It finally happened in 2004. The Curse of the Bambino was finally broken when the Red Sox swept the St. Louis Cardinals to win their first world title since 1918. The Red Sox had a solid decade making the playoffs six times and winning two World Series despite winning the division only once. (Also, check out the All-Decade Team compiled by Sports of Boston.)

C - Jason Varitek

• Jason Varitek has caught the last 12 season for Boston and serves as team captain. Varitek is not known for his offensive numbers, but as a leader, and receiver, he has been a solid catcher for the last 12 years. In the 2000s, he hit 148 HR, drove in 662 runs, and hit .257 primarily in the bottom third of the Sox order. Varitek was a three time All-Star (including the most egregious selection in the history of the All-Star game in '08) and won the Silver Slugger and a Gold Glove in 2005. Varitek also caught four no-hitters.

1B - Kevin Youkilis

• Kevin Youkilis has played multiple positions (1B, 3B, LF, DH) for the Red Sox but has been a consistent performer since 2004. After being a solid defender and a fiery competitor for his first four seasons, Youkilis really came into his own offensively the last two seasons. He has been an All-Star and has been in the top six of the AL MVP the last two seasons after he won a Gold Glove in 2007. Youkilis hit .292, averaged 22 HR and 96 RBI, and has consistently shown a great eye at the plate, posting a .391 on base percentage.
  

2B - Dustin Pedroia

• Despite a receding hairline and near midget size, Dustin Pedroia quickly became a fan favorite. Pedroia has played three full seasons with the Red Sox and has already become well decorated winning the Rookie of the Year in 2007 and the AL MVP in 2008. Despite his diminuitive size (5’9”, 180), he has hit 42 home runs and 145 doubles in three full seasons. In his MVP year of 2008, he led the American League in runs, hits, and doubles; was an All-Star; and won his first Silver Slugger and Gold Glove.
  
  

SS - Nomar Garciaparra

• At his finest right at the turn of the century, Nomar Garciaparra makes the All-Decade Team with his final four and a half years in Boston coming in the 2000s. Three times this decade he made the All-Star team, including twice being a starter. Garciaparra began the decade by leading the league in batting for the second straight season. Garciaparra batted .372 in 2000 and also led the league in intentional base on balls receiving 20 free passes. In three full seasons at the beginning of the decade, Nomar averaged 24 homers, 48 doubles, and 107 RBI.
  

3B - Mike Lowell

• Though he has been injured at times, Mike Lowell has manned the hot corner for the Red Sox the last four years. He has been a quality run producer over that span notching 75 HR, adding 348 RBI, and hitting .295. Lowell was an All-Star in 2007 and finished fifth in the AL MVP voting that season. He was also stellar in the postseason in '07 hitting .353 with nine extra base hits and 15 RBI in only 14 games. Lowell was subsequently named the World Series MVP after posting a 1.300 OPS in the four game sweep of the Colorado Rockies.
  

LF - Manny Ramirez

• Manny Ramirez is still one of the most potent right-handed hitters in the game.  He played seven and a half seasons for Boston and put up mind-boggling numbers. Ramirez hit 274 of his 546 HR for Boston, drove in 868 runs, hit .312, posted a .999 OPS, and added 256 doubles. His outfield defense was never Gold Glove-caliber, but Manny was an expert at playing the ball off the Green Monster, allowing him to pile up 60 assists from left field. Ramirez was an All-Star every season he was with the Red Sox, and he also won six consecutive Silver Sluggers while playing in Fenway.
  

CF - Johnny Damon

• It was a tight battle between Jacoby Ellsbury and Johnny Damon. Both were stellar leadoff hitters for the Red Sox, and each possesses different skills: Damon provides more power and hits to the gaps better while Ellsbury is a better defender, who also has speedy wheels on the basepaths having led the league the last two seasons. Nonetheless, Damon gets the nod due to his ability to better do the things needed from a leadoff hitter. Damon averaged nearly 20 more runs during his four seasons, and "Johnny Caveman" also collected nearly 20 more walks each seasons. Damon hit .295 and averaged 115 runs, 14 homers, 34 doubles, 75 RBI, and 24 stolen bases.
  
  

RF - Trot Nixon

• Trot Nixon and J.D. Drew's numbers per 162 games are nearly identical (.278, 92 R, 35 2B, 5 3B, 23 HR, 91 RBI versus .276, 104 R, 35 2B, 6 3B, 23 HR, 83 RBI), so the edge goes to Trot Nixon for his tenure since he spent part of ten seasons with Boston, including the first seven of this decade. Nixon's best season came in 2003 when he blasted 28 homers and drove in 87 runs. He also got better as the stakes got higher as his batting average increased as the Red Sox went deeper in the playoffs. He his .333 in the 2003 ALCS against the Yankees, including three home runs and then hit .357 in Boston's sweet of the Cardinals in the 2004 World Series.
  

DH - David Ortiz

• Despite the allegations of steroid use, David Ortiz's career took off once he arrived in Boston. He had never hit more than 20 long balls in a season before his arrival, but totaled 259 HR in seven seasons with the Red Sox this decade. Many of those have been clutch coming in late innings and in the playoffs. Ortiz has been named an American League All-Star 5 times, finished in the top five of the MVP voting five times, and won four Silver Slugger awards. In 2006, Ortiz led the league with 54 dingers and led the league in RBI for the second consecutive season.
  

SP (LH) - Jon Lester

• Though he has only itched two full seasons, Jon Lester is 42-16 in his Red Sox career, a baffling .724 win percentage. Not only was he one of the inspirational stories in baseball after he battled through cancer, he also won 15+ games each of the last two years and is 2-3 in the postseason but sports an impressive 2.57 ERA. After joining the rotation near the end of the 2007 season, he went 4-0 in 11 starts and also won the series-clincher in the World Series. He also tossed a no-hitter in 2008.
  

SP (RH) - Pedro Martinez

• Both Curt Schilling and Josh Beckett were tremendous for the Red Sox, especially in the playoffs, but neither can touch Pedro Martinez in this discussion. Pedro was the most dominant pitcher in baseball during his time in Boston and has the numbers to prove it. From 2000-2004, he went 75-26 (.742) and from 2000-2003 his ERA was not above 2.39. While in Boston this decade, he led the league in ERA three times, win percentage twice, strikeouts twice, shutouts once, and WHIP three times and would have been in contention for all of those in 2001 as well if he had pitched the minimum number of innings to be eligible. With the Sox during the decade, he was twice an All-Star, won one Cy Young, and finished in the top five three other times.
  
  

RP - Hideki Okajima

• It was difficult not to pick Mike Timlin after he's done such a tremendous job at the tail end of his career, but you can't argue with the numbers Hideki Okajima has put up since coming over from Japan in 2007. In his three seasons since signing as a free agent, Okajima has posted a 12-4 record, a 2.72 ERA, and a 1.13 WHIP. His rookie season, Okajima went 19 consecutive appearances without allowing a run after giving up one in his very first outing and had an ERA around the 1.00 mark until the last month of the season. The Japanese southpaw has also excelled in the playoffs pitching to a 2.11 ERA in 17 appearances. Against Cleveland and Tampa Bay in the '07 and '08 ALCS, Okajima pitched 12.1 scoreless innings allowing only five hits.
  

CL - Jonathan Papelbon

• Despite his “human rain delay” working pace, Jonathan Papelbon solidified the back end of the Boston bullpen. Since his rookie season in 2006, his season averages included 38 saves, 10.6 strikeouts per nine innings, and a 1.74 ERA. One of the best closers in the American League, Papelbon was a four-time All-Star and the runner-up to Justin Verlander for the 2006 Rookie of the Year award..

TrackBack URI for this entry

Comments (0)

Name

Email

Website

Title

Comment

smaller | bigger

Subscribe via email (registered users only)

Add Comment