1978 Boston Red Sox season

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

1978 Boston Red Sox
Jim Rice named AL MVP
Major League affiliations
Location
Results
Record99–64 (.607)
Divisional place2nd (1 GB)
Other information
Owner(s)Buddy LeRoux, Haywood Sullivan, Jean Yawkey
General manager(s)Haywood Sullivan
Manager(s)Don Zimmer
Local televisionWSBK-TV, Ch. 38
(Dick Stockton, Ken Harrelson)
Local radioWITS-AM 1510
(Ned Martin, Jim Woods)
StatsESPN.com
BB-reference
< Previous season     Next season >

The 1978 Boston Red Sox season was the 78th season in the franchise's Major League Baseball history. After 162 regular-season games, the Red Sox and the New York Yankees finished tied atop the American League East division, with identical 99–63 records. The teams then played a tie-breaker game, which was won by New York, 5–4.[1] Thus, the Red Sox finished their season with a record of 99 wins and 64 losses, one game behind the Yankees, who went on to win the 1978 World Series.

Offseason[]

  • November 23, 1977: Mike Torrez was signed as a free agent by the Boston Red Sox.[2]
  • December 8, 1977: Don Aase and cash were traded by the Red Sox to the California Angels for Jerry Remy.[3]
  • December 14, 1977: Ferguson Jenkins was traded by the Red Sox to the Texas Rangers for John Poloni and cash.[4]
  • December 27, 1977: Dick Drago was signed as a free agent by the Red Sox.[5]
  • March 28, 1978: Denny Doyle was released by the Red Sox.[6]
  • March 30, 1978: Rick Wise, Mike Paxton, Ted Cox, and Bo Díaz were traded by the Red Sox to the Cleveland Indians for Dennis Eckersley and Fred Kendall.[7]

Regular season[]

Record by month[8]
Month Record Cumulative AL East Ref.
Won Lost Won Lost Position GB
April 11 9 11 9 2nd 3 [9]
May 23 7 34 16 1st +3 [10]
June 18 7 52 23 1st +8 [11]
July 13 15 65 38 1st +5 [12]
August 19 10 84 48 1st +6+1⁄2 [13]
September 14 15 98 63 2nd 1 [14]
October 1 1 99 64 2nd 1 [15]

The Red Sox played 163 games, as a tie-breaker game was needed to determine the winner of the AL East.

The "Boston Massacre"[]

For several days in July, the Red Sox were 14 games ahead of the rival New York Yankees; at the end of play on July 19, Boston was 62–28 and New York was in fourth place at 48–42.[16] However, the Yankees worked their way back. At the end of play on September 6, the Yankees had reduced the 14-game deficit to only four games,[17] just in time for a four-game series at Fenway Park in Boston. The Yankees won all four games in the series, by a combined score of 42–9,[18] leaving the teams tied with identical 86–56 records at the end of play on September 10.[19] The series became known as the "Boston Massacre",[20] named after the March 5, 1770, confrontation with British soldiers.

Tie-breaker game[]

The Yankees held a one-game lead over the Red Sox before the final day of the regular-season schedule. With a Red Sox win over the Toronto Blue Jays, and a Yankee loss to the Cleveland Indians, the two teams finished the season in a tie for the AL East division title, both with records of 99–63.[21] The next day, in a tie-breaker game played at Fenway Park, the Yankees beat the Red Sox, 5–4, with the help of a memorable home run by Bucky Dent.[22]

Main article: 1978 American League East tie-breaker game

The Yankees went on to win the World Series in six games over the Los Angeles Dodgers. Although Dent became a Red Sox demon, the Red Sox would get a measure of retribution in 1990, when the Yankees fired Dent as their manager during a series at Fenway Park.[23][24]

Season standings[]

  • v
  • t
AL East 		W L Pct. GB Home Road
New York Yankees 100 63 0.613 — 55–26 45–37
Boston Red Sox 99 64 0.607 1 59–23 40–41
Milwaukee Brewers 93 69 0.574 6½ 54–27 39–42
Baltimore Orioles 90 71 0.559 9 51–30 39–41
Detroit Tigers 86 76 0.531 13½ 47–34 39–42
Cleveland Indians 69 90 0.434 29 42–36 27–54
Toronto Blue Jays 59 102 0.366 40 37–44 22–58

Record vs. opponents[]

1978 American League Records
  • v
  • t

Sources: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14]
Team BAL BOS CAL CWS CLE DET KC MIL MIN NYY OAK SEA TEX TOR
Baltimore — 7–8 4–6 8–1 9–6 7–8 2–8 7–8 5–5 6–9 11–0 9–1 7–4 8–7
Boston 8–7 — 9–2 7–3 7–8 12–3 4–6 10–5 9–2 7–9 5–5 7–3 3–7 11–4
California 6–4 2–9 — 8–7 6–4 4–7 9–6 5–5 12–3 5–5 9–6 9–6 5–10 7–3
Chicago 1–8 3–7 7–8 — 8–2 2–9 8–7 4–7 8–7 1–9 7–8 7–8 11–4 4–6
Cleveland 6–9 8–7 4–6 2–8 — 5–10 5–6 5–10 5–5 6–9 4–6 8–1 1–9 10–4
Detroit 8–7 3–12 7–4 9–2 10–5 — 4–6 7–8 4–6 4–11 6–4 8–2 7–3 9–6
Kansas City 8–2 6–4 6–9 7–8 6–5 6–4 — 6–4 7–8 6–5 10–5 12–3 7–8 5–5
Milwaukee 8–7 5–10 5–5 7–4 10–5 8–7 4–6 — 4–7 10–5 9–1 5–5 6–4 12–3
Minnesota 5–5 2–9 3–12 7–8 5–5 6–4 8–7 7–4 — 3–7 9–6 6–9 6–9 6–4
New York 9–6 9–7 5–5 9–1 9–6 11–4 5–6 5–10 7–3 — 8–2 6–5 6–4 11–4
Oakland 0–11 5–5 6–9 8–7 6–4 4–6 5–10 1–9 6–9 2–8 — 13–2 6–9 7–4
Seattle 1–9 3–7 6–9 8–7 1–8 2–8 3–12 5–5 9–6 5–6 2–13 — 3–12 8–2
Texas 4–7 7–3 10–5 4–11 9–1 3–7 8–7 4–6 9–6 4–6 9–6 12–3 — 4–7
Toronto 7–8 4–11 3–7 6–4 4–10 6–9 5–5 3–12 4–6 4–11 4–7 2–8 7–4 —


Notable transactions[]

  • May 20, 1978: Bob Ojeda was signed as an amateur free agent by the Red Sox.[25]

Opening Day lineup[]

  2 Jerry Remy 2B
  7 Rick Burleson SS
14 Jim Rice DH
  8 Carl Yastrzemski     LF
27 Carlton Fisk C
19 Fred Lynn CF
15 George Scott 1B
24 Dwight Evans RF
  4 Butch Hobson 3B
21 Mike Torrez P

Source:[26]

Roster[]

1978 Boston Red Sox
Roster
Pitchers Catchers

Infielders

Outfielders Manager
  • 34 Don Zimmer

Coaches

  • 33 Walt Hriniak (Bullpen)
  • 32 Al Jackson (Pitching)
  • 35 Johnny Pesky (First base)
  • 36 Eddie Yost (Third base)

Player stats[]

Batting[]

Starters by position[]

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases

= Indicates team leader
Pos Player G AB R H Avg. HR RBI SB
C Carlton Fisk 157 571 94 162 .284 20 88 7
1B George Scott 120 412 51 96 .233 12 54 1
2B Jerry Remy 148 583 87 162 .278 2 44 30
3B Butch Hobson 147 512 65 128 .250 17 80 1
SS Rick Burleson 145 626 75 155 .248 5 49 8
LF Jim Rice 163 677 121 213 .315 46 139 7
CF Fred Lynn 150 541 75 161 .298 22 82 3
RF Dwight Evans 147 497 75 123 .247 24 63 8
DH Bob Bailey 43 94 12 18 .191 4 9 2

[27]

Other batters[]

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases

Player G AB R H Avg. HR RBI SB
Carl Yastrzemski 144 523 70 145 .277 17 81 4
Jack Brohamer 81 244 34 57 .234 1 25 1
Frank Duffy 64 104 12 27 .260 0 4 1
Garry Hancock 38 80 10 18 .225 0 4 0
Bernie Carbo 17 46 7 12 .261 1 6 1
Fred Kendall 20 41 3 8 .195 0 4 0
Bob Montgomery 10 29 2 7 .241 0 5 0
Sam Bowen 6 7 3 1 .143 1 1 0

Pitching[]

Starting pitchers[]

Note: G = Games pitched; CG = Complete games; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; BB = Walks allowed; SO = Strikeouts

Player G CG IP W L ERA BB SO
Dennis Eckersley 35 16 268.1 20 8 2.99 71 162
Mike Torrez 36 15 250 16 13 3.96 99 120
Luis Tiant 32 12 212.1 13 8 3.31 57 114
Bill Lee 28 8 177 10 10 3.46 59 44
Allen Ripley 15 1 73 2 5 5.55 22 26
Bobby Sprowl 3 0 12.2 0 2 6.39 10 10

Other pitchers[]

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; BB = Walks allowed; SO = Strikeouts

Player G IP W L ERA BB SO
Jim Wright 24 116 8 4 3.57 24 56
Andy Hassler 13 30 2 1 3.00 13 23

Relief pitchers[]

Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player G W L SV ERA SO
Bob Stanley 52 15 2 10 2.60 38
Dick Drago 37 4 4 7 3.03 42
Tom Burgmeier 35 2 1 4 4.40 24
Bill Campbell 29 7 5 4 3.91 47
John LaRose 1 0 0 0 22.50 3
Reggie Cleveland 1 0 1 0 0.00 0

AL East tie-breaker game[]

Main article: 1978 American League East tie-breaker game
October 2, 1978 at Fenway Park, Boston, Massachusetts
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
New York Yankees 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 1 0 5 8 0
Boston Red Sox 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 2 0 4 11 0
WP: Ron Guidry (25-3)   LP: Mike Torrez (16-13)   Sv: Goose Gossage (27)
Home runs:
NYY: Bucky Dent, Reggie Jackson
BOS: Carl Yastrzemski

Awards and honors[]

Awards
Accomplishments
  • Jim Rice, American League leader, Hits (213)
  • Jim Rice, American League leader, Home runs (46)
  • Jim Rice, American League leader, RBIs (139)
All-Star Game
  • Rick Burleson, reserve SS (did not attend)
  • Dwight Evans, reserve OF
  • Carlton Fisk, starting C
  • Fred Lynn, reserve OF (started CF)
  • Jerry Remy, reserve 2B
  • Jim Rice, starting LF
  • Carl Yastrzemski, reserve OF (did not attend)

Farm system[]

See also: Minor League Baseball
Level Team League Manager
AAA Pawtucket Red Sox International League Joe Morgan
AA Bristol Red Sox Eastern League Tony Torchia
A Winston-Salem Red Sox Carolina League Bill Slack
A Winter Haven Red Sox Florida State League Rac Slider
A-Short Season Elmira Red Sox New York–Penn League Dick Berardino

LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Bristol
Source:[28][29]

References[]

  1. ^ "New York Yankees 5, Boston Red Sox 4". Retrosheet. October 2, 1978.
  2. ^ Mike Torrez page at Baseball Reference
  3. ^ Don Aase page at Baseball Reference
  4. ^ "Red Sox trade future Hall of Fame pitcher Fergie Jenkins to Rangers".
  5. ^ Dick Drago page at Baseball Reference
  6. ^ Denny Doyle page at Baseball Reference
  7. ^ Dennis Eckersley page at Baseball Reference
  8. ^ "The 1978 Boston Red Sox". Retrosheet. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
  9. ^ "Events of Sunday, April 30, 1978".
  10. ^ "Events of Wednesday, May 31, 1978".
  11. ^ "Events of Friday, June 30, 1978".
  12. ^ "Events of Monday, July 31, 1978".
  13. ^ "Events of Thursday, August 31, 1978".
  14. ^ "Events of Saturday, September 30, 1978".
  15. ^ "Events of Monday, October 2, 1978".
  16. ^ "Standings At Close of Play of July 19, 1978". Retrosheet. Retrieved October 11, 2020.
  17. ^ "Standings At Close of Play of September 6, 1978". Retrosheet. Retrieved October 11, 2020.
  18. ^ "The 1978 New York Yankees Regular Season Game Log". Retrosheet. Retrieved October 11, 2020.
  19. ^ "Standings At Close of Play of September 10, 1978". Retrosheet. Retrieved October 11, 2020.
  20. ^ "Yankees Completed 'Boston Massacre'". The Town Talk. Alexandria, Louisiana. AP. September 11, 1978. p. A-11. Retrieved October 11, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
  21. ^ "Events of Sunday, October 1, 1978". Retrosheet. Retrieved October 11, 2020.
  22. ^ "New York Yankees 5, Boston Red Sox 4". Retrosheet. October 2, 1978. Retrieved October 11, 2020.
  23. ^ Cafardo, Nick (June 7, 1990). "Dent Dumped by Yankees". The Boston Globe. p. 37.
  24. ^ Shaughnessy, Dan (June 7, 1990). "His Back Was Against the Wall". The Boston Globe. p. 37.
  25. ^ Bob Ojeda page at Baseball Reference
  26. ^ "Chicago White Sox 6, Boston Red Sox 5". Retrosheet. April 7, 1978. Retrieved October 11, 2020.
  27. ^ 1978 Boston Red Sox Batting, Pitching, & Fielding Statistics - Baseball-Reference.com
  28. ^ Johnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, ed., The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, 3rd edition. Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America, 2007
  29. ^ Boston Red Sox Press TV Radio Guide. 1978. p. 43. Retrieved March 14, 2021 – via Wayback Machine.

Further reading[]

External links[]

Retrieved from ""