Watching the Red Sox fall short of the World Series, or endure even a three-game losing skid during the regular season, is hard for me to stomach. My expectations are higher now that Boston has won two World Series titles in the last five years. Still, as any longtime Red Sox fan will tell you, it is much more rewarding to follow this ballclub now than it was before the current ownership group, front office and on-field management arrived.
When Jed Lowrie grounded into the force out that sent Tampa Bay to the World Series and the Red Sox home with a Game Seven loss in the most recent ALCS, it was disappointing, but not devastating. Any time you are one game away from the World Series and do not win, it is disappointing. However, it was not devastating like the many post-season setbacks in 2003 and before. Why? The answer is simple. Bolstered by a talented farm system and a solid major league roster, along with owners who are willing to spend and a general manager who understands how to build a winner, the Red Sox are annual World Series contenders. Yes, I realize that John Henry and company (minus Terry Francona) were in place in 2003, but the Red Sox were in the very early stages of establishing themselves as an annual contender.
Prior to Henry, Tom Werner and Epstein, the Red Sox had a blend of forgettable years and many competitive seasons - some which resulted in finishing second to the Yankees before the wild card was added and others that ended in post-season heartache. Before the current regime, Red Sox fans were not confident about how the team would fare from season to season. Intelligent Red Sox fans know that the current team will not win a World Series title every year, but at least it will have a legitimate chance to win it all.
During the off-season, I spend ample time reading about Red Sox history to help treat my bout with baseball withdrawal. Hot Stove League speculation is interesting, but it is not enough. Neither is watching "The Essential Games of Fenway Park" and "The Boston Red Sox 2004 (and 2007) World Series Collector's Edition" DVDs, though I still get chills seeing Carlton Fisk wave the ball fair in Game Six of the 1975 World Series and Keith Foulke toss the ball to Doug Mientkiewicz in 2004.
While surfing the Internet and reviewing previous Red Sox seasons on one of my favorite web sites, Baseball Reference, I stumbled upon the early 1990s, which was a period when Fenway Park had empty seats and there was not a pink hat to be found, nor a pennant race in August. The worst of these times happened during the Butch Hobson years, which lasted from 1992-1994.
When Hobson was hired to replace Joe Morgan after the 1991 season (when the team posted an 84-78 record), skeptics said the former Red Sox third baseman was not ready to manage a major league team, especially in a market like Boston. The skeptics were right.
Under Morgan's guidance, the Red Sox won the American League East in 1988 and 1990, losing to the powerful (and steroid-fueled) Oakland A's in the ALCS both years. Though Morgan's Red Sox teams were not strong enough to win the pennant, they were competitive, which is a word that does not describe Boston's clubs during the Hobson tenure.
Hobson's debut season was his worst. Boston was 73-89 and occupied the American League East basement in 1992, when the New York Yankees struggled to a 76-86 finish, marking the last time that the Red Sox and Yankees finished below .500 in the same year.
A look at the team's roster in 1992 indicates why Boston was mired in the cellar. The starting rotation that year featured Roger Clemens (18-11, 2.41 ERA), Frank Viola (13-12, 3.44 ERA) and three pitchers who littered the mound until it was Clemens' and Viola's turns again. Forget the American League pennant or a World Series title. You're not gonna win even the least competitive division when John Dopson (7-11, 4.08 ERA), Joe Hesketh (8-9. 4.36 ERA) and Mike Gardiner (4-10, 4.75 ERA) compose three-fifths of the rotation.
Jeff Reardon was the closer that season, and though he was one of the best in his era, he was not imposing in 1992 (4.25 ERA, 27 saves). If not for reliever Greg Harris (107.7 innings, 82 hits, 2.51 ERA) and swing man Danny Darwin (who appeared in 51 games, started 15, and posted a 9-9 record with a 3.96 ERA in 161 innings), Boston would likely have finished deeper in the cellar.
In their storied history, the Red Sox have fielded several teams that either reached the post-season or would have earned the wild card if the wild card existed with a subpar rotation and bullpen and an potent offensive lineup. Unfortunately, in 1992, Boston's batting order included Luis Rivera (.215, 288 at-bats), Tony Pena (.241, 410 at-bats), Jody Reed (.247, 550 at-bats) and Billy Hatcher (.238). A .240 or .250 average is palatable if that player has some pop, yet the 1992 Red Sox had just two players (Mo Vaughn, 13 home runs, 57 RBI, .234 average; and Tom Brunansky, 15 home runs, 74 RBI, .266 average) that reached double digits in home runs.
The outfield was so anemic that it often included Bob Zupcic (three home runs, 43 RBI) and Hatcher (one home run, 23 RBI, 315 at-bats) with Brunansky, whose 74 ribbies led the team. Hobson occasionally played Herm Winningham (.235, one home run, 14 RBI, 234 at-bats) and Phil Plantier (.249, seven home runs, 30 RBI, 346 at-bats). In fairness to Hobson, key outfielders Ellis Burks (.255, 8, 30, 235 at-bats) and Mike Greenwell (.233, 2, 18, 180 at-bats) were injured for much of the season. Jack Clark, who was in the final year of his productive career, was also bothered by ailments and managed just 257 at-bats as a DH (.210, 5, 33).
Hobson figured that a healthier Red Sox lineup might provide enough firepower for the team to contend in 1993. The bats were more respectable, but the pitching was once again lackluster as the team finished 80-82, which was good for fifth place in the AL East, 15 games behind the World Series winning Toronto Blue Jays.
Roger Clemens was the ace in title only. He finished with an 11-14 record and a 4.47 ERA. It was Darwin who led the team in wins (15-11, 3.26 ERA, 223 innings). Viola was decent (11-8, 3.14 ERA, 183 innings) and Aaron Sele showed promise in his rookie season (7-2, 2.74 ERA, 18 starts), but the team had to rely too heavily upon Dopson (7-11, 4.97 ERA, 28 starts). Essentially, Clemens pitched like a No. 4 starter, Darwin was the team's most reliable starting pitcher and beyond Viola there was a cast of back-of-rotation starters. Along with Dopson and Sele, Nate Minchey, Paul Quantrill and Hesketh started games for the Red Sox in 1993.
As for the lineup, if you think Jason Varitek was pitiful in 2008, look at starting catcher Pena's numbers in 1993 - .181, four home runs, 19 RBI, 304 at-bats. Though DH Andre Dawson (.273, 13, 67), Vaughn (.297, 29, 101), a healthy Greenwell (.315, 13, 72) and John Valentin (.278, 11, 66) made the batting order more formidable than the season before, the power numbers were not impressive. Only four players reached double digits in home runs, and next to Vaughn's 101 ribbies, Greenwell was second with 72. One of the starting outfielders, Carlos Quintana, had one home run and 19 RBI in 303 at-bats. When Quintana wasn't in the lineup, Zupcic (.241, 2, 26, 286 at-bats) usually was. Talk about a power shortage. Still, Kennedy's 1995 Red Sox club was swept by the Cleveland Indians in the ALDS.
The strike marred baseball in 1994, cancelling the World Series, and spoiling Montreal's chances for a title and Tony Gwynn's bid for .400. In Boston, the season brought a merciful end to Hobson's managerial tenure with the Red Sox, which finished 54-61, in fourth place and 16 games behind the Yankees.
Boston's rotation in Hobson's final season was arguably worse than what the team assembled in his first year. Viola appeared in only six games and was far from the All-Star he once was. Clemens had a solid year (9-8, 2.85 ERA, 170 innings, 124 hits) and Sele was respectable (8-7, 3.83, 143 innings, 140 hits), but the rest of starts were divvied up between Darwin (6.30 ERA), Chris Nabholz (6.64), Gar Finnvold (5.94), Tim Van Egmond (6.34), and Minchey (8.61). I remember the bullpen with closer Ken Ryan (2.44 ERA, 26 saves), left-handed specialist Tony Fossas (how did he ever hold down a major league job?), and Harris (who was worn out with an 8.28 ERA), but I don't recall Chris Howard (who appeared in 37 games and had decent numbers (3.63 ERA, 39 innings, 35 hits).
The lineup was far from memorable. Only Vaughn (.310, 26, 82), Valentin (.316, 9, 49) and Scott Cooper (.282, 13, 53) posed a serious threat. Greenwell (.269, 11, 45) and Dawson (.240, 16, 48) had average seasons. The catching duties were split between career backups Damon Berryhill and Dave Valle. Otis Nixon had 42 stolen bases and, aside from reserve outfielder Lee Tinsley, represented the lone speed.
Hobson, who had managed just one season above the Double-A level (1991 at Triple-A Pawtucket) before taking over for Morgan in Boston, was dismissed after the 1994 campaign. Kevin Kennedy replaced him, and the Red Sox won the AL East with an 86-58 record, seven games better than the Yankees in a second consecutive strike-shortened season. Kennedy did have a better pitching staff than Hobson. In 1995, Tim Wakefield was 16-8 in his first year with the Red Sox. Erik Hanson (15-5) and Clemens (10-5) gave the team a surprisingly respectable 1-2-3 punch. The lineup was more potent (Mo Vaughn and John Valentin had 100-plus RBI, and Jose Canseco added 24 dingers and 82 ribbies). Seven players had 10 or more home runs. Rick Aguilera was a dependable closer and Stan Belinda was a go-to set-up man. Still, Kennedy's 1995 Red Sox club was swept by Cleveland in the ALDS. Kennedy, who is now part of the studio team for Fox Sports' baseball coverage, was fired himself after an 85-77 record in 1996.
Perhaps Hobson would have fared better under the current ownership group and general manager. After all, Henry, Werner and Epstein recognize that pitching and a deep farm system are the keys to contending year after year. As for me, I am comfortable with Francona in the dugout. Perhaps, when the regular season arrives and we occasionally scratch our heads about certain decisions that Francona makes, this column should be required reading.
It could be worse - much, much worse. We could be thrown into a time warp and forced to once again experience the Hobson years.
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