Tag: Luis Tiant

If the Red Sox Got Into Giant Headed Mascot Racing, Who Are Your Top Choices?

By on • ( Leave a comment )

GREAT question here, Joe. Now lets not just leave this to former Red Sox players though; thats too narrow. While I get what Joe is saying about Cheers, I am throwing that idea in the trash, respectfully of course. So any former Sox player or famous Bostonian is up for grabs in this poll. Here are some of the top Boston guys that I think would be A+ giant headed mascots

  • Trot Nixon

I cannot picture anything funnier than one of those abominations running around Fenway with the dirtiest gigantic hat ever made.

  • Kevin Youkilis

Youk would probably be the most easily recognizable giant headed mascot in the game with a 3 foot tall goatee.

  • Nomar Garciaparra

Once the sports book opens at the Wynn in Everett (lets go Mayor Walsh) I would HAMMER the moneyline on Nomah winning this race 5 nights a week.

  • Pedro Martinez

He would have a slight disadvantage though because a giant headed Pedro mascot would need to be taped to a poll as part of the costume.

  • Luis Tiant

El Tiante with a cigar the size of a pool noodle would be a dark horse candidate in every race.

  • Bill Burr

The angriest giant headed mascot you’ll ever see. Would never win shit because he is a comedian, not a track star, but Old Billy Red Balls would be a fan favorite for sure.

  • Ben Affleck/Matt Damon

They can’t have one without the other. Would be required they run the race as a three legged man.

  • Doug Flutie

The man is a damn legend. Forget the hail mary TD, the guy completed a drop kick in a live NFL game. My family literally has a framed picture of that shit in the basement. True story.

Who ya got? Tweet your best answers to me @The300sBoston so I can debate you on mascots instead of being productive in the cube.

Close But No Cigar For El Tiante

By on • ( Leave a comment )

Lost in between the news of Giancarlo Stanton’s trade to New York and the Patriots tough defeat in Miami over the last few days was the fact that Luis Tiant was up for election to the Baseball Hall of Fame again. Unfortunately for Tiant and his fans, his Hall of Fame candidacy came up short once again. Looking at his numbers, though, that’s the right call.

Tiant played for 19 seasons, but only received Cy Young Award votes on three occasions and never took the award home. He didn’t receive any Cy Young Award votes after arguably his best season, 1968, but that had more to do Denny McLain going 31-6 and pitching 28 complete games. Tough luck for Tiant I suppose, but he had some pretty lean years too. He went 9-20 a year later in 1969 and got off to a rocky start in Boston in 1971.

Looking at all of his seasons on Baseball-Reference.com, Tiant had some great years and some not so great years but was generally a pretty good pitcher for 17 years. He was a big part of a very fun time in Red Sox history and is rightfully a member of the Red Sox Hall of Fame. Unfortunately, that doesn’t get you into Cooperstown. You can be brilliant over a shorter career – Sandy Koufax, Pedro – or you can compile stats over a longer career – Nolan Ryan, Tom Glavine – but Tiant gets caught in between in no man’s land.

The fact that baseball fans and writers have been debating Tiant’s Hall of Fame resume for literally 30 years is a great example of how broken the voting system is.  At least it appears to have gotten this one right.

Check back later this month for my mock Hall of Fame ballot.  You can see who I would’ve voted for last year here.