Trot Nixon – An Unsung Hero of the 1999 to 2005 Red Sox
Christopher Trotman Nixon, better known as “Trot,” was a first-round selection of the Boston Red Sox. Despite how highly Nixon was regarded, his first few seasons in the minor leagues weren’t all that exciting. Nixon did get called up to the Major Leagues in 1996, and got 2 hits in 4 at-bats. His 1997 season […]
Does Lou Whitaker Belong in the Baseball Hall of Fame?
Tigers great Alan Trammell was a great shortstop. Yet, the Tigers great was still in the conversation for the Hall-of-Fame until 2018 when he was finally inducted by the Hall of Fame Veterans Committee. Meanwhile, his double-play partner, second baseman Lou Whitaker, was no longer eligible to be voted in traditionally due to a lack […]
The Time Someone Bought Larry Wolfe Baseball Cards
As someone who loves to see what’s selling in all sorts of trading card categories, it was a bit surprising to see Larry Wolfe among the Top 100 single sports cards selling on Amazon back in late July of 2015. Specifically, it was his 1980 Topps card. It was pretty cool to see someone from […]
Brief Baseball Bios – Jeff Bagwell
The Boston Red Sox were lucky to have Mo Vaughn come up to the Major Leagues after dealing away one of their better prospects in Jeff Bagwell. Of course, Bagwell is now well-known to be part of one of the most lop-sided trades in history, when he was dealt in 1990 to the Houston Astros […]
Brief Baseball Bios – Chase Utley
Chase Utley was a very good Major League Baseball player. He was the Phillies’ overall best player for a very long time. Between 2003-2015, even while suffering through many different injuries, Utley compiled 61.5 Baseball-Reference Wins Above Replacement (WAR) for the Phillies. This includes the 0.3 WAR from his call-up stint in 2003 and the […]
Brief Baseball Bios – Dwight Evans
Dwight Evans was a very good baseball player, who played from 1972-2001, all but one year of that with the Boston Red Sox. He racked up 65.1 Wins Above Replacement (WAR) in his career according to FanGraphs and 66.7 WAR on Baseball-Reference. This puts his contributions in the area of Hall-of-Famers Duke Snider, Roberto Alomar, […]
Brief Baseball Bios – Alan Trammell
Alan Trammell was quite a ballplayer. Like his double play mate, Lou Whitaker, though, for whatever reason, the baseball writer voters never gave Trammell the Hall-of-Fame treatment he deserves. But, in 2018, the Veterans Committee finally voted Alan Trammell into the Baseball Hall of Fame. It’s a nice consolation prize, as their vote ultimately means […]
Jose Canseco – The Red Sox Years
In one of the better trades the Red Sox made in the 1990’s, the Red Sox traded speedy, defensive minded outfielder Otis Nixon and infielder Luis Ortiz to the Texas Rangers for outfielder Jose Canseco. Obviously, it was a bit of a salary dump, with the Rangers clearly thinking they could replace Canseco’s bat with […]
Brief Baseball Bios – David Cone
David Cone was a pretty good pitcher in his day. In fact, he may have become one of the most underrated pitchers of his era. The Kansas City native Cone was drafted by the Kansas City Royals in the 3rd round of the 1981 Amateur Draft. Unfortunately, he wouldn’t get to enjoy the 1985 World […]
J.D. Drew Was Better at Baseball Than You Remember
In his 14-year Major League Baseball career, J.D. Drew hit .278/.384/.489 with 242 home runs. His glove was worth 69 runs in the outfield according to the advanced defensive metrics from TotalZone. For his solid bat and above-average glove, Drew was worth a substantial 44.9 Wins Above Replacement. His career numbers and advanced statistics make […]