Clearly, 2017 was a disappointing season for the Red Sox and their fans. While the team shored up its starting pitching, the power vacuum left by the departure of
David Ortiz was just too much to overcome. Nevertheless, winning the American League East was significant—and many players contributed to that achievement.
Mookie Betts suffered a drop in average, but still posted an .803 OPS—along with 24 HRs and 102 RBIs.
Andrew Benintendi delivered a solid rookie campaign—hitting .271, with 20 HRs and 90 RBIs. And,
Dustin Pedroia battled through injuries to lead team regulars in hitting at .293.
Christian Vazquez played 99 games and hit .290. And, 20-year-old
Rafael Devers whetted our appetites by hitting .284, with 10 HRs and 30 RBIs in just 58 games. On the pitching side,
Drew Pomeranz and
Craig Kimbrel both had outstanding years. But, the clear and overwhelming choice as Player Of The Year
has to be
Chris Sale. The tall, lanky lefty started 32 games for his new ballclub—going 17-8 with a 2.90 ERA. In 214.1 innings pitched, he gave up a paltry 165 hits. Opposing batters hit just .208 off Sale, and he delivered a WHIP of 0.97. Most amazingly, his strikeout-to-walk ratio was 7.2:1—with an incredible 308 Ks under his belt. Congratulations, Chirs—you are the
2017 FenwayNation Player Of The Year.
(Getty Images)
