Friday, June 30, 2006

My 25 Least Favorite Red Sox Players

Baseball Crank had his list of his 25 least favorite Mets and it got me thinking. So without further ado - here are my least favorite Red Sox players (all players played for Red Sox during my lifetime).

25. Marc Sullivan - supposedly a nice guy but his complete lack of production and the nepotism that got him drafted in the first place get him the 25th place on the list.

24. Danny Cater - nothing personal Danny but we gave up Sparky Lyle for you? If I were older - I'm sure this would be further up the list.

23. Ramiro Mendoza - I didn't buy into that "Embedded Yankee" stuff but his performance his first year here did make you wonder.

22. Byung-Hyun Kim - just couldn't handle the pressure of Boston.

21. Sam Horn - big stiff and marble-mouthed NESN analyst.

20. Ken Brett - the 4th overall pick of the 1966 draft. Pretty much a stiff in a Sox uniform. The Sox could have drafted Norwood's Richie Hebner instead or Ken could have been more like his brother George.

19. Edgar Renteria - another guy who couldn't handle the pressure of playing in Boston.

18. Gary Allenson - .221 BA and .325 SLG and always seemed kinda like a jerk to me.

17. John Marzano - I guess you either love or hate most back-up catchers. I didn't like Marzano.

16. Tim McCarver - he played 11 games for the Sox in 1974 and 12 games in 1975. I really don't know anyone who likes Tim McCarver.

15. Jim Leyritz - what were the Red Sox thinking when they traded for a fading Yankee World Series hero?

14. Rick Cerone - 186 games with the Red Sox and again I ask - can't the Sox find a catcher who doesn't wear pinstripe pajamas to bed? (Hey five back-up catchers in a row! Luckily that's all the back-up catchers on the list.)

13. Steve Lyons - one of the most over-hyped players in Red Sox history. His only redeeming thing is the fact that we were able to use him to acquire Tom Seaver in 1986.

12. Ken Harrelson - talking about over-hyped players. Harrelson played only 183 games for the Red Sox (three less than Rick Cerone) but he was able to parlay that into a TV gig with the team when he was done playing (he's currently making the ears of White Sox fans bleed). Harrelson at number 12 - you can put him on the board - YES!

11. Steve Avery - he was going to replace Roger Clemens' production? In his two years with the Sox he went 16-14 and made $8.75 million for his two years while Clemens won 21 games and the Cy Young while making just $8.4 million in 1997 for Toronto. Biggest penny-wise pound-foolish move by the Sox in my lifetime.

10. Dante Bichette - he was supposed to be this big hulking home run hitter. Instead the player the Red Sox got looked like this.

9. Jeremy Giambi - David Ortiz was supposed to back-up Jeremy Giambi. Remember that the next time someone tries to tell you Theo Epstein is a genius.

8. Matt Young - the guy threw a no-hitter and lost. That pretty much sums up Matt Young.

7. Mike Lansing - my dislike of Mike Lansing is difficult to explain. Let me just say that I think the steroids era at Fenway may have coincided with Lansing's arrival. It should also be pointed out that he made over $6 million from the Sox in 2001 but in 2002 he couldn't get a roster spot on any team (and he was "healthy").

6. Larry Anderson - just two words explain Andersen's place on this list "Jeff Bagwell".

5. Jose Canseco - the steroid era officially arrived at Fenway Park with the signing of Canseco. His signing also symbolized the clownish reign of Kevin Kennedy where big muscles trumped winners like Jamie Moyer who won with guile and savvy.

4. Mike Torrez - the first big name free agent the Sox signed and the original embedded Yankee. Bucky Fucking Dent indeed!

3. Jack Clark - the poster child of the era when the Sox would overpay fading star free agents. Him being a jerk as a person cements him at number 3.

2. Kevin Millar - take a look at the production Kevin Youkilis is having at 1st base this year and remember that the Sox lost the Division to the Yankees last year on a tie breaker. The ONLY thing that kept the Sox from winning the division last year was Kevin Millar crying about his playing time. Oh and him being a replacement player doesn't sit too well in this household. THE most over-hyped player is Sox history. His mouth was constantly cashing checks his numbers couldn't cover.

1. Wade Boggs - I CANNOT STAND WADE BOGGS! Both Jim Rice and Dwight Evans were better players and better teammates - yet Boggs and his selfish love of numbers is the one in Cooperstown.

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