1939 Boston Red Sox season
Major League Baseball season
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The 1939 Boston Red Sox season was the 39th season in the franchise's Major League Baseball history. The Red Sox finished second in the American League (AL) with a record of 89 wins and 62 losses, 17 games behind the New York Yankees, who went on to win the 1939 World Series.
| 1939 Boston Red Sox | |
|---|---|
| League | American League |
| Ballpark | Fenway Park |
| City | Boston, Massachusetts |
| Record | 89â62 (.589) |
| League place | 2nd |
| Owners | Tom Yawkey |
| President | Tom Yawkey |
| General managers | Eddie Collins |
| Managers | Joe Cronin |
| Radio | WAAB (Frankie Frisch, Tom Hussey) |
| Stats | ESPN.com Baseball Reference |
Regular season
In 1939, the Boston Red Sox finished 17 games behind the New York Yankees.[1] Lefty Grove won 15 games for the Red Sox while Jimmie Foxx hit .360, and had 35 home runs and 105 RBI.[1] Ted Williams made his major league debut in 1939, and batted .327 with 31 home runs. He led the American League with 145 RBIs.[1] After the first game he played against Williams, Yankees catcher Bill Dickey said about Williams, "He's just a damned good hitter."[1] On July 18, the Red Sox traded then-minor league shortstop Pee Wee Reese to the Brooklyn Dodgers, in exchange for $35,000 and two players to be named later (pitcher Red Evans and outfielder Art Parks).[2] Reese would go on to play with the Dodgers for 16 seasons, was a 10-time All-Star, and was inducted to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1984.
Transactions
- July 25: The Red Sox announce the purchase of pitcher Herbert Hash and catcher George Lacy from the Minneapolis Millers of the American Association.[3]
- August 14: The Red Sox announce the purchase of pitcher Wilburn R. Butland from the Minneapolis Millers of the American Association.[4]
Season standings
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York Yankees | 106 | 45 | .702 | â | 52âââ25 | 54âââ20 |
| Boston Red Sox | 89 | 62 | .589 | 17 | 42âââ32 | 47âââ30 |
| Cleveland Indians | 87 | 67 | .565 | 20½ | 44âââ33 | 43âââ34 |
| Chicago White Sox | 85 | 69 | .552 | 22½ | 50âââ27 | 35âââ42 |
| Detroit Tigers | 81 | 73 | .526 | 26½ | 42âââ35 | 39âââ38 |
| Washington Senators | 65 | 87 | .428 | 41½ | 37âââ39 | 28âââ48 |
| Philadelphia Athletics | 55 | 97 | .362 | 51½ | 28âââ48 | 27âââ49 |
| St. Louis Browns | 43 | 111 | .279 | 64½ | 18âââ59 | 25âââ52 |
Record vs. opponents
Sources: | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | BOS | CWS | CLE | DET | NYY | PHA | SLB | WSH | |||||
| Boston | â | 8â14 | 11â11 | 10â12 | 11â8â1 | 18â4 | 16â6 | 15â7 | |||||
| Chicago | 14â8 | â | 12â10 | 12â10 | 4â18 | 11â11 | 18â4 | 14â8â1 | |||||
| Cleveland | 11â11 | 10â12 | â | 11â11 | 7â15 | 18â4 | 16â6 | 14â8 | |||||
| Detroit | 12â10 | 10â12 | 11â11 | â | 9â13 | 11â11 | 14â8â1 | 14â8 | |||||
| New York | 8â11â1 | 18â4 | 15â7 | 13â9 | â | 18â4 | 19â3 | 15â7 | |||||
| Philadelphia | 4â18 | 11â11 | 4â18 | 11â11 | 4â18 | â | 13â9â1 | 8â12 | |||||
| St. Louis | 6â16 | 4â18 | 6â16 | 8â14â1 | 3â19 | 9â13â1 | â | 7â15 | |||||
| Washington | 7â15 | 8â14â1 | 8â14 | 8â14 | 7â15 | 12â8 | 15â7 | â | |||||
Opening Day lineup
| 8 | Doc Cramer | CF |
| 7 | Joe Vosmik | LF |
| 3 | Jimmie Foxx | 1B |
| 4 | Joe Cronin | SS |
| 5 | Jim Tabor | 3B |
| 9 | Ted Williams | RF |
| 1 | Bobby Doerr | 2B |
| 2 | Gene Desautels | C |
| 10 | Lefty Grove | P |
Roster
| 1939 Boston Red Sox | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roster | |||||||||
Pitchers
|
Catchers
Infielders
|
Outfielders
Other batters |
Manager
Coaches
| ||||||
Player stats
| = Indicates team leader |
| = Indicates league leader |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | Johnny Peacock | 92 | 274 | 76 | .277 | 0 | 36 |
| 1B | Jimmie Foxx | 124 | 467 | 168 | .360 | 35 | 105 |
| 2B | Bobby Doerr | 127 | 525 | 167 | .318 | 12 | 73 |
| SS | Joe Cronin | 143 | 520 | 160 | .308 | 19 | 107 |
| 3B | Jim Tabor | 149 | 577 | 167 | .289 | 14 | 95 |
| OF | Joe Vosmik | 145 | 554 | 153 | .276 | 7 | 84 |
| OF | Doc Cramer | 137 | 589 | 183 | .311 | 0 | 56 |
| OF | Ted Williams | 149 | 565 | 185 | .327 | 31 | 145 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lou Finney | 95 | 249 | 81 | .325 | 1 | 46 |
| Gene Desautels | 76 | 226 | 55 | .243 | 0 | 21 |
| Tom Carey | 54 | 161 | 39 | .242 | 0 | 20 |
| Red Nonnenkamp | 58 | 75 | 18 | .240 | 0 | 5 |
| Moe Berg | 14 | 33 | 9 | .273 | 1 | 5 |
| Boze Berger | 20 | 30 | 9 | .300 | 0 | 2 |
| Fabian Gaffke | 1 | 1 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 1 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lefty Grove | 23 | 191.0 | 15 | 4 | 2.54 | 81 |
| Elden Auker | 31 | 151.0 | 9 | 10 | 3.56 | 53 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jack Wilson | 36 | 177.1 | 11 | 11 | 4.67 | 80 |
| Fritz Ostermueller | 34 | 159.1 | 11 | 7 | 4.24 | 61 |
| Denny Galehouse | 30 | 146.2 | 9 | 10 | 4.54 | 68 |
| Jim Bagby | 21 | 80.0 | 5 | 5 | 7.09 | 35 |
| Woody Rich | 21 | 77.0 | 4 | 3 | 4.91 | 24 |
| Jake Wade | 20 | 47.2 | 1 | 4 | 6.23 | 21 |
| Charlie Wagner | 9 | 38.1 | 3 | 1 | 4.23 | 13 |
| Bill LeFebvre | 5 | 26.1 | 1 | 1 | 5.81 | 8 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joe Heving | 46 | 11 | 3 | 8 | 3.70 | 43 |
| Emerson Dickman | 48 | 8 | 3 | 6 | 4.43 | 46 |
| Monte Weaver | 9 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6.64 | 6 |
| Bill Sayles | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7.07 | 9 |
| Jimmie Foxx | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 1 |
Farm system
LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Louisville, Scranton, Canton, Elizabethton, Danville-Schoolfield
Source:[7]
Notes
- Some sources also list "Dave Coble" as a Centreville manager during 1939.[5] It is unclear if that person may be the Dave Coble who played 15 games with the 1939 Philadelphia Phillies and later managed multiple minor league teams.[6]