Top 5 Most Heartbreaking Losses In Boston Red Sox History
There’s a tendency to focus on the winners in sport. With good reason. Winners bask in the glory and adulation of fans and media. But in sport, there are always two sides. With winners, there are losers. Every team has lost a big game at some point. Sometimes it’s a matter of the opponent being better. But there are some losses that are so painful, they crush the soul of the players, coaches and supporters. This series of articles focuses on the deep pain of sport. Bring tissues if your team is featured.
Do you believe in curses? If you’re a Boston Red Sox fan, chances are you do. It all started way back in 1919 when the Sox sold pitcher Babe Ruth to the struggling New York Yankees for a then hefty sum of $100,000. The Bambino transitioned himself from starting pitcher to a feared, heavy hitting outfielder. Thus the Yankees transitioned themselves from sad sack loser, to an unstoppable powerhouse. Meanwhile, the Red Sox transitioned themselves from a top club to one filled with heartbreak and pain. Even Ruth’s death in 1948 didn’t change the fortunes of the Red Sox.
While the curse was finally lifted in 2004, there were 86 years of agony and tears from the Red Sox faithful. Here are the 5 most heartbreaking losses in Boston Red Sox history.
(Note: All games are prior to 2004.)
October 12, 1967. St Louis 7, Boston 2.
The 1967 Boston Red Sox weren’t given much of a chance to compete in the American League at the start of the season. Eight consecutive losing seasons offered little hope to the Fenway faithful.
Changes were afoot. Dick Williams was hired as manager and he quickly brought a no-nonsense approach to the team. Stressing fundamentals and discipline, Williams was determined to steer the Sox in the right direction.
The Red Sox were playing well and three players were mainly responsible. Left fielder Carl Yastrzemski was putting up amazing numbers that eventually would earn him the American League Triple Crown. Batting .326 while powering 44 home runs with 121 RBIs, Yaz established himself as a superstar in 1967.
Starting pitcher Jim Lonborg was having a career year in 1967. He led the American League in wins (22) and strikeouts (246) while setting a then career low 3.16 ERA. (He would better that in 1972.) Those numbers were good enough to earn Lonborg the American League Cy Young Award.
But the man who won the hearts of Beantown in 1967 was Tony Conigliaro. The smooth swinging 22-year-old right fielder came into his own in 1967 and was beginning to realize his potential. In 95 games. Conigliaro was batting at a .287 clip, swatting 20 home runs with 67 RBIs. However, disaster struck on August 18. In a game versus the California Angels, Conigliaro was beaned in the face by a Jack Hamilton fastball as Hamilton was trying to work the inner half of the plate. Conigliaro was taken off the field on a stretcher unconscious and bloodied. After x-rays and evaluation, doctors determined that Conigliaro had sustained a linear fracture of his cheekbone, a dislocated jaw and severe damage to the retina of his left eye. Conigliaro was gone for the season and the Red Sox needed to adapt quickly.
Williams did a masterful job keeping the Red Sox focused on the task at hand. Instead of going into a shell because of Conigliaro’s injury, they were inspired and played for him.
The Red Sox were in contention with Detroit and Minnesota for the American League Pennant on the final weekend of the season. The Sox were hosting the Twins while the Tigers were playing the Angels in Detroit. The Red Sox received clutch performances from Yastrzemski and Lonborg to sweep the two game series from the Twins. Yastrzemski went 7 for 8 with a homer and 6 RBIs. Lonborg pitched a complete game in the finale to eliminate the Twins. The Tigers split their two game series with the Angels thus Boston won the AL pennant by one game over both Minnesota and Detroit. The season was dubbed the Impossible Dream because no one thought this was possible. Now all the Red Sox needed to end their World Series drought was to defeat the St. Louis Cardinals.
The Cardinals had a much easier road to the National League pennant, finishing 10 ½ games ahead of second place San Francisco. The Cards were the only team in the majors to win over 100 games, winning 101 to be exact. The lineup featured NL MVP Orlando Cepeda, speedster Lou Brock who led all of baseball in stolen bases (52), Curt Flood who posted a career high .335 batting average and former home run king Roger Maris who brought winning experience from his days with the New York Yankees.
The pitching staff was strong for the Cards. The team was second with a 3.05 ERA while the bullpen teamed up for 44 saves which topped the National League. The rotation consisted of rising star Steve Carlton, one year wonder Dick Hughes and the terrifying Bob Gibson who didn’t put up great numbers in the regular season but was ready to make an impact in the Fall Classic.
The Cardinals took Game 1 at Fenway thanks to a Gibson complete game in which he allowed only 6 hits and one walk while striking out 10 Red Sox hitters. Boston rebounded in Game 2 as Lonborg threw a one-hit shutout while Yastrzemski belted two homers.
The series shifted to St. Louis for Game 3. The Cards started fast as Brock’s leadoff triple set the tone. St. Louis won 5-2 as Brock went 2 for 4 while third baseman Mike Shannon swatted a two-run dinger.
The Red Sox couldn’t figure out Gibson in Game 4 as the menacing right-hander spun a complete game five-hit shutout. The Red Sox were in deep trouble as it looked like their impossible dream would end.
But these Red Sox wouldn’t die easy. Lonborg was in Cy Young from as he tossed a complete game three-hitter. A Maris home run ruined the shutout but the Red Sox stayed alive with a 3-1 win with the series shifting back to Boston.
Fenway Park was rocking for Game 6 and the Red Sox bats came alive. Two home runs by shortstop Rico Petrocelli to go with Yastrzemski’s third long ball of the series and a Reggie Smith solo shot propelled the Sox to an 8-4 win and a Game 7.
Entering Game 7, the Red Sox faced a dilemma. Knowing they had to face Gibson again, Boston were forced to either counter with either the capable but struggling Jose Santiago or go with their ace Lonborg on just two days rest. Williams rolled the dice and played his ace as Lonborg took the mound for Game 7. Lonborg was an ace but Gibson was a trump card. You could even say he was an ace of trump.
Lonborg struggled early on with his control. It bit him in the third inning as the Cards scored twice on a Flood RBI single and a Lonborg wild pitch that plated Flood. Meanwhile, Gibson was cruising right along, not allowing a hit while striking out 7 Red Sox batters through 4 innings. Not only was Gibson delivering on the mound, he produced with the bat. A strong hitter for a pitcher, Gibson powered a solo home run over the centre-field wall to send the Red Sox reeling. A Maris sacrifice fly later that inning pushed the Cardinal lead to 4 runs halfway through the game. Sox first baseman George Scott tried to steer the momentum the other way as he led off the bottom of the fifth with a triple, the first hit for the Red Sox. But Boston couldn’t capitalize as Gibson shut down the Boston bats. When Cards second baseman golfed a three-run homer over the Green Monster in the sixth inning, it spelled doom for Lonborg and the Red Sox.
In the end, Gibson threw his third complete game of the series, allowing two runs on just three hits, 10 strikeouts and three walks. For the series, Gibson was 3-0 with a 1.00 ERA, with 26 strikeouts. Gibson was an easy choice for World Series MVP.
While Yastrzemski had an excellent World Series, hitting .400 with 3 home runs and 5 RBIs, the rest of the Sox couldn’t produce. The Sox hit only at a .216 pace and were a woeful 6 for 30 (.200 average) with runners in scoring position.
The biggest heartbreak though was Conigliaro. The Red Sox missed his bat in the World Series but his career was never the same. After missing the entire 1968 season, Conigliaro returned in 1969 and was excellent, swatting 20 home runs with 82 RBIs earning AL Comeback Player of the Year. He was even better in 1970, hammering 36 home runs with 116 RBIs. Both were career highs. However, Conigliaro was experiencing vision problems and retired after the 1971 season. He attempted a comeback in 1975 but the damage to his eye was too much to overcome and aborted the comeback. In 1982, Conigliaro suffered a heart attack and was in a vegetative state until his death in 1990 at only 45 years old.
October 22, 1975. Cincinnati 4, Boston 3.
Many consider the 1975 World Series the best Fall Classic of all time. While that subject could be debated for hours, there’s no denying that the Red Sox and the Cincinnati Reds engaged in a memorable World Series.
The Red Sox came into the 1975 campaign trying to shake off the bitter taste of the 1974 season. The Red Sox held a 7 game lead with just over a month left in the season. But the Sox lost 24 out of their last 38 games as Baltimore and the New York Yankees raced past them in the AL East standings. The Red Sox ended up a disappointing third after such a promising start.
The Red Sox arrived in spring training with two rookies making waves. Left fielder Jim Rice and centre fielder Fred Lynn were winning the hearts and minds of the Red Sox faithful. Yet, cynicism prevailed when catcher Carlton Fisk broke his arm and was sidelined for two months. More negative vibes were prevalent when ace pitcher Luis Tiant held out over a contract dispute. Red Sox owner Tom Yawkey eventually agreed to give Tiant a raise in order to get him back into camp.