2003 Boston Red Sox season















































2003 Boston Red Sox
AL Wild Card Winner
Bosb.png
Major League affiliations

  • American League (since 1901)


  • East Division (since 1969)

Location

  • Fenway Park (since 1912)

  • Boston (since 1901)

Results
Record 95–67 (.586)
Divisional place 2nd
Other information
Owner(s)
John W. Henry (New England Sports Ventures)
General manager(s) Theo Epstein
Manager(s) Grady Little
Local television
WSBK-TV
(Sean McDonough, Jerry Remy)
NESN
(Don Orsillo, Jerry Remy)
Local radio
WEEI
(Jerry Trupiano, Joe Castiglione)
WROL
(Luis Tiant, Uri Berenguer, Juan Pedro Villamán)
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The 2003 Boston Red Sox season was the 103rd season in the franchise's Major League Baseball history. The Red Sox finished second in the American League East with a record of 95 wins and 67 losses, six games behind the New York Yankees. The Red Sox qualified for the postseason as the AL wild card, and defeated the American League West champion Oakland Athletics in the ALDS. The Red Sox then lost to the Yankees in the ALCS.


The Red Sox led the major leagues in nearly all offensive categories, including runs scored (961), batting average (.289), on-base percentage (.360), and perhaps most impressively, a .491 team slugging percentage, which set a new record previously held by the 1927 Yankees.[1] They also had 649 extra-base hits, the most ever by one team in a single season.[2][3]




Contents






  • 1 Offseason


  • 2 Regular season


    • 2.1 Season standings


    • 2.2 Record vs. opponents


    • 2.3 Notable transactions


    • 2.4 Opening Day Lineup


    • 2.5 Roster


    • 2.6 Game log




  • 3 Player stats


    • 3.1 Batting


      • 3.1.1 Starters by position


      • 3.1.2 Other batters




    • 3.2 Pitching


      • 3.2.1 Starting pitchers


      • 3.2.2 Other pitchers


      • 3.2.3 Relief pitchers






  • 4 Postseason


    • 4.1 ALDS vs. Oakland Athletics


    • 4.2 ALCS vs. New York Yankees




  • 5 Awards and honors


  • 6 Farm system


  • 7 References





Offseason



  • On November 25, 2002, Theo Epstein, 28, was hired as General Manager of the Boston Red Sox.[4] The vacancy occurred because Oakland Athletics General Manager Billy Beane accepted the Red Sox job and then resigned shortly afterward. Epstein's hiring made him the youngest general manager in major league history.[4] Larry Lucchino, Red Sox' President and CEO, wanted Epstein to be hired. Prior to the appointment, Epstein was Boston's assistant general manager.

  • October 9, 2002: Brandon Lyon was selected off waivers by the Boston Red Sox from the Toronto Blue Jays.[5]

  • November 6, 2002: Chris Coste signed as a Free Agent with the Boston Red Sox.[6]

  • December 6, 2002: Wayne Gomes was released by the Boston Red Sox.[7]

  • December 31, 2002: Ramiro Mendoza signed as a Free Agent with the Boston Red Sox.[8]

  • January 10, 2003: Bill Mueller was signed as a Free Agent with the Boston Red Sox.[9]

  • January 22, 2003: David Ortiz was signed as a Free Agent with the Boston Red Sox.[10]

  • February 15, 2003: Kevin Millar was purchased by the Boston Red Sox from the Florida Marlins.[11]



Regular season




The Red Sox celebrate their clinching of the 2003 AL Wild Card with a victory over the Baltimore Orioles.



Season standings



























































AL East

W

L

Pct.

GB

Home

Road

New York Yankees
101 61
0.623

50–32
51–29

Boston Red Sox
95 67
0.586
6
53–28
42–39

Toronto Blue Jays
86 76
0.531
15
41–40
45–36

Baltimore Orioles
71 91
0.438
30
40–40
31–51

Tampa Bay Devil Rays
63 99
0.389
38
36–45
27–54




Record vs. opponents



















































































































































































































































































2003 American League Records


Sources: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14]
Team
ANA
BAL
BOS
CWS
CLE
DET
KC
MIN
NYY
OAK
SEA
TB
TEX
TOR
NL 

Anaheim
1–8 3–6 3–4 6–3 6–1 6–3 5–4 3–6 8–12 8–11 6–3 9–10 2–7 11–7

Baltimore
8–1 9–10 2–4 3–3 3–3 3–4 3–4 6–13–1 2–7 4–5 8–11 7–2 8–11 5–13

Boston
6–3 10–9 5–4 4–2 8–1 5–1 2–4 9–10 3–4 5–2 12–7 5–4 10–9 11–7

Chicago
4–3 4–2 4–5 11–8 11–8 11–8 9–10 4–2 4–5 2–7 3–3 3–4 6–3 10–8

Cleveland
3–6 3–3 2–4 8–11 12–7 6–13 9–10 2–5 3–6 3–6 5–2 4–5 2–4 6–12

Detroit
1–6 3–3 1–8 8–11 7–12 5–14 4–15 1–5 3–6 1–8 2–4 1–6 2–7 4–14

Kansas City
3–6 4–3 1–5 8–11 13–6 14–5 11–8 2–4 2–7 4–5 4–3 7–2 1–5 9–9

Minnesota
4–5 4–3 4–2 10–9 10–9 15–4 8–11 0–7 8–1 3–6 6–0 5–4 3–3 10–8

New York
6–3 13–6–1 10–9 2–4 5–2 5–1 4–2 7–0 3–6 5–4 14–5 4–5 10–9 13–5

Oakland
12–8 7–2 4–3 5–4 6–3 6–3 7–2 1–8 6–3 7–12 6–3 15–4 5–2 9–9

Seattle
11–8 5–4 2–5 7–2 6–3 8–1 5–4 6–3 4–5 12–7 4–5 10–10 3–4 10–8

Tampa Bay
3–6 11–8 7–12 3–3 2–5 4–2 3–4 0–6 5–14 3–6 5–4 3–6 11–8 3–15

Texas
10–9 2–7 4–5 4–3 5–4 6–1 2–7 4–5 5–4 4–15 10–10 6–3 5–4 4–14

Toronto
7–2 11–8 9–10 3–6 4–2 7–2 5–1 3–3 9–10 2–5 4–3 8–11 4–5 10–8




Notable transactions





Gabe Kapler



  • April 11, 2003: Bill Haselman signed as a free agent with the Boston Red Sox.[12]

  • June 28, 2003: Gabe Kapler was purchased by the Boston Red Sox from the Colorado Rockies.[13]

  • July 22, 2003: Scott Sauerbeck was acquired by the Red Sox from the Pittsburgh Pirates.[1]

  • July 31, 2003: The Red Sox acquired Scott Williamson from the Cincinnati Reds. Freddy Sanchez was traded by the Boston Red Sox to the Pittsburgh Pirates for Jeff Suppan.[14]

  • August 4, 2003: David McCarty was acquired off waivers by the Red Sox from the Oakland Athletics.



Opening Day Lineup





















































18 Johnny Damon CF
12 Todd Walker 2B
  5
Nomar Garciaparra    
SS
24 Manny Ramírez LF
15 Kevin Millar 1B
29 Shea Hillenbrand 3B
25 Jeremy Giambi DH
  7 Trot Nixon RF
33 Jason Varitek C
45 Pedro Martínez P


Roster














2003 Boston Red Sox cc

Roster

Pitchers


  • 59 Héctor Almonte


  • 61 Bronson Arroyo


  • 19 John Burkett


  • 52 Bruce Chen


  • 43 Alan Embree


  • 23 Casey Fossum


  • 44 Chad Fox


  • 46 Bob Howry


  • 59 Todd Jones


  • 51 Byung-hyun Kim


  • 32 Derek Lowe


  • 38 Brandon Lyon


  • 45 Pedro Martínez


  • 55 Ramiro Mendoza


  • 31 Robert Person


  • 30 Ryan Rupe


  • 47 Scott Sauerbeck


  • 17 Rudy Seánez


  • 57 Jason Shiell


  • 35 Jeff Suppan


  • 50 Mike Timlin


  • 51 Kevin Tolar


  • 49 Tim Wakefield


  • 59 Matt White


  • 48 Scott Williamson


  • 47 Steve Woodard




Catchers


  • 44 Bill Haselman


  • 28 Doug Mirabelli


  • 33 Jason Varitek


Infielders




  • 53 Andy Abad


  • 16 Lou Collier


  •  5 Nomar Garciaparra


  • 29 Shea Hillenbrand


  •  2 Damian Jackson


  • 13 Lou Merloni


  • 15 Kevin Millar


  • 11 Bill Mueller


  • 26 Freddy Sanchez


  • 12 Todd Walker




Outfielders


  • 17 Adrian Brown


  • 18 Johnny Damon


  • 29 Gabe Kapler


  • 10 David McCarty


  •  7 Trot Nixon


  • 24 Manny Ramirez


Designated hitters




  • 25 Jeremy Giambi


  • 34 David Ortiz




Manager

  •  3 Grady Little

Coaches




  • 40 Tony Cloninger (Pitching)


  • 39 Mike Cubbage (Third Base)


  • 35 Goose Gregson (Interim pitching)[15]


  • 22 Ron Jackson (Hitting)


  • 60 Dana LeVangie (Bullpen catcher)


  • 41 Jerry Narron (Bench)


  • 54 Euclides Rojas (Bullpen)


  • 17 Dave Wallace (Pitching)


  • 20 Dallas Williams (First Base)




Game log











2003 game log
















Player stats



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 Jason Varitek 142 451 123 .273 25 85
1B Kevin Millar 148 544 150 .276 25 96
2B Todd Walker 144 587 166 .283 13 85
SS Nomar Garciaparra 156 658 198 .301 28 105
3B Bill Mueller 146 524 171 .326 19 85
LF Manny Ramirez 154 569 185 .325 37 104
CF Johnny Damon 145 608 166 .273 12 67
RF Trot Nixon 134 441 135 .306 28 87
DH David Ortiz 128 448 129 .288 31 101


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


Pitching



Starting pitchers

























































Player
G
IP
W
L
ERA
SO
Derek Lowe 33 203.1 17 7 4.47 110
Tim Wakefield 35 202.1 11 5 4.09 169
Pedro Martinez 29 186.2 14 4 2.22 206
John Burkett 32 181.2 12 9 5.15 107
Casey Fossum 19 79.0 6 5 5.47 63


Other pitchers










Player
G
IP
W
L
ERA
SO


Relief pitchers

























































Player
G
W
L
SV
ERA
SO
Byung-Hyun Kim 49 8 5 16 3.18 69
Mike Timlin 72 6 4 2 3.55 65
Ramiro Mendoza 37 3 5 0 6.75 36
Brandon Lyon 37 4 6 9 4.12 50
Alan Embree 65 4 1 1 4.25 45


Postseason



ALDS vs. Oakland Athletics



As the AL wild card, the Red Sox entered the first round of the playoffs against the Oakland Athletics. Despite losing the first two games in Oakland, Boston rebounded with two dramatic wins in the late innings at Fenway Park to even the series. When the series returned to Oakland, the Red Sox held off a late Oakland charge to win the series in five games. In doing so, they joined the 1995 Mariners and 1999 Red Sox in coming back from a two-game deficit to win a best-of-five ALDS.


Boston wins the series, 3–2

























































Game
Visitor
Score
Home
Score
Date
Series
1 (12 innings)
Boston 4 Oakland 5 October 1 1–0 (OAK)
2 Boston 1 Oakland 5 October 2 2–0 (OAK)
3 (11 innings)
Oakland 1 Boston 3 October 4 2–1 (OAK)
4 Oakland 4 Boston 5 October 5 2–2
5 Boston 4 Oakland 3 October 6 3–2 (BOS)


ALCS vs. New York Yankees



The stage was set for a classic showdown with longtime division rival, the New York Yankees. The teams split the first two games in the Bronx before the real drama unfolded in Game 3 at Fenway Park. A highly anticipated matchup between Sox ace Pedro Martínez and former Sox' pitcher Roger Clemens turned ugly early on. Karim García was hit in the back by a Martínez fastball. Words were exchanged and Martínez threateningly gestured towards Yankee catcher Jorge Posada. When Garcia was forced out at second, he slid hard into Todd Walker. The following inning, Manny Ramírez took exception to a high Clemens pitch and charged the mound. Both benches cleared, but the resulting brawl turned surreal when 72-year-old Yankee bench coach Don Zimmer charged Martínez. Martínez sidestepped and threw Zimmer to the ground. After a thirteen-minute delay, Clemens struck out Ramírez and proceeded to pitch effectively as the Yankees took a 2–1 series lead. The Red Sox won Game 4, but the Yankees won Game 5 to take the series' lead back to New York. But Boston proved resilient, and their offense came alive for the first time in the series to the tune of nine runs on sixteen hits to force a seventh game. With a 4–0 lead early on and Martínez pitching, Boston appeared to be on the brink of winning the pennant. But more late-inning drama unfolded when the Yankees tied the game 5–5 with three eighth-inning runs off Martínez, sending the game on into the October night. Yankee closer Mariano Rivera pitched three scoreless innings, and in the bottom of the eleventh, Aaron Boone turned on the first offering from Tim Wakefield and sent it into the frenzied bleachers of Yankee Stadium, sending the Yankees on to the World Series for the fifth time in six years. This game further cemented the legend many believed was The Curse of the Bambino.


New York wins the series, 4–3



























































Game Score Date Location Attendance
1
Boston Red Sox – 5, New York Yankees – 2
October 8 Yankee Stadium 56,281[16]
2 Boston Red Sox – 2, New York Yankees – 6 October 9 Yankee Stadium 56,295[17]
3
New York Yankees – 4, Boston Red Sox – 3
October 11 Fenway Park 34,209[18]
4 New York Yankees – 2, Boston Red Sox – 3 October 13 Fenway Park 34,599[19]
5
New York Yankees – 4, Boston Red Sox – 2
October 14 Fenway Park 34,619[20]
6
Boston Red Sox – 9, New York Yankees – 6
October 15 Yankee Stadium 56,277[21]
7 Boston Red Sox – 5, New York Yankees – 6 (11 innings) October 16 Yankee Stadium 56,279[22]


Awards and honors




  • Bill Mueller, Silver Slugger Award (3B)


  • Manny Ramirez, Silver Slugger Award (OF)


All-Star Game



  • Nomar Garciaparra, reserve SS


  • Manny Ramirez, starting OF (did not attend)


  • Jason Varitek, reserve C (fan vote selection)



Farm system














































Level
Team
League
Manager

AAA

Pawtucket Red Sox

International League

Buddy Bailey

AA

Portland Sea Dogs

Eastern League

Ron Johnson

A-Advanced

Sarasota Red Sox

Florida State League

Tim Leiper

A

Augusta GreenJackets

South Atlantic League

Russ Morman

A-Short Season

Lowell Spinners

New York–Penn League

Jon Deeble and Lynn Jones

Rookie

GCL Red Sox

Gulf Coast League

Ralph Treuel

[23][24]



References


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  • Season standings: American League East Standings on ESPN.com


  • Game logs: Boston Red Sox Game Log on baseball-reference.com


  • Batting Statistics: Boston Red Sox Batting Stats on ESPN.com


  • Pitching Statistics: Boston Red Sox Pitching Stats on ESPN.com

  • 2003 Boston Red Sox season at baseball-almanac.com






  1. ^ ab "2003 MLB Summary". Baseball-Reference. Retrieved August 22, 2015..mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit}.mw-parser-output q{quotes:"""""""'""'"}.mw-parser-output code.cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration{color:#555}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration span{border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-right{padding-right:0.2em}


  2. ^ "Red Sox announce 2004 Major League coaching staff". Boston Red Sox. January 9, 2004. Retrieved August 7, 2017.


  3. ^ "MLB Team Hitting Statistics". MLB.com. Retrieved August 7, 2017.


  4. ^ ab Shpigel, Ben (November 1, 2005). "Red Sox General Manager Ends a Memorable Run". The New York Times. Retrieved April 21, 2010.


  5. ^ Brandon Lyon Statistics and History - Baseball-Reference.com


  6. ^ Chris Coste Statistics – Baseball-Reference.com


  7. ^ Wayne Gomes Statistics and History - Baseball-Reference.com


  8. ^ Ramiro Mendoza Statistics – Baseball-Reference.com


  9. ^ Bill Mueller Statistics and History - Baseball-Reference.com


  10. ^ David Ortiz Statistics – Baseball-Reference.com


  11. ^ Kevin Millar Statistics and History - Baseball-Reference.com


  12. ^ Bill Haselman Statistics and History - Baseball-Reference.com


  13. ^ Gabe Kapler Statistics – Baseball-Reference.com


  14. ^ Freddy Sanchez Statistics and History - Baseball-Reference.com


  15. ^ Nowlin, Bill; Silverman, Matthew (June 28, 2016). Red Sox by the Numbers: A Complete Team History of the Boston Red Sox by Uniform Number. Sports Publishing. ASIN B01GNC7FQA.


  16. ^ "2003 ALCS Game 1 – Boston Red Sox vs. New York Yankees". Retrosheet. Retrieved July 1, 2008.


  17. ^ "2003 ALCS Game 2 – Boston Red Sox vs. New York Yankees". Retrosheet. Retrieved July 1, 2008.


  18. ^ "2003 ALCS Game 3 – New York Yankees vs. Boston Red Sox". Retrosheet. Retrieved July 1, 2008.


  19. ^ "2003 ALCS Game 4 – New York Yankees vs. Boston Red Sox". Retrosheet. Retrieved July 1, 2008.


  20. ^ "2003 ALCS Game 5 – New York Yankees vs. Boston Red Sox". Retrosheet. Retrieved July 1, 2008.


  21. ^ "2003 ALCS Game 6 – Boston Red Sox vs. New York Yankees". Retrosheet. Retrieved July 1, 2008.


  22. ^ "2003 ALCS Game 7 – Boston Red Sox vs. New York Yankees". Retrosheet. Retrieved July 1, 2008.


  23. ^ Johnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, ed., The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, 3rd edition. Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America, 2007


  24. ^ Baseball America 2004 Annual Directory












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