#9 TED WILLIAMS "The Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived" - LF 1939-1960

Ted Williams was the Greatest Hitter of All-Time. The last player to bat over .400 (.406 in 1941), Williams combined power-hitting (521 Career HR) for a high average (6 Batting Crowns), plus he had a keen eye, so he annually led the league in Bases on Balls. He still holds the MBL record for Highest On Base Percentage at an incredible .482! That means for about every 10 plate appearances, Williams would reach base, via a hit or walk, nearly 50% of the time! Incredible. To top off his career, Ted Williams hit a home run (#521) in his final at-bat at Fenway Park. Williams was not only a sports LEGEND, but a real-life American hero as well. Ted Williams spent 5 years of his prime serving as a Marine fighter pilot in both World War II and Korea! Most of the other big stars of the day also served in the Military, but not in combat. Imagine the best player today, say Mike Trout, spending 5 years to serve in an armed conflict. Won't happen. Pat Tillman did this, gave up his NFL career to join the U.S. Army Rangers, & a heartfelt salute to him & his family. But you certainly won't see many star athletes, with the salaries they are making, putting their lives at risk in the Armed Services. So players like Ted Williams & Pat Tillman are one-of-kind. I can go on and on about Ted Williams, but here we can just enjoy the cards depicting "The Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived," Ted Williams.

• In 1954 Topps Chewing Gum signed the great TED WILLIAMS to an exclusive baseball card contract. Topps was in a fierce battle with rival gum maker Bowman Gum & each would try & sign the best players for their gum brand. So this 1954 Topps 1 Ted Williams is his very first TOPPS bubble gum card! Topps was so thrilled to have Williams, they also made the last card of the set Williams as well  (1954 Topps 250)! Both cards are pictured above. Card #250 is noteworthy as nearly the entire card back is cartoon highlights of Williams career (see below).

• Did you know? Did you know that Ted Williams was from California? Yep! He was born & raised in San Diego. Williams also played minor league ball with the Pacific Coast League San Diego Padres. 

#27 CARLTON FISK "Pudge" - Red Sox Catcher 1972-1980

Here is another favorite of mine that I actually got to see play. Carlton Fisk was the American League's Johnny Bench. Thurman Munson was right there as well, though he was  more of a line drive hitter than a power hitter, like Bench & Fisk. Carlton Fisk is actually a New Englander, growing up in New Hampshire. So he was (& still is) a fan favorite for Red Sox fans. What I like about him was that he was a leader. Like Bench, when Fisk was behind the plate HE was in charge. Of course Fisk will always be remebered for the game-winning 12th inning HR that won Game 6 of the 1975 World Series. But he was also a durable & rugged catcher who was not afraid to block the plate, or fight it out with the Yankees. I also liked his televion commercials for chewing tobacco- "...just a pinch between your cheek & gum (was it Skoal? I can't remember)." When Fisk retired, he had the MLB record for Most Career Home Runs by a catcher. His number 27 is one of the numbers retired by the Boston Red Sox. I got to meet him prior to the 1980 All-Star Game in Los Angeles. It was a great thrill, & he signed an autograph for me (so did Jim Rice!). 

#14 JIM RICE - OF/DH 1974-1989

Jim Rice was the most feared slugger in the AL for nearly a decade. I am sure many pitchers lost the battle just looking at Rice glaring at them, waving his bat (which looked like a 2'x 4" stud). Yeah he was a stud at the plate. The Red Sox struck gold when they brought rookies Fred Lynn & Jim Rice ("The Gold Dust Twins") for the 1975 season. They brought youthful energy to the team, along with "Pudge," "Dewey," & "The Rooster."  Add that to the veteran leadership of Yaz, Rico Petrocelli & Luis Tiant & you had a nucleus for a great team... which they were! It's too bad free agency & questionable team management led to this team disintegrating after the 1980 season. Maybe even a bit prior. But Yaz, Dwight Evans and Jim Rice stayed on. Rice, like Yastrzemski, played his entire career for the Red Sox. That is quite an accomplishment, especially today. You could say the same for Evans, but he played one last year for the Orioles (1991). 

• The 1978 O-Pee-Chee 163 Jim Rice is  the scarcer Canadian version of his Topps card. Both have the exact same front. It really doesn't matter! It's a great card & from Rice's MVP year! Also, I don't normally collect "newer" cards, but I saw this 1989 Bowman Tiffany 33 Jim Rice & had to add it to may collection! 

#5 NOMAR GARCIAPARRA  "NO-MA!"- Red Sox SS 1997-2004

Nomar Garciaparra was also from Southern California (Whittier, near L.A). What's a real shame is that Nomar was every bit as good as Derek Jeter, certainly a better hitter, yet Jeter is in the HOF and Nomar is not. It might be all the World Series Championships Jeter was in. Nomar never got to play in a World Series. In early 2004 Nomar was batting .321 when he was traded to the, Chicago Cubs?  I still don't get that. Nomar was a career .323 hitter as Red Sox. Orlando Cabrera was a better shortstop (career as shortstop .977 Fielding %) than Nomar (career as shortstop .968%), but was never an MVP candidate. Nomar was in the Top 10 in MVP voting 6 times including runner-up in 1998. Nomar was a  2-time Batting Champ. Postseason? In 32 Postseason games, Nomar batted .321 with 36 hits (7 2B, 3B, 7 HR, 24 RBI, & 16 runs scored. Cabrera was no slouch, he had over 2000 hits in his career and batted .272, but he was not Nomar.

 So, the Red Sox went on to win the World Series in 2004. The "curse" was finally over, & it was quite exciting being able to see Boston win a World Seriest (the ALCS vs. Yankees was way better!). But NOMAR should have been there! GM Theo Epstein was the "Boy Wonder" who pulled off this "miracle" with his wheeling and dealing. But what if the Red Sox had not won the World Series? Theo Epstein's skeleton (along with other upper management)  would still be hanging from "Pesky's Pole." Of course Garciaparra handled all this quite well. But I bet he knows he should have been there. He deserved it. 

Nomar Garciaparra was a Hall of Fame player, who had the misfortune of some terrible injuries after leaving Boston. Noman played only 14 seasons. Over 162 game schedule, Nomar averaged .313, 197 Hits, 42 2B, 6 3B, 26 HR, 106 RBI, 105 Runs Scored per season!. If that isn't a Hall of Famer, I don't know what. No disrespect to Derek Jeter (he gets enough accolades), but he does NOT have those kinds of numbers. But he was able to play most of his career injury free, and he got 3,000 hits, & all those World Series appearances.  I know the Red Sox gave Nomar a World Series Ring, though that does not make up for dealing him away. What the Red Sox should do is retire Nomar's number 5. And while that are at it, they can retire Tony Conigliaro's 25, & Dwight "Dewey" Evans 24 as well! While not in the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, Nomar, Tony C., & "Dewey" are in our HOF! Check out Nowbatting19.net Hall of Fame

 1962 Gene Conley & "Pumpsie" Green - The Two "Amigos" Go Bar-Hopping in NYC

Elijah "Pupsie" Green has the distinction of being the first African-American ballplayer for the Boston Red Sox (1959). It certainly took the Red Sox a long time to sign a black ballplayer, as Jackie Robinson had become the first in 1947 with the Brooklyn Dodgers. In his debut at Fenway, Pumpsie hit a triple off the "Green Monsta." That will endear yourself to the fans. Unfortunately for Pumpsie, he was used mostly as a bench player, but he did manage to stay in the big leagues for 5 years, finishing up his last season (1963) as a member of the hapless N.Y. Mets. 

 Gene Conley had the distinction of being both a Major League Baseball player (Pitcher) and a NBA player (Forward) as well. He also won a World Series while with the Milwaukee Braves in 1957, & 3 Championships with the Boston Celtics! He won 91 games in his career as a pitcher.

The following is a famous incident that occurred after a humiliating loss to the Yankees in 1962. Both players were not with the Red Sox for much longer.

"In the days following July 27, 1962, Conley made headlines after exiting a Red Sox team bus that was stuck in New York City traffic with teammate Pumpsie Green to find a restroom, with the bus driver subsequently driving away without the players on board. As Conley recollected the episode in a 2004 interview with the Boston Globe: "So we got off and went in this bar, and when we came back out, Pumpsie said, 'Hey, that bus is gone,' and I said, 'We are, too!'"[3] Conley and Green checked into a hotel, with Green rejoining the team the next day in Washington, D.C., but Conley taking a hiatus during which he attracted media attention in attempting to fly to Jerusalem. As told by Conley, Red Sox owner Tom Yawkey fined him $1,500 with the promise he would refund the money at the end of the season if Conley rededicated himself to the team, with Yawkey fulfilling the promise in September."

• Golenbock, Peter (2015). Red Sox Nation: The Rich and Colorful History of the Boston Red Sox. Chicago, Ill.: Triumph Books LLC. pp. 255–262. ISBN 978-1-62937-050-7 

#24 DWIGHT EVANS "Dewey" - Red Sox Right Fielder 1973-1990

Dwight Evans ("Dewey") was a mainstay in right field for the Red Sox for 17 years! He won 8 Gold Glove Awards as a fielder, and runners knew not to take chances on trying to advance on fly balls to right field. Dewey had a cannon for a right arm. Evans was on that great 1975 Red Sox team, batting .292 with a double, triple, HR, & 5 RBI in the World Series. He also made a spectacular catch in right field to rob Joe Mogan of a HR or at least extra bases. I believe that was in the famous Game 6. But that team dissolved once Fred Lynn (traded to Angels) & Carlton Fisk (signed as free agent with White Sox) were let go. Then Yaz retired in 1983, and it was Dewey & Jim Rice who kept the flame alive. And both were rewarded in 1986, when in a miracle of the gods, Boston won the ALCS in a classic series vs. the California Angels. Then we all know what happened in the 1986 World Series. One strike away. The god's giveth and the god's taketh away. Dewey hit .308 in that Series with 2 doubles, 2 HR and 9 RBI. What I remember about Dwight Evans, besides his great fielding, he became a terrific hitter as well. It seemed, like fine wine, that as he got older, he got better. In his career, Evans batted .272 with 2446 Hits, 483 2B, 385 HR, 1384 RBI, & scored 1470 Runs! Not to mention the 8 Gold Glove Awards. Dwight Evans should be in the HOF in Cooperstown, but he is in OUR Nowbatting19.net HALL OF FAME!  Also the Red Sox need to retire Evans number 24!

#8 CARL YASTRZEMSKI "Yaz" - LF/1B 1961-1983

1960s/1971 Bazooka Bubble Gum Carl Yastrzemski - Hand cut Baseball Cards

• Bazooka, Topps Chewing Gum, Inc.'s brand of bubble gum (remember "Bazooka Joe & his Gang?") came in small cartons. On the bottoms of these cartons were 3 baseball cards, intended to be cut out, collected & traded. As you can imagine, not too many survived, let alone survive in good shape. The boxes were subject to handling, scratching, creasing so the cards got off to a bad start even before they were cut out. They were on the bottom of the carton! Secondly, the cards were cut out by excited kids, and even though there were "cutting lines" to guide the cutting, many of the cards were not cut as intended. Many are cut short (inside the black lines). Regardless, they are tough cards to find in nice shape (like the examples shown). Yaz was featured on a few of the Bazooka issues. 1971 was the final year for the Bazooka cards. There are still a few uncut 3-card panels out there. There are even complete boxes, but they are rare.

#21 ROGER CLEMENS  "The Rocket" - Red Sox RHP 1984-1996

You know, if Roger Clemens had retired, just as a member of the RED SOX, he would be in the HOF today. In just 13 seasons with Boston, Clemens won 192 games against only 111 losses (.634%). He had 100 Complete Games, 38 Shutouts, 2,590 Strikeouts (against only 856 Walks) in 2,776 Innings Pitched! Clemens won 3 Cy Young Awards, an MVP, was a 5-time All-Star, and he struck out a MLB record 20 batters in a game, TWICE! And that was just as a member of the Red Sox!

Of course from Boston, he went to Toronto, New York (where he did get a World Series Ring or two, the traitorous bastard) & Houston. Roger Clemens won over 300 career ballgames, a record 7 Cy Young Awards & allegations of steroid use. Now here is where the HOF and I differ. Clemens NEVER came up positive for PED testing. The Mitchell Report relies heavily on the testimony of Clemens personal trainer. He was ruled "Not Guilty" in lying to Congress. What happened to "innocent until proven guilty?" I saw this guy pitch, and he reminded me of Nolan Ryan, but with better control! That's how good he was. Roger Clemens, as a player, was & is a Hall of Famer.

• The 1984 Fleer Update U27 Roger Clemens was his first appearance as a Major Leaguer on a mainstream baseball card. He also appeared as a member of the Pawtucket Red Sox in the 1984 TCMA Pawtucket Red Sox set. However his rookie cards from 1985, which include Donruss, Fleer & Topps, are also considered his rookie cards. But this '84 Fleer Update is his earliest card as a member of the Boston Red Sox. 

• The 1985 Topps TIFFANY 181 Roger Clemens (pictured)., is the scarcer version of his regular Topps card. Both are his first TOPPS cards.