The 1986 Boston Red Sox season was the 86th season in the franchise's

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

history. The

Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

finished first in the

American League East The American League East is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. MLB consists of an East, Central, and West division for each of its two 15-team leagues, the American League (AL) and National League (NL). This division was created before ...

with a record of 95 wins and 66 losses. After defeating the California Angels in the ALCS, the Red Sox lost the World Series to the New York Mets in seven games.

Offseason

*November 13, 1985: Bob Ojeda,

Tom McCarthy Thomas McCarthy (also Tom and Tommy) may refer to: Academia *Thomas A. McCarthy (born 1940), American professor of philosophy *Thomas J. McCarthy (born 1956), American professor of polymer chemistry at the University of Massachusetts *J. Thomas Mc ...

, John Mitchell and Chris Bayer (minors) were traded to the New York Mets for Calvin Schiraldi, Wes Gardner, John Christensen, and La Schelle Tarver. *December 11, 1985:

Mark Clear Mark Alan Clear (born May 27, 1956) is an American former two-time All Star Major League Baseball relief pitcher who played for the California Angels (1979–80, 1990), Boston Red Sox (1981–85), and Milwaukee Brewers (1986–88). He batted and ...

was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers for

Ed Romero Edgardo Ralph Romero Rivera (born December 9, 1957) is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball infielder and coach in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played for the Milwaukee Brewers, Boston Red Sox, Atlanta Braves, and Detroit Tigers. Listed ...

. * January 14, 1986: Alan Mills was selected in the first round (13th overall) of the amateur draft, but did not sign. * January 14, 1986:

Curt Schilling Curtis Montague Schilling (born November 14, 1966) is an American former Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher who is a commentator for conservative media outlet BlazeTV. He helped lead the Philadelphia Phillies to a World Series appearance ...

was selected in the second round of the amateur draft, and signed on May 30. * March 28, 1986: Mike Easler was traded to the New York Yankees for Don Baylor.

Spring training

The Red Sox held spring training at

Chain of Lakes Park Chain of Lakes Park is a baseball field in Winter Haven, Florida. The stadium was built in 1966 and holds 7,000 people. It was the spring training home of the Boston Red Sox from 1966 to 1992, after which the Red Sox moved operations to City of P ...

in Winter Haven, Florida, for the 21st season.

Regular season

The Red Sox played only 161 games, as a road game scheduled against the Milwaukee Brewers on September 24 was rained out, and was not rescheduled as it had no bearing on the divisional race.

Highlights

* On April 29 at Fenway Park, 23-year-old Roger Clemens struck out 20

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The team joined the American League as an expansion team ...

to set a major league record for a nine-inning game. * Clemens finished the regular season with 24 wins, the most by a Red Sox pitcher since

Mel Parnell Melvin Lloyd Parnell (June 13, 1922 – March 20, 2012) was a professional baseball pitcher who spent his entire Major League Baseball (MLB) career with the Boston Red Sox. Listed at and , he threw and batted left-handed. Playing career Parne ...

won 25 games in 1949.

Season standings

This was the first season since

1904 Events January * January 7 – The distress signal ''CQD'' is established, only to be replaced 2 years later by ''SOS''. * January 8 – The Blackstone Library is dedicated, marking the beginning of the Chicago Public Library syst ...

that the Yankees franchise (then known as the Highlanders) finished second in the standings to the Red Sox franchise (then known as the Americans).

Record vs. opponents

Notable transactions

* June 2, 1986: The Red Sox selected Scott Cooper in the third round of the 1986 Major League Baseball draft. * June 29, 1986: Steve Lyons was traded by the Red Sox to the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...

for

Tom Seaver George Thomas Seaver (November 17, 1944 – August 31, 2020), nicknamed "Tom Terrific" and "the Franchise", was an American professional baseball pitcher who played 20 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played for the New York Mets, Cinc ...

. * August 17, 1986: The

traded Spike Owen and Dave Henderson to the Red Sox for Rey Quiñones and players to be named later ( Mike Brown, Mike Trujillo, and John Christensen).

Opening day lineup

Source:

Alumni game

On May 17, the Red Sox held an old-timers game at Fenway, before a scheduled game with the Texas Rangers. The game—themed to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the pennant-winning 1946 Red Sox—welcomed back 19 alumni of the team and was also the first to invite non-Red Sox alumni. Besides

Ted Williams Theodore Samuel Williams (August 30, 1918 – July 5, 2002) was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played his entire 19-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career, primarily as a left fielder, for the Boston Red Sox from 1 ...

Luis Tiant Luis Clemente Tiant Vega () (born November 23, 1940) is a Cuban former Major League Baseball (MLB) right-handed starting pitcher. He pitched in MLB for 19 years, primarily for the Cleveland Indians and the Boston Red Sox. Tiant compiled a 22 ...

, and Rico Petrocelli, the day featured appearances by all three DiMaggio brothers: Joe,

Vince Vince is a given name, it is the anglicisation and shortened form of the name Vincent, as well as a surname. It may refer to: Given name People * Vince Agnew (born 1987), American football player * Vince Cable (born 1943), British politician ...

, and Dom. The umpiring crew included Hall of Fame inductee Jocko Conlan.

Illegal Firing of Tommy Harper

General Manager Haywood Sullivan, a supporter of the all-white and anti-Black

Elks Club The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks (BPOE; also often known as the Elks Lodge or simply The Elks) is an American fraternal order founded in 1868, originally as a social club in New York City. History The Elks began in 1868 as a soci ...

of Winter Haven, Florida (where the team then held spring training), would welcome the organization into the Red Sox'

clubhouse to invite the white players and white front-office personnel only to the Elks' segregated facilities. Former

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to c ...

and coach

Tommy Harper Tommy Harper (born October 14, 1940) is an American former Major League Baseball outfielder and third baseman. He played with the Cincinnati Reds (1962–67), Cleveland Indians (1968), Seattle Pilots / Milwaukee Brewers (1969–71), Boston Red S ...

spoke against this practice in 1985 and the Red Sox retaliated and fired Harper. On July 1, 1986, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission vindicated Harper and cited the Red Sox for illegal actions.

Roster

Game log

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Tigers The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is the largest living cat species and a member of the genus ''Panthera''. It is most recognisable for its dark vertical stripes on orange fur with a white underside. An apex predator, it primarily preys on un ...

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Orioles Oriole or Orioles may refer to: Animals * Old World oriole, colorful passerine birds in the family Oriolidae * New World oriole, a group of birds in the family Icteridae Music * The Orioles, an R&B and doo-wop group of the late 1940s and earl ...

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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''

Other batters

''Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in''

Pitching

Starting pitchers

''Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''

Other pitchers

''Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''

Relief pitchers

''Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''

Postseason

ALCS

World Series

Game log

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Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

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, -

Awards and honors

;Awards * Marty Barrett, ALCS MVP * Don Baylor, Silver Slugger Award (DH) *

Wade Boggs Wade Anthony Boggs (born June 15, 1958) is an American former professional baseball third baseman. He spent 18 seasons in Major League Baseball, primarily with the Boston Red Sox. He also played for the New York Yankees (1993-1997), and the Tamp ...

, Silver Slugger Award (3B), AL Player of the Month (May) * Roger Clemens, American League Cy Young Award,

American League Most Valuable Player The Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Award (MVP) is an annual Major League Baseball (MLB) award given to one outstanding player in the American League and one in the National League. Since 1931, it has been awarded by the Baseball Writers' ...

, AL Pitcher of the Month (June) *

Bruce Hurst Bruce Vee Hurst (born March 24, 1958) is an American former Major League Baseball left-handed starting pitcher. He is best remembered for his performance for the Boston Red Sox in the postseason, where he won two games while allowing only two run ...

, AL Pitcher of the Month (September) ;Accomplishments *

, American League Batting Champion, .357 *

, American League Leader, Walks (105) *

, Major League Baseball Leader, On-base percentage (.453) * Roger Clemens, American League Leader, ERA (2.48) * Roger Clemens, American League Leader, Wins (24) ;

All-Star Game An all-star game is an exhibition game that purports to showcase the best players (the "stars") of a sports league. The exhibition is between two teams organized solely for the event, usually representing the league's teams based on region or d ...

, Third Base, Starter * Roger Clemens, Pitcher, Starter * Rich Gedman, Catcher, Reserve *

Jim Rice James Edward Rice (born March 8, 1953), nicknamed "Jim Ed", is a former Major League Baseball left fielder and designated hitter. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame on July 26, 2009, as the 103rd member voted in by the BBWAA. Rice p ...

, Outfield, Reserve

Farm system

Source:

References

External links

1986 Boston Red Sox team page at Baseball Reference1986 Boston Red Sox season at baseball-almanac.com1986 ALCS Official Souvenir Program
{{Boston Red Sox

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eigh ...

Boston Red Sox seasons American League East champion seasons American League champion seasons