We continue our off-season project with a look at the Boston Red Sox All-Time 25-Man Roster.
The Boston franchise that would become known as the Red Sox came into existence in 1901 when Ban Johnson declared the Western League as the equal of the already existing National League. Johnson changed the name to the American League and put teams in Philadelphia and Boston, which were two of the most important cities that already had NL teams. The Boston team was often called the Americans at this time.
In 1903, the Boston Americans played in the first World Series and beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, five games to three. Their biggest star was Cy Young, the best pitcher in baseball. The team first became known as the Red Sox in 1908. It was an abbreviation for Red Stockings. They had a terrific run from 1912 to 1918. In this seven-year stretch, they won all four World Series they appeared in, with Tris Speaker being a key part of the first two World Series champions and Babe Ruth being a key part of the final three.
One of the worst moments in franchise history occurred prior to the 1920 season when owner Harry Frazee sold Babe Ruth to the Yankees. Ruth had just set the single-season home run record with 29 bombs. In his first year as a Yankee, he would hit 54, then 59 in his second year.
After selling Ruth to the Yankees, the Red Sox went 85 years without winning a World Series title. In that same time period, the Yankees would win the World Series 26 rimes. The Red Sox post-Ruth were a terrible team for many years. From 1919 to 1933, they never finished in the upper half of the standings. Then Ted Williams showed up in the late 30s and the team had some success, finishing in second place three times in his first four years with the team.
Of course, Williams never won a World Series. He retired after the 1960 season, just in time for Carl Yastrzemski to take over left field in 1961. The Red Sox went to the World Series twice with Yaz on the roster, losing two epic Fall Classics. They lost to the St. Louis Cardinals and series MVP Bob Gibson four games to three in 1967, then lost the 1975 series to the Cincinnati Reds, despite the highlight-reel home run by Carlton Fisk in Game Six.
All for Tennessee
Yastrzemski retired in 1983, one year after Wade Boggs made his debut with the Red Sox. Boggs would win five batting titles in his first six years and help the Red Sox to the 1986 World Series which, of course, they lost in heartbreaking fashion in Game 7 Bill Buckner, Bob Stanley, John McNamara .
After more than eight decades without a World Series title, the David Ortiz-led Red Sox finally captured the title in 2004, then won it again in 2007 and 2013. This was the best stretch of seasons for the Red Sox since Babe Ruth was a young pitcher with the team.
The Red Sox have often been known for their great hitters. It’s true; they’ve had some great hitters over the years, including their 50-year run of left fielders from Ted Williams to Carl Yastrzemski to Jim Rice. They’ve also had some of the greatest pitchers to ever play the game, including baseball’s all-time leader in wins, Cy Young.
Here is the Boston Red Sox’ all-time 25-man roster.