One season or fewer: your favorite short-term Red Sox.

BuellMiller

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I thought picking up Billy Wagner in 2009 was a really good move, but we got swept by the Angels. Considering all the times that I've seen teams give up too much for a reliever it was a great trade. We got him for Chris Carter (who we got for Willy Mo Pena).
Too bad Kolbrin Vitek (drafted with the compensation pick from the Braves signing Wagner) never panned out, or that could have been a decent chain, starting from picking up Arroyo off of waivers.
 

bernardsamuel

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Jan 4, 2006
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At the risk of being summarily banned, I looked up to see that Ray Boone played some 1B for us in 1960, so we can blame him for the very existence of Aaron F. Boone. Perhaps slightly more serious and responsive to the mandated topic, but even more arcane, there is one Gordon Windhorn who has with the Red Sox in spring training 1956 (later made it up to the big leagues as an MFY), and I recall, even though I was only eight years old at the time, Curt Gowdy referring to him as something like the fastest runner Curt had ever seen.
 

Bergs

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Beltre and O-Cab for me. Both were very fun to watch play, and I wished we had kept them both (Beltre, especially).
 

Philip Jeff Frye

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Rollie Fingers.
Don't forget Joe Rudi.

I guess Jeff Stone doesn't count since he was very briefly with the team in 1989, but I'll never forget the hit he had in late 1988 against the Blue Jays to salvage what would have been a devastating loss against the Blue Jays in late September 1988. I think he had only had one or two at bats at season before coming up as the last guy available off the bench to drive in the winning run in that game. A very improbable hero, if for only a brief moment.

I was particularly interested in him as a player because Gammons had spent much of the mid 1980s praising him as the next Ricky Henderson when Stone was a Phillies prospect - it never quite worked out that way.
 

The Talented Allen Ripley

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Don't forget Joe Rudi.

I guess Jeff Stone doesn't count since he was very briefly with the team in 1989, but I'll never forget the hit he had in late 1988 against the Blue Jays to salvage what would have been a devastating loss against the Blue Jays in late September 1988. I think he had only had one or two at bats at season before coming up as the last guy available off the bench to drive in the winning run in that game. A very improbable hero, if for only a brief moment.

I was particularly interested in him as a player because Gammons had spent much of the mid 1980s praising him as the next Ricky Henderson when Stone was a Phillies prospect - it never quite worked out that way.
That hit against the Jays was in 1990.
 

Lose Remerswaal

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Orlando Cepeda, way past his prime, as the Sox first DH in 1973. I remember a few balls he absolutely crushed but he could barely run by then so anything in the gaps usually wound up as a single. Great hitter in his prime.
Ditto me with Cha Cha, but I was also so happy when the Sox brought in Juan Marichal in 1974, but he turned out to be quite past his prime by then
 

Cumberland Blues

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Beltre easily tops the list for me - one of the most fun to watch players ever.

Todd Walker...dude played his nuts off in the '03 playoffs.

And Seaver in '86 and also Hendu. Was Hendu ever not smiling? I miss that Coleman's "Dave Henderson has homered!" call is no longer a standard part of the pregame on radio.

On the downside - I was very disappointed in the Ivan Calderon era...I enjoyed watching him in Montreal and was pretty excited to land him - and he completely fell off a cliff.
 

Fishercat

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Speaking of the "crafty Jamie Moyer" train, the team had Matt Stairs for a brief stint before he went to Oakland and showed off as a legit hitter for the next fifteen seasons or so. Matt Stairs is just quite fun and fascinating in general, not necessarily for this Boston stint, but it filled me with happiness for years that he was the one who had the long career with a signature moment and Bob Hamelin disappeared into the ether.
 

alydar

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Hanson & Moyer are both great picks from the mid-90s Red Sox teams.

One guy I was irrationally excited for was Mark Whiten. I believe he had a 4 HR game the year or two before he came to the Sox, which I convinced my (much younger) self portended awesomeness. He also had a cannon for an arm.
 

lexrageorge

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Jul 31, 2007
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What, no love for Cliff Floyd? Trade deadline acquisition in 2002 from Montreal for some spare part prospects. 0.935 OPS in 47 games for the Sox. Unfortunately, Boston, tied with Anaheim for the wild card at the time of the trade, go an uninspiring 30-27 the rest of the way and end up 6 games back of the wild card despite winning 93 games. Floyd would go on to have a couple of decent years with the Mets.

Beyond the aformentioned Ricky Henderson, there were a couple of other notable one year wonders for the Sox in 2002:

Darren Oliver, who would later find success as a reliever for the Mets.

Dustin Hermanson.
 

schillzilla

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May 11, 2006
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My strict by the rules answer was definitely Nick Esasky. But my bend the rules answer is Jose Canseco. He played two seasons but got hurt in the second one.

He was fun to watch, was so obviously (in hindsight) ridiculously roided up. I also remember a crazy brawl that he started with Mike Harkey in Anaheim where he hit a laser and didn't leave the batters box until well after it cleared the fence. I remember Mo Vaughn being involved, basically those two big boys were top stepping the dugout and were daring anyone to bring it on.

After the game Jose said he wasn't watching the HR, he just wanted to make sure it was fair. It was hit to the Left Center power alley. :)
 

lexrageorge

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And I forgot Hall of Famer Juan Marichal, who came to Boston with much fanfare in 1974. Unfortunately, he had almost nothing in the tank by then.

And, of course, Frank Tanana, a constant Red Sox nemesis. Who remained a Sox nemesis during his one season here in 1981.

As for Bob Watson, I remember being very excited when he came to Boston in 1979. And being really upset that he went to New York as a free agent right after. Funny thing is that it turned out to be a pretty good non-signing by the Sox, as Watson really only had one more good season after he left Boston.
 

NoLastCall125

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David Cone in 2001. I loved that he came over after being a Yankee for six years and pitched well for the most part. Team lost his first 3 starts then won 14 of the next 15 starts he made.

And then father time caught up and they lost the last 6 of 7.

I was also amped for Smoltz, but that was a disaster from the start.
 

BuellMiller

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Mar 25, 2015
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Beltre easily tops the list for me - one of the most fun to watch players ever.

Todd Walker...dude played his nuts off in the '03 playoffs.

And Seaver in '86 and also Hendu. Was Hendu ever not smiling? I miss that Coleman's "Dave Henderson has homered!" call is no longer a standard part of the pregame on radio.

On the downside - I was very disappointed in the Ivan Calderon era...I enjoyed watching him in Montreal and was pretty excited to land him - and he completely fell off a cliff.
I felt the same way about the Shane Mack era, although his numbers were decent in a small sample in 97.
 

Zososoxfan

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Bending the rules a bit, Dante Bichette for his general steroid-fueled enormity. Apropos of nothing, in doing this research I also discovered that dinosaur enthusiast Carl Everett had an OPS+ of 136(!) with 34 homers in 2000.

 

BuellMiller

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Mar 25, 2015
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What, no love for Cliff Floyd? Trade deadline acquisition in 2002 from Montreal for some spare part prospects. 0.935 OPS in 47 games for the Sox. Unfortunately, Boston, tied with Anaheim for the wild card at the time of the trade, go an uninspiring 30-27 the rest of the way and end up 6 games back of the wild card despite winning 93 games. Floyd would go on to have a couple of decent years with the Mets.

Beyond the aformentioned Ricky Henderson, there were a couple of other notable one year wonders for the Sox in 2002:

Darren Oliver, who would later find success as a reliever for the Mets.

Dustin Hermanson.
For some reason I thought Hermanson pitched better than his stats suggested (ERA of well over 7). I vaguely remember him pitching well in a start, but then getting hurt (in an early season game when he pulled a quad or hammy in a rainy game). But according to b-ref, it looks like he didn't make his debut during the regular season until July. Was it a pre-season game that he got hurt, or am I misremembering and thinking of someone else.
 

lexrageorge

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For some reason I thought Hermanson pitched better than his stats suggested (ERA of well over 7). I vaguely remember him pitching well in a start, but then getting hurt (in an early season game when he pulled a quad or hammy in a rainy game). But according to b-ref, it looks like he didn't make his debut during the regular season until July. Was it a pre-season game that he got hurt, or am I misremembering and thinking of someone else.
IIRC, he was slated to pitch the 3rd game of the season, as he was brought in to be the 3rd starter. He warmed up on a cold rainy night in Fenway, maybe even pitched to a batter or two prior to a lengthy rain delay. When play resumed, Grady Little sent Hermanson back out to pitch, and he promptly pulled a groin muscle from which he never really recovered that season. That game ended up being called, which is why Hermanson's inning or so pitched in April doesn't show up in any of the game logs.
 

m0ckduck

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Bending the rules: I pitched for the Sox for parts of three seasons, but only totalled 168.2 innings. As a Red Sock, I posted an ERA+ of 137, struck out 11.2 (!) per nine, and got an MVP vote in my first season with the team.

Lee Smith
 

mwonow

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Still stretching (but less than two full years), Don Baylor deserves a bit of love here. Played almost every game in 1986 (160), and 108 more in 1987. Seemed to be in the WS every year, no matter where he was playing. And he had style. Never wore body armor, never rubbed when he got hit by a pitch, which happened to Baylor a lot: 35 times in 1986 (Sox single season record), and 24 more in 108 games the next year; for context's sake, Youk is the all-time Sox leader in 8+ seasons, with a season high of 17.
 

curly2

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I think everyone I could think of has already been mentioned, but a few thoughts on them:

8-year-old me saw Juan Marichal pitch for the Sox and thought his leg kick was the coolest thing over.

As someone who grew up watching Tom Seaver and saw his 300th win in person at Yankee Stadium, I was thrilled to see him acquired, and wish he's been healthy for the postseason.

Hendu for less than a calendar year is an all-timer.

Esasky and Beltre probably had the best seasons for one-year guys.

And the O-Cab, Mientkiewicz and Roberts group in 2004 brought what we had all been waiting for.
 

Didot Fromager

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Gotta show some '67 love. There was a whole cast of washed-up one-offs who came up with what was needed or more when called upon I will always have a special place in my heart for guys like Norm Siebern, Dan Osinski, Jose Tartabull, Elston Howard, and especially Jerry Adair. No glitzy stats but so many contributions when the chips were on the line.
 

E5 Yaz

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Gotta show some '67 love. There was a whole cast of washed-up one-offs who came up with what was needed or more when called upon I will always have a special place in my heart for guys like Norm Siebern, Dan Osinski, Jose Tartabull, Elston Howard, and especially Jerry Adair. No glitzy stats but so many contributions when the chips were on the line.
All those guys contributed, but none of them were one season or less guys
 

Jordu

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I'm in the Beltre camp. Best fielding third baseman I've ever seen in a Red Sox uniform.

But I want to put in a word for Mark Loretta -- played 2006 with the Sox and started at 2B in the All-Star game. Good fielder. Never made a mental mistake.
 

timlinin8th

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IIRC, he was slated to pitch the 3rd game of the season, as he was brought in to be the 3rd starter. He warmed up on a cold rainy night in Fenway, maybe even pitched to a batter or two prior to a lengthy rain delay. When play resumed, Grady Little sent Hermanson back out to pitch, and he promptly pulled a groin muscle from which he never really recovered that season. That game ended up being called, which is why Hermanson's inning or so pitched in April doesn't show up in any of the game logs.
It was the second game of the season, but the rest is accurate. (I remember being excited for Hermanson's start because I went to the opener which was a dud, Pedro gave up quite a few runs and the Sox lost 12-11) Hermanson was throwing warmup pitches prior to the second inning and slipped on the wet mound, and I don't think the game ever continued past that inning. IIRC right after he came back from the leg injury he hurt his elbow somehow too.
 

HriniakPosterChild

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Still stretching (but less than two full years), Don Baylor deserves a bit of love here. Played almost every game in 1986 (160), and 108 more in 1987. Seemed to be in the WS every year, no matter where he was playing. And he had style. Never wore body armor, never rubbed when he got hit by a pitch, which happened to Baylor a lot: 35 times in 1986 (Sox single season record), and 24 more in 108 games the next year; for context's sake, Youk is the all-time Sox leader in 8+ seasons, with a season high of 17.
Never rubbed?

Hell, the man never even made an effort to get out of the way!
 

m0ckduck

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Hermanson was throwing warmup pitches prior to the second inning and slipped on the wet mound, and I don't think the game ever continued past that inning. IIRC right after he came back from the leg injury he hurt his elbow somehow too.
Staph infection. I remember this b/c it was the first time I'd heard of this particular ailment.
 

ngruz25

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Sep 20, 2005
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John Olerud was always one of my favorite non-Red Sox players, mostly because of the helmet, so I loved seeing him get a turn with the Sox at the end of his career.

I have a soft spot for sidearmers, so I had a big rooting interest in Chad Bradford and Cla Meredith (though he was less of a sidewinder than Bradford).
 

Leather

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If we're putting together a rotation, I have to submit Hideo Nomo.

Solidly average season, led the league in SOs, plus a no hitter!
 

donutogre

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Anyone mention Bartolo Colon. That was nearly 10 years ago and we thought he was done then.
One of my LEAST favorite one-season Red Sox because he was so lousy! I didn't begrudge him it really at the time because it seemed like he was totally washed up. The turnaround he's had since then is insane and also frustrating. Wouldn't have minded having him on the team during his comeback. So much fun to watch now.

And someone mentioned Smoltz. Obviously a complete disaster, but man was I excited when he came on board. He had such an interesting career and was such a beast for so long. Sad to see him get rocked so badly.
 
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Infield Infidel

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Late career Bret Saberhagan, who should not have been able to pitch as well as he did considering his arm was held together with floss and tinsel. Just looked it up, 3.90 ERA, 4.04 FIP, 1.20 WHIP, 124 ERA+ in 335 innings over four seasons, two of which were sub-30-inning cups of coffee after two separate comebacks of over a year each. The two full seasons were 3.35/3.85/1.16/136 in 294 innings
 

John Marzano Olympic Hero

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For me it's Dave Henderson followed closely by Dave Roberts.

Otis Nixon was a lot of fun for the one year he was here though the same can not be said for Big Hittin' Mark Whiten -- "Why doesn't he hit four homers in a game, every game?" Tony Clark was frustrating too. Actually that might be a good thread to start, "One Season or Fewer: Your Least Favorite Red Sox".
 

TFisNEXT

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David Cone in 2001. I loved that he came over after being a Yankee for six years and pitched well for the most part. Team lost his first 3 starts then won 14 of the next 15 starts he made.

And then father time caught up and they lost the last 6 of 7.

I was also amped for Smoltz, but that was a disaster from the start.
I remember one of the Cone starts at Fenway in September 2001 where he was going toe to toe with Mussina...it was 0-0 late in the game and I think the Yankees scored on an error to take a 1-0 lead. I remember feeling really bad for Cone that he was gonna get the loss that game.

But the Red Sox did redeem a little bit of dignity because Mussina had been pitching a perfect game and Carl Everett as a pinch hitter broke it up in the bottom of the 9th with 2 outs and an 0-2 count. I couldn't believe Moose had given up a hit on an 0-2 count given how unhittable he was that game.
 

Ramon AC

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I always liked Benny Agbayani, I had forgotten he played his last MLB games in a Red Sox uniform.
 

trotsplits

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I loved OCab because it was nice to watch a guy having fun at SS again and I didn't feel like holding my breath every time a ball vectored toward SS. He also brought like fewer popups. Unless he didn't, but it seemed that way.
 

Lose Remerswaal

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TeddyBallgame9 said:
Orlando Cepeda, way past his prime, as the Sox first DH in 1973. I remember a few balls he absolutely crushed but he could barely run by then so anything in the gaps usually wound up as a single. Great hitter in his prime.
Anyone mention the Baby Bull, Orlando Cepeda? He had a pretty decent 1 year stint but IRC bad knees limited him. But the dude hit.