Boston Red Sox: The 4 players who are on the franchise’s Mount Rushmore

Boston Red Sox: Ted Williams belongs on the franchise’s Mount Rushmore

Ted Williams’ time with the Red Sox speaks for itself. He was a 19-time All-Star, a two-time winner of the American League Most Valuable Player Award, and a two-time Triple Crown winner, something you will never see in this day and age in baseball, and finished the 1941 season batting .406. Many have tried to match that, but nobody has been able to match one of the greatest hitters of all time.

In his career, the left-handed hitter played in 2,292 games and finished with a .344 career average and 521 home runs, but one of his most famous swings happened on June 9, 1946. He hit a 502-foot home run that popped a hole in the hat of fan, Joseph Boucher, and the spot was marked with a red seat at Fenway Park, which still stands today.

Williams was one of the most prepared hitters in the game. In 1957, he hit .388 and one year later led the AL in hitting with a .328 average at age 40. How impressive was his career? His playing career spanned over four decades.

Even more impressive was the fact that he was drafted into the military in 1942 at the beginning of his career where he spent four seasons before resuming his career in historic fashion. There is no doubt that he should be at the very top of the Boston Red Sox Mount Rushmore.

Boston Red Sox: Carl Yastrzemski belongs on the franchise Mount Rushmore

In this day and age of baseball, one player spending his entire career with one team rarely happens. That was not the case back in the day and Carl Yastrzemski did that with the Red Sox.

He followed in the footsteps of Williams and began his career in 1961, but his best season happened six seasons later in 1967. He won the AL Triple Crown and the next player to accomplish that feat was Miguel Cabrera currently of the Detroit Tigers in 2012.

The 1967 season was one that will go down in Boston Red Sox lore. Known as the “Impossible Dream,” they finished in ninth place the previous season, before winning the AL pennant thanks in large part to Yastrzemski who hit .513 over the final 14 days of the regular season. They went on to lose the World Series in seven games to the St. Louis Cardinals. In his career, Yaz finished with a .285 average in 3,308 career games, but he ended up filling the shoes of Williams, something that nobody thought was possible.

The name Yastrzemski is still big in the game today as his grandson, Mike Yastrzemski, was drafted by the Red Sox in 2009 and Seattle Mariners in 2012, but he did not sign with either organization. He now plays for the San Francisco Giants, continuing the name Yastrzemski in the majors.

Boston Red Sox: Pedro Martinez belongs on the franchise Mount Rushmore

If the Red Sox were going to break the curse and win the World Series, it was going to take some big-time performances from some players. Fortunately for the Red Sox, it was just seven seasons in Boston for Pedro Martinez, but it was a memorable one for the former Montreal Expos right-hander.

In his seven seasons in Boston, he went 117-37 with a 2.52 ERA in the regular season, but in the playoffs, he was even better. He was a perfect 4-0 in the ALDS with a 2.84 ERA working both in relief and starting. His best performance in a Red Sox uniform happened in Game 5 of the ALDS against the Cleveland Indians. Through three innings, Boston held a 9-8 lead, but manager Jimy Williams called on Martinez and the skinny flame-thrower tossed six no-hit innings to send his team to the ALCS.

One thing that made him one of the game’s best pitchers in his prime was his ability to pitch inside without worrying about any effects and his way of mixing his pitches to keep some of the game’s best hitters of that time off balance. He was a strikeout machine and between August of 1999 and April of 2000, where he had 10 straight games with 10 or more strikeouts.

It took a lot of things that needed to come together for Boston to end their 86-year championship drought, but one of the biggest reasons was Martinez and his leadership both on the field and off. He was the guy willing to take the ball every fifth day and on shorter rest in the postseason. It was only seven seasons, but he is on the Red Sox Mount Rushmore. Other pitchers have a longer tenure and longer effect on the franchise, but they can’t claim to be a World Series champion in Boston.

Boston Red Sox: David Ortiz belongs on the franchise Mount Rushmore

Martinez was a big piece of the 2004 Red Sox, but the case can be made that without David Ortiz, there may be no championship or memorable run.

The Minnesota Twins gave up on their young left-handed slugger and allowed him to become a free agent in 2003 and the rest is history they say in Boston. The Red Sox signed him and it turned out to be one of the biggest signings of a free agent in franchise history.

Known as “Big Papi,” there was no player that had a knack for coming up with the big hit when his team needed it. During his time with the Red Sox, Ortiz had 483 home runs and had a mind-blowing World Series slash line of .455/.576/.795 in 14 games. He was one of the most feared hitters of his time and along with Manny Ramirez, they formed a duo that was worth watching every pitch.

Yes, PED use surrounded him in 2009 when he tested positive for steroids, but that did not stop him from coming up with clutch hits. In 14 seasons in Boston, he hit 30 or more home runs 10 times, including a career-high 54 in 2006. One of his more iconic hits came in Game 2 of the 2013 ALCS against the Tigers. He belted a grand slam in the bottom of the eighth inning off Joaquin Benoit to help his team win the game and they went on to win the series and eventually their third title of his time in Boston. Also up there is his Game 4 walk-off homer against the Yankees in 2004 that extended the series and began the historic comeback against their rivals.

There were no players in the history of the Red Sox who had the clutch gene more than Ortiz. Like Martinez, there is no 2004 Cinderella playoff run without Ortiz. In fact, there may not be three championships during his time in Boston without Ortiz. His free agency turned out to be franchise-altering during his Hall of Fame time with the organization.

There are plenty of other former members of the Red Sox would you can make a claim deserve to be on the Mount Rushmore of players. These four, however, have a special place in Red Sox history forever.