Durant arranged for 80 Red Sox fans to travel to Washington for the ceremony, which culminated in them singing the song behind Smokey Robinson onstage.
]
Retired numbers
Previously, the Red Sox published three official requirements for a player to have his number retired on their website and in their annual media guides. The requirements were as follows:
#Election to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, National Baseball Hall of Fame
#At least 10 years played with the Red Sox
#Finished his career with the club.
These requirements were reconsidered after the election of Carlton Fisk
Carlton Ernest Fisk (born December 26, 1947), nicknamed "Pudge" and "The Commander", is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher from 1969 to 1993 for the Boston Red Sox (1969, 1971–1980) a ...
to the Hall of Fame in 2000; who met the first two requirements but played the second half of his career with the Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and p ...
. As a means of meeting the criteria, then-GM Dan Duquette hired Fisk for one day as a special assistant, which allowed Fisk to technically finish his career with the Red Sox.
In 2008, the Red Sox made an "exception" by retiring number 6 for Johnny Pesky
John Michael Pesky (born John Michael Paveskovich; February 27, 1919 – August 13, 2012), nicknamed "The Needle" and "Mr. Red Sox", was an American professional baseball player, manager and coach. He was a shortstop and third baseman during a t ...
. Pesky neither spent ten years as a player nor was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame; however, Red Sox ownership cited "... his versatility of his contributions—on the field, off the field, [and] in the dugout ...", including as a manager, scout, and special instructor and decided that the honor had been well-earned. Pesky spent 57 years with the Red Sox organization; as a minor league player (1940–1941), major league player (1942, 1946–1952), minor league manager (1961–1962, 1990), major league manager (1963–1964, 1980), broadcaster (1969–1974), major league coach (1975–1984), and as a special instructor and assistant general manager (1985–2012).
In 2015, the Red Sox chose to forgo the official criteria and retire Pedro Martínez' number 45. Martínez only spent seven of his 18 seasons in Boston. In justifying the number's retirement, Red Sox principal owner John Henry stated, "To be elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame upon his first year of eligibility speaks volumes regarding Pedro's outstanding career, and is a testament to the respect and admiration so many in baseball have for him." After announcing Martínez's number retirement, the official criteria no longer appeared on the team website nor future media guides.
In 2017, less than eight months after he played the final game of his illustrious career, David Ortiz had his number 34 retired by the Red Sox. Ortiz was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility in 2022. To date, Ortiz is the only Red Sox player to have been on the active playoff roster of three World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...
championship teams (2004 World Series, 2004, 2007 World Series, 2007, 2013 World Series, 2013) since the issuance of jersey numbers starting in 1931.
The number 42 was officially retired by Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
in 1997, but Mo Vaughn was one of a handful of players to continue wearing number 42 due to a grandfather clause. He last wore it for the team in 1998. In commemoration of Jackie Robinson Day, MLB invited players to wear the number 42 for games played on April 15, Coco Crisp (CF), David Ortiz (DH), and DeMarlo Hale (Coach) did that in 2007 and again in 2008. Starting in 2009, MLB had all uniformed players for all teams wear number 42 for Jackie Robinson Day.
While not officially retired, the Red Sox have not issued several numbers since the departure of prominent figures who wore them, specifically:[
* 15 – Dustin Pedroia 2B (MLB 2006–2019; all with Boston)
* 21 – Roger Clemens RHP (MLB 1984–2007; Boston 1984–1996)
* 33 – Jason Varitek C (MLB 1997–2011; all with Boston). Varitek reclaimed his #33 when he became a coach in 2021.
* 49 – Tim Wakefield RHP (MLB 1992–1993, 1995–2011; Boston 1995–2011)
There has also been debate in Boston media circles and among fans about the potential retiring of Tony Conigliaro's number 25. Nonetheless, since Conigliaro's last full season in Boston, 1970, the number has never been taken out of circulation and issued to multiple players—notably Troy O'Leary from 1995 to 2001—along with coach Dwight Evans in 2002 and manager Bobby Valentine in 2012.]
Until the late 1990s, the numbers originally hung on the right-field facade in the order in which they were retired: 9–4–1–8. It was pointed out that the numbers, when read as a date (9/4/18), marked the eve of the first game of the 1918 World Series, the last championship series that the Red Sox won before 2004. After the facade was repainted, the numbers were rearranged in numerical order. In 2012, the numbers were rearranged again in chronological order of retirement (9, 4, 1, 8, 27, 6, 14) followed by Robinson's 42. As additional numbers were retired, Robinson's 42 was moved to the right so it remains the right-most number hanging.
Baseball Hall of Famers
Ford C. Frick Award recipients
BBWAA Career Excellence Award recipients
Several baseball writers, professionally based in Boston while writing about the Red Sox, have been recipients of the BBWAA Career Excellence Award (formerly the J. G. Taylor Spink Award), given for "meritorious contributions to baseball writing". Each of these writers spent at least part of their career with ''The Boston Globe''.
Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame
Since 1995, the team has maintained its own hall of fame, recognizing distinguished careers of former uniformed and non-uniformed team personnel. Red Sox personnel inducted to the National Baseball Hall of Fame are automatically inducted to the team's hall of fame. Other honorees are chosen via a 15-member selection committee.
Minor league affiliations
As of the 2021 season, Boston's farm team, farm system consists of six Minor League Baseball, minor league affiliates, fielding seven minor league teams (the Red Sox have two teams in the Dominican Summer League).
Other notable seasons and team records
*Nomar Garciaparra hit .372 in 2000, the club record for a right-handed hitter.
*David Ortiz set the franchise record for home runs in a season with 54 in 2006, surpassing Jimmie Foxx's record of 50 home runs set in 1938.
*On April 22, 2007, Manny Ramírez, J. D. Drew, Mike Lowell, and Jason Varitek hit four consecutive home runs in the 3rd inning off 10 pitches from Chase Wright (baseball), Chase Wright of the New York Yankees in his second Major League start and his fourth above Single-A ball. This was the fifth time in Major League history, and the first time in Red Sox history this feat has occurred. Notable is that J. D. Drew had previously contributed to a four consecutive home run sequence on September 18, 2006 (coincidentally also the second batter in the sequence) while with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Additionally, then-Red Sox manager Terry Francona's father, Tito Francona, also was a part of such a four consecutive home run sequence for the Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...
in 1963.
*The overall regular-season winning percentage since club inception in 1901 is .519, a record of 9,605–8,912 for games played through July 30, 2020.
* On September 1, 2007, Clay Buchholz no-hit the 2007 Baltimore Orioles season, Baltimore Orioles in his second Major League start. He is the first Red Sox rookie and 17th Red Sox pitcher to throw a no-hitter.
*On September 22, 2007, with a victory over the 2007 Tampa Bay Devil Rays season, Tampa Bay Devil Rays, the Red Sox clinched a spot in the postseason for the fourth time in five years, the first time in club history this has happened. Also, with this postseason berth, manager Terry Francona becomes the first manager in team history to lead the club to three playoff appearances.
*Between May 15, 2003, and April 10, 2013, the Red Sox sold out every home game. The 820-game streak is a record for all major American sports, narrowly passing the Portland Trail Blazers record of 814 between 1977 and 1995. The previous major league baseball record had been held by the Cleveland Indians, who sold out 455 games between June 12, 1995, and April 2, 2001. That is: a sellout only covers ticket sales, not spectators in physical seats.)
*On May 21, 2011, the Red Sox played against the Chicago Cubs at Fenway Park for the first time since the 1918 World Series (they had faced each other at Chicago's Wrigley Field in 2005). Both teams wore uniforms that matched the style worn in 1918.
* In 2016, David Ortiz set all-time records for most home runs and runs batted in in a player's final MLB season. Ortiz finished the season with 38 homers, which surpassed Dave Kingman's 35 in 1986, and 127 runs batted in, which surpassed Shoeless Joe Jackson's 123 in 1920.
*The Red Sox set a team record for wins in a regular season with 108 in 2018, surpassing the 106-year-old record of 105 wins set in 1912. Including playoffs, the Red Sox won a total of 119 games, the third most total wins in an MLB season.
*On October 8, 2018, Brock Holt became the first player in MLB history to hit for the cycle in the postseason, doing so in a 16–1 win over the New York Yankees in 2018 American League Division Series#Game 3, October 8, Game 3 of the 2018 American League Division Series.
See also
;General information
* History of the Boston Red Sox
* Red Sox Nation
* Tony Conigliaro Award
* The Jimmy Fund
* Sports in Massachusetts
* Sports in Boston
;Lists
* Boston Red Sox all-time roster
* List of Boston Red Sox award winners
* List of Boston Red Sox coaches
* List of Boston Red Sox managers
* List of Boston Red Sox seasons
* List of Boston Red Sox team records
* List of Major League Baseball franchise postseason streaks
;Media
* ''Game 6 (film), Game 6'' – a film covering the team's ultimately unsuccessful 1986 World Series championship run
* ''Red Sox Rule'' – a 2008 book written by Michael Holley
Notes
References
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External links
*
Season-by-Season Records
at ESPN Video Archive
*
{{authority control
Boston Red Sox,
1901 establishments in Massachusetts
Baseball teams established in 1901
Baseball teams in Boston, Red Sox
Grapefruit League
Laureus World Sports Awards winners
Major League Baseball teams
Professional baseball teams in Massachusetts