Red Sox-Yankees Express
Following the signing of free agent Kevin Youkilis, fans in Boston were very upset to see a former Red Sox hero head to New York to play for the Yankees. The reaction is not isolated and elicits memories of other former greats who made a similar change in career. Of course there is the famous sale of Babe Ruth, but many other players spent time for each franchise. According to baseball-reference.com, 219 batters and 107 pitchers played for each franchise at some point. Limiting these down to batters with at least 600 AB for each team and pitchers with at least 200 IP for each team produces a list of only 33 players.
Of the 33, 5 had hall of fame careers and each moved immediately from playing for the Red Sox to playing with the Yankees: Wade Boggs, Waite Hoyt, Herb Pennock, Red Ruffing, and Babe Ruth. Pennock and Ruth went from winning championships with the Red Sox to winning championships with the Yankees. Boggs went from the epic failure of the Red Sox 1986 title run to the historic 1996 championship with the Yankees. Hoyt and Ruffing played key roles on multiple Yankees championships.
Of the 33, 10 made All-Star teams during their careers. Johnny Damon won a championship with the Red Sox in 2003 and went on to win a championship with the Yankees in 2009. Sparky Lyle lost in the 1967 World Series with the Red Sox and won in the 1977 and 1978 World Series with the Yankees. Roger Clemens failed to win in 1986 with the Red Sox and win in 1999 and 2000 with the Yankees.
Mike Stanley and David Wells went from winning World Series in NY to losing in Boston. Ben Chapman and Don Baylor went from the Yankees to the Red Sox. Bill Monbouquette, Mike Easler, and Luis Tiant also went from the Red Sox to the Yankees.
The rest of the 33 players are less notable and none played for either team since 1982. But of the 33, fans in Boston went from cheering hard for players to seeing them go to the rival Yankees - and often winning championships in pinstripes. The only player of the 33 that won only with the Red Sox was Duffy Lewis from the 1918 Red Sox.
Adding salt to the wounds... The Yankees had Joe DiMaggio setting records and winning championships, the Red Sox had Dom DiMaggio setting the table for Ted Williams. The Red Sox paid Manny Ramirez a record-setting contract (at the time) only to hear him repeatedly express his desire to play for the Yankees and the Yankees refused to claim Ramirez off waivers for free while under contract with the Red Sox nor even sign Ramirez when he became a free agent. When the Red Sox could not figure out how to trade for Alex Rodriguez, the Yankees stepped in and completed the deal instead.
However, despite a notorious dry spell (1919 through 2002), the Red Sox have the third most championships in MLB history. Furthermore, the 2012 Red Sox team salary was third in MLB. Perhaps more importantly, as of March 2012, Forbes places the Red Sox as the third most valuable franchise. Yet, comparisons to the Yankees fail on all three marks. Nothing has been more successful in professional sports than the New York Yankees franchise.
Players, however, likely care less about the historic implications than fans believe. I do not have a memory of a returning star player booed at Yankee Stadium or ridiculed on the onset of departure from the team. Sadly, several players faced disgraceful exits from Boston. Forget being sold in the 1920s, in my lifetime the first case that surprised me was Mo Vaughn. He was an MVP that the General Manager insisted on an alcohol evaluation to sign a new contract (neither happened). The year after winning their 2003 championship, the Red Sox traded Nomar Garciaparra and claimed he was alienated from the city. And there was the famous parting quip the General Manager sent Roger Clemens out with after his final Red Sox contract, about the twilight of his career, when Clemens went on to win multiple Cy Young Awards and World Series titles after leaving Boston. And there is the accusation of racism in Boston, often evidenced by the fact the franchise was last to integrate (12 years after Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier), or outright racism claimed by Barry Bonds in Boston is too racist for me. I couldn’t play there. That’s been going on ever since my dad (Bobby) was playing baseball. I can’t play like that."
Whatever the truth, there does seem a list of motivations and a legacy of players moving from Boston to New York. Often, very successful players too. Like Kevin Youkilis, the latest example.
Of the 33, 5 had hall of fame careers and each moved immediately from playing for the Red Sox to playing with the Yankees: Wade Boggs, Waite Hoyt, Herb Pennock, Red Ruffing, and Babe Ruth. Pennock and Ruth went from winning championships with the Red Sox to winning championships with the Yankees. Boggs went from the epic failure of the Red Sox 1986 title run to the historic 1996 championship with the Yankees. Hoyt and Ruffing played key roles on multiple Yankees championships.
Of the 33, 10 made All-Star teams during their careers. Johnny Damon won a championship with the Red Sox in 2003 and went on to win a championship with the Yankees in 2009. Sparky Lyle lost in the 1967 World Series with the Red Sox and won in the 1977 and 1978 World Series with the Yankees. Roger Clemens failed to win in 1986 with the Red Sox and win in 1999 and 2000 with the Yankees.
Mike Stanley and David Wells went from winning World Series in NY to losing in Boston. Ben Chapman and Don Baylor went from the Yankees to the Red Sox. Bill Monbouquette, Mike Easler, and Luis Tiant also went from the Red Sox to the Yankees.
The rest of the 33 players are less notable and none played for either team since 1982. But of the 33, fans in Boston went from cheering hard for players to seeing them go to the rival Yankees - and often winning championships in pinstripes. The only player of the 33 that won only with the Red Sox was Duffy Lewis from the 1918 Red Sox.
Adding salt to the wounds... The Yankees had Joe DiMaggio setting records and winning championships, the Red Sox had Dom DiMaggio setting the table for Ted Williams. The Red Sox paid Manny Ramirez a record-setting contract (at the time) only to hear him repeatedly express his desire to play for the Yankees and the Yankees refused to claim Ramirez off waivers for free while under contract with the Red Sox nor even sign Ramirez when he became a free agent. When the Red Sox could not figure out how to trade for Alex Rodriguez, the Yankees stepped in and completed the deal instead.
However, despite a notorious dry spell (1919 through 2002), the Red Sox have the third most championships in MLB history. Furthermore, the 2012 Red Sox team salary was third in MLB. Perhaps more importantly, as of March 2012, Forbes places the Red Sox as the third most valuable franchise. Yet, comparisons to the Yankees fail on all three marks. Nothing has been more successful in professional sports than the New York Yankees franchise.
Players, however, likely care less about the historic implications than fans believe. I do not have a memory of a returning star player booed at Yankee Stadium or ridiculed on the onset of departure from the team. Sadly, several players faced disgraceful exits from Boston. Forget being sold in the 1920s, in my lifetime the first case that surprised me was Mo Vaughn. He was an MVP that the General Manager insisted on an alcohol evaluation to sign a new contract (neither happened). The year after winning their 2003 championship, the Red Sox traded Nomar Garciaparra and claimed he was alienated from the city. And there was the famous parting quip the General Manager sent Roger Clemens out with after his final Red Sox contract, about the twilight of his career, when Clemens went on to win multiple Cy Young Awards and World Series titles after leaving Boston. And there is the accusation of racism in Boston, often evidenced by the fact the franchise was last to integrate (12 years after Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier), or outright racism claimed by Barry Bonds in Boston is too racist for me. I couldn’t play there. That’s been going on ever since my dad (Bobby) was playing baseball. I can’t play like that."
Whatever the truth, there does seem a list of motivations and a legacy of players moving from Boston to New York. Often, very successful players too. Like Kevin Youkilis, the latest example.
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