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Rick Porcello Comeback Player of 2016

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Red Sox starter Rick Porcello was named 2016 American League Comeback Player of the Year today. The award goes to a player in each league who re-emerged on the field during the season. The National League winner was Nationals third baseman Anthony Rendon. Beat reporters from all 30 clubs vote to determine the award winners.

Porcello was 22-4 with a 3.15 ERA over a career-high 33 starts this past season and winner of the AL Cy Young Award. Porcello’s 22 wins were the most in baseball in 2016 and most by a Red Sox pitcher since Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez‘ 23-4 record in 1999.

Past Comeback winners with ties to the Red Sox include Nomar Garciaparra (2006 with Dodgers), Aaron Hill (2009 with Blue Jays), and Jacoby Ellsbury (2011 with Boston). Last August, 2015’s AL Comeback winner, Prince Fielder, was forced by injury to end his playing career.

Some other news for Red Sox fans:

  • Red Sox Hall of Famer Dave “Boo” Ferriss died on Thanksgiving at age 94. Ferriss pitched his career with Boston from 1945 to 1950 and was an All-Star in 1946, going 25-6 with a 3.25 ERA in 40 games (35 starts). In his first season Ferriss beat every team in the league and even batted .267 in 120 at-bats. To this day he holds the club record for most consecutive home wins (13 in 1946) and the most wins (21), shutouts (5), and complete games (26) in a season as a rookie. After his career, Ferriss was a Red Sox pitching coach before coaching baseball at Delta State University. He’s survived by his wife Miriam, two children, and five grandchildren and great grandchildren.
  • Ryan LaMarre, who appeared in just six games with the Red Sox last season, has signed a one-year, big league deal with the Angels. Despite his limited playing time with the Sox, LaMarre put together a solid year at Triple-A Pawtucket in 2016 going 96-for-317 (.303) with 10 home runs in 86 games. Ironically, LaMarre pitched an inning for the Red Sox against his new team in a 21-2 Angels rout over Boston last July 2nd.

Francona, Manager of the Year

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What might’ve been!

On Tuesday Indians skipper Terry Francona was named American League Manager of the Year by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America. It’s Tito’s second such honor, the first having come in 2013. Francona joins Sparky Anderson, Joe Torre, Lou Piniella, Mike Scioscia, and Joe Maddon as two-time winners. Buck Showalter and Tony La Russa have won the award a record three times.

Francona received 22 first-place votes in this year’s contest, which is tallied before the start of the postseason. The Astros’ Jeff Banister received four such votes, Showalter had two as did Sox manager John Farrell.

Photo of the Day Project, Oct. 31, 2016: Indians manager Terry Francona smiles during his off-day press conference at Progressive Field.


Terry Francona
flickr photo shared by apardavila under a Creative Commons ( BY ) license

The Boston chapter’s two voting members, the Globe’s Peter Abraham and the Herald’s Michael Silverman, each cast first-place votes for Francona.

Here are more news and notes for Red Sox fans:

  • Another man with a deep connection back to Boston is a Manager of the Year. First-year skipper Dave Roberts of the Dodgers was named the top field boss in the National League. Roberts, who received 16 first-place votes, is the sixth manager to be so honored in his first year on the job. The Cubs’ Joe Maddon came in 2nd place with eight first-place votes, followed by the Nationals’ Dusty Baker.
  • The Athetics have re-signed pitcher Felix Doubront for 2017. The 29-year-old, who was originally signed by the Red Sox as an amateur free agent in 2005, missed the 2016 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery. Doubront appeared in 11 games with Oakland in 2015 going 2-2 with a 5.81 ERA over 52.2 IP.
  • “It would be like the Bulls trading Michael Jordan in his prime,” said one unnamed General Manager of the idea that the Angels might move Mike Trout to the Yankees, adding that “the only thing that team has going right now is Mike Trout.” The comments came in response to thoughts allegedly voiced by a major league scout to New York radio station WFAN.
  • Increasingly, it seems Carlos Beltran as a replacement for David Ortiz is the likely choice of Red Sox baseball president Dave Dombrowki. Beltran is being courted by the Yankees, Astros, and Blue Jays, too.
  • We’re in the middle of Awards season, so it’s fitting to recall that today marks the unanimous selection of Hall of Famer and Red Sox great Pedro Martinez for the 1999 AL Cy Young Award. Two years earlier, Pedro won the NL Cy Young, becoming just the third pitcher to do so in both leagues. Tonight, Boston’s Rick Porcello sees if he is to capture his first such honor. Cubs ace and one-time Red Sox Jon Lester, also looking for his first Cy Young, is vying for the award in the senior circuit.

DiSarcina Named Bench Coach

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The Red Sox named old friend Gary DiSarcina as their new bench coach, filling the vacancy created when Torey Lovullo became the Diamondbacks manager earlier this month.

A Massachusetts native who spent 12 seasons in the majors with the Angels, DiSarcina has subsequently ping-ponged between LA and Boston serving as a consultant to the Sox and manager of their Short Season-A team, the Lowell Spinners (2007-10) before returning to the Angels (2011-12) for a front office role. In 2013, Boston put him in charge of their Triple-A affiliate, the Pawtucket Red Sox, where he earned Minor League Manager of the Year honors from Baseball America.

Since 2014, DiSarcina had served as a first and third base coach back with the Angels.

“To land the job is very exciting. To be home is icing on the cake,” DiSarcina told MLB.com’s Ian Browne.

During his time with the Angels, DiSarcina was teammates at various times with current Sox manager John Farrell and coaches Chili Davis, and Ruben Amaro, Jr.

With DiSarcina’s appointment to the senior coaching position, Red Sox team management is complete for next season, with Farrell and all other coaches from 2016 remaining in place.


3 Red Sox Silver Sluggers

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David Ortiz, Mookie Betts, and Xander Bogaerts earned 2016 Louisville Slugger Silver Slugger Awards this week, making the Red Sox the only major league club with three such honorees this season. The awards, which have been made since 1980, are determined by a vote of baseball managers and coaches for the best offensive production at each position in both the American and National Leagues.

This year’s was Ortiz’ seventh Silver Slugger honor (also 2004-07, 2011, and 2013). It’s the most by a Red Sox player in franchise history. Wade Boggs and Manny Ramirez had six each with Boston.

The award for Bogaerts was his second in as many seasons. He’s the first Red Sox player with multiple Silver Sluggers at shortstop.

Betts joins Dwight Evans, Ellis Burks, Jason Varitek, Dustin Pedroia, Jacoby Ellsbury, and Adrian Gonzalez as the only Red Sox to earn both a Gold Glove and a Silver Slugger in the same season.

The all-time record for Silver Slugger Awards is 12 by Barry Bonds, followed by Hall of Famers Mike Piazza (10) and Barry Larkin (9).

A few other notes of interest now for Red Sox fans:

  • The club announced that Mookie Betts had successful knee surgery this week, officially an arthroscopy, chondroplasty and a loose body removal. They say he’ll be ready to go for Spring Training.
  • Speaking of the spring, the Sox set their schedule for the trek to Florida, with due dates for player arrivals and a schedule of exhibition games that starts February 23. It will be the Red Sox’ sixth season at JetBlue Park. Tickets go on sale December 3 at redsox.com. Key Red Sox dates are always up to date and counting down right here, on the RSNStats web site.
  • We never really got to see much from new Sox reliever Carson Smith in 2016. Smith was limited to just 2.2 IP before an injury that led to Tommy John surgery last May 24. Baseball president Dombrowski says it’s possible Smith might be ready to compete by the spring, though a more reasonable expectation, he admits, is June 1.

Betts, Porcello Nominated for Top Awards

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Red Sox pitcher Rick Porcello was nominated for the American League Cy Young Award and club outfielder Mookie Betts earned a nomination as the AL’s Most Valuable Player in voting by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America, announced today. The group’s voting process was conducted before the postseason.

For Porcello and Betts, it’s their first-ever such nominations.

Also nominated for AL Cy Young honors was the Indians’ Corey Kluber and the Tigers’ Justin Verlander, both past winners of the award. The Cubs’ Jon Lester earned a Cy Young nomination for the National League honor.

Rick Porcello


Rick Porcello
flickr photo shared by Keith Allison under a Creative Commons ( BY-SA ) license

For MVP, Betts is challenged by the Astros’ Jose Altuve and the Angels Mike Trout.

Terry Francona was nominated for AL Manager of the Year, along with the Orioles Buck Showalter and Rangers’ Jeff Banister.

First-year Dodgers’ skipper (and one-time Red Sox) Dave Roberts earned a nomination for NL Manager of the Year alongside the Cubs Joe Maddon and the Nationals Dusty Baker.

Manager of the Year honors will be announced November 15, the Cy Young Award will occur on November 16, and the MVP on November 17. All announcements will come at 6 PM Eastern Time on the MLB Network.

The full list of nominees is available on the BBWAA web site.