1946 Boston Red Sox season
| 1946 Boston Red Sox | |
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| 1946 American League Champions | |
| Major League affiliations | |
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| Location | |
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| Other information | |
| Owner(s) | Tom Yawkey |
| General manager(s) | Eddie Collins |
| Manager(s) | Joe Cronin |
| Local radio |
WNAC (Jim Britt, Tom Hussey) |
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During the 1946 Boston Red Sox season, the Red Sox won their sixth American League championship, with a record of 104 wins and 50 losses. In the World Series, the Sox lost in 7 games to the St. Louis Cardinals. The winning run in game 7 was scored on Enos Slaughter's famous "Mad Dash" in the 8th inning that gave the Cards a 4–3 lead.
Regular season
Overview
The 1946 Red Sox were led by their All-Star left fielder, Ted Williams, who was in his first year back in the majors after serving as a fighter pilot in World War II. 1946 was Ted Williams first of two MVP seasons, and the only time he ever won a pennant. He was among the league leaders in many offensive categories, with a batting average of .342, 38 home runs and 123 runs batted in.[1]
On April 24, the Red Sox were 6–3, 1 game behind the Yankees and tied for second with the defending world series champion Tigers.[2] Then, from April 25 through May 10, they won 15 games in a row, beating the Yankees twice and sweeping the Tigers in a three-game series.[3] Over this stretch Ted Williams had a batting average of .442, with 4 home runs and 17 runs batted in.[4] On May 10 the Red Sox were 21–3 and leading the American League, 5.5 games ahead of the Yankees and 8 games ahead of the Tigers.[5] This was their biggest lead in 28 seasons, since winning their last pennant in 1918.[6] The fans took notice as the Red Sox had their highest attendance ever, nearly doubling their previous record. For the first time in Fenway Park history the Red Sox were averaging over 10,000 fans per game, averaging 18,166 fans per game throughout 1946.[7]
The Red Sox never turned back, winning 12 straight decisions from May 29 through June 11, including their second three-game sweep of the Tigers.[3] On June 11, the Red Sox were 41–9, 10 games ahead of the Yankees.[8] From June 5 through July 21, in 48 games, Ted Williams had a batting average of .399, with 18 home runs and 52 runs batted in. The Red Sox swept the Tigers for the third time that year on July 11–13. On July 14, Williams hit three home runs in a game.[4] The Red Sox swept their rivals, the Yankees, in a double-header at Yankee Stadium on September 2, expanding their lead to 15.5 games ahead of the Yankees and 18 games ahead of the Tigers. The Red Sox clinched the American League Pennant on September 13.[9] It was their first Pennant since 1918, when they won the World Series. The Red Sox ended the season 12 games ahead of the Tigers and 17 games ahead of the Yankees.[10]
The Red Sox played a three-game series against an American League all star team following the end of the regular season and the beginning of the World Series. While the Red Sox had clinched in September, the St Louis Cardinals and Brooklyn Dodgers would play a three-game playoff for the National League pennant, pushing back the start of the World Series. The Red Sox hosted the three game exhibition series beginning October 1, 1946 at Fenway Park. The Red Sox won two of three, but Williams exacerbated his injury which would plague him in the Series against St. Louis.[11]
Season standings
| American League | W | L | Pct. | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boston Red Sox | 104 | 50 | .675 | -- |
| Detroit Tigers | 92 | 62 | .597 | 12 |
| New York Yankees | 87 | 67 | .565 | 17 |
| Washington Senators | 76 | 78 | .494 | 28 |
| Chicago White Sox | 74 | 80 | .481 | 30 |
| Cleveland Indians | 68 | 86 | .442 | 36 |
| St. Louis Browns | 66 | 88 | .429 | 38 |
| Philadelphia Athletics | 49 | 105 | .318 | 55 |
Record vs. opponents
1946 American League Records Sources: | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | BOS | CWS | CLE | DET | NYY | PHI | STL | WSH | |||||
| Boston | — | 13–9 | 15–7 | 15–7–1 | 14–8 | 17–5 | 14–8–1 | 16–6 | |||||
| Chicago | 9–13 | — | 13–9–1 | 10–12 | 8–14 | 12–10 | 12–10 | 10–12 | |||||
| Cleveland | 7–15 | 9–13–1 | — | 5–17 | 10–12 | 15–7 | 15–7–1 | 7–15 | |||||
| Detroit | 7–15–1 | 12–10 | 17–5 | — | 13–9 | 17–5 | 14–8 | 12–10 | |||||
| New York | 8–14 | 14–8 | 12–10 | 9–13 | — | 16–6 | 14–8 | 14–8 | |||||
| Philadelphia | 5–17 | 10–12 | 7–15 | 5–17 | 6–16 | — | 10–12 | 6–16–1 | |||||
| St. Louis | 8–14–1 | 10–12 | 7–15–1 | 8–14 | 8–14 | 12–10 | — | 13–9 | |||||
| Washington | 6–16 | 12–10 | 15–7 | 10–12 | 8–14 | 16–6–1 | 9–13 | — | |||||
Opening Day lineup
| 7 | Dom DiMaggio | CF |
| 6 | Johnny Pesky | SS |
| 9 | Ted Williams | LF |
| 1 | Bobby Doerr | 2B |
| 3 | Rudy York | 1B |
| 2 | Catfish Metkovich | RF |
| 35 | Ernie Andres | 3B |
| 8 | Hal Wagner | C |
| 21 | Tex Hughson | P |
Notable transactions
- July 1946: Don Lang and Bill Howerton were traded by the Red Sox to the St. Louis Cardinals for Jim Gleeson.[12]
- July 23, 1946: Wally Moses was purchased by the Red Sox from the Chicago White Sox.[13]
Roster
| 1946 Boston Red Sox | |||||||||
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| Roster | |||||||||
Pitchers
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Catchers
Infielders
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Outfielders
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Manager
Coaches
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Player stats
Batting
Starters by position
Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
| Pos | Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SS | Pesky, JohnnyJohnny Pesky | 153 | 621 | 208 | .335 | 2 | 55 |
| OF | DiMaggio, DomDom DiMaggio | 142 | 534 | 169 | .316 | 7 | 73 |
| OF | Williams, TedTed Williams | 150 | 514 | 176 | .342 | 38 | 123 |
Other batters
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
| Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pitching
Starting pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Other pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bagby, JimJim Bagby | 21 | 106.2 | 7 | 6 | 3.71 | 16 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1946 World Series
NL St. Louis Cardinals (4) vs. AL Boston Red Sox (3)
| Game | Score | Date | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Boston 3, St. Louis 2 (10 innings) | October 6 | 36,218 |
| 2 | St. Louis 3, Boston 0 | October 7 | 35,815 |
| 3 | Boston 4, St. Louis 0 | October 9 | 34,500 |
| 4 | St. Louis 12, Boston 3 | October 10 | 35,645 |
| 5 | Boston 6, St. Louis 3 | October 11 | 35,982 |
| 6 | St. Louis 4, Boston 1 | October 13 | 35,768 |
| 7 | St. Louis 4, Boston 3 | October 15 | 36,143 |
Farm system
| Level | Team | League | Manager |
|---|---|---|---|
| AAA | Louisville Colonels | American Association | Fred Walters and Nemo Leibold |
| AA | New Orleans Pelicans | Southern Association | Johnny Peacock |
| A | Scranton Red Sox | Eastern League | Elmer Yoter |
| B | Lynn Red Sox | New England League | Pep Kennedy |
| B | Roanoke Red Sox | Piedmont League | Eddie Popowski |
| C | Oneonta Red Sox | Canadian–American League | Red Marion |
| C | Durham Bulls | Carolina League | Floyd "Pat" Patterson |
| D | Geneva Red Birds | Alabama State League | Charles Holly |
| D | Salem/Lenoir Red Sox | Blue Ridge League | Vernon Mackie and Noel Casbier |
| D | Goldsboro Gold Bugs | Coastal Plain League | Bill Herring |
| D | Milford Red Sox | Eastern Shore League | Wally Millies |
| D | New Iberia Cardinals | Evangeline League | Aaron Ward |
LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Louisville, Scranton
Salem franchise moved to Lenoir, June 25, 1946[14]
Notes
- ↑ http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/w/willite01.shtml
- ↑ http://www.baseball-reference.com/games/standings.cgi?date=1946-04-24
- 1 2 http://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/BOS/1946-schedule-scores.shtml
- 1 2 http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/gl.cgi?id=willite01&t=b&year=1946
- ↑ http://www.baseball-reference.com/games/standings.cgi?date=1946-05-10
- ↑ http://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/BOS/
- ↑ http://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/BOS/attend.shtml
- ↑ http://www.baseball-reference.com/games/standings.cgi?date=1946-06-11
- ↑ http://www.baseball-reference.com/games/standings.cgi?date=1946-09-13
- ↑ http://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/AL/1946.shtml
- ↑ Hamel, Michael. "October 1, 1946: Red Sox tune up for World Series vs. AL All-Stars". SABR Baseball Game Project. SABR. Retrieved January 19, 2015.
- ↑ Bill Howerton page at Baseball-Reference
- ↑ Wally Moses page at Baseball-Reference
- ↑ Johnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, ed., The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, 3rd edition. Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America, 2007
References
- 1946 Boston Red Sox team page at Baseball Reference
- 1946 Boston Red Sox season at baseball-almanac.com
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