All FBC Team Pitching Staff

Just finished watching an excellent BC game, with Florida State holding the lead for most of the game (as high as 13 at one point) but Tyrell Blair hit the game winning shot with 3 seconds left (makes losing Sean Williams all that more palatable). This was probably one of the most exciting games in recent history.

It's time for me to unveil the pitching staff, again a couple of these pitchers were well before my time, but thanks to the miracles of expanded stats and the internet (and recollections from my dad a lifelong Sox fan), I feel pretty comfortable with these choices....

My Starting Five


1. Pedro Martinez- Possibly the best pitcher of the late 1990's, Petey put up numbers that are awesome, but even better when you consider that he was doing it in the steroid era. Winning two Cy Youngs during his seven seasons with the Sox. Two games he pitched really stick out in my memory: 1999 ALDS Game 5 where an injured Pedro pitched 6 innings of no hit ball, striking out 8 and walking only 3. The other game, a regular season game in 1999 against the Yankees. In Yankee stadium Pedro only allowed one hit against the powerful NY lineup, and struck out 17.

2. Roger Clemens- I would like to thank Dan Duquette for just letting the Rocket leave, but than again if he didn't leave we would have never gotten Pedro. My earliest memories of baseball in most ways involve Clemens. I remember when he got ejected from the 1990 ALDS against the A's, his twenty game strikeout performance against the Tigers ( I was a little too young to remember the '86 game. His success with the Blue Jays, Yankees and Astros casts a huge shadow over Danny's regime.

MEMO TO ROCKET: Please come back to Boston, you will complete our team, if you come back not only will you retire with the team you started with, but you will have a packed out crowd every game going crazy with every pitch. Not only that, but if you play for the Sox, you will solve our bullpen problem. Jonathan Papelbonbon will be able to close and everything will be happy in Red Sox Land. Please do this for me?

Sincerely,
FBC

3. Bruce Hurst- One of the most underrated pitchers for the Sox during the mid 80's, and probably one of the best left handed starters we ever had. A career ERA of 3.92, and always consistent, Bruce shined on some truly shitty Sox teams. His best season easily being 1988 when he went 18-6 with a 3.66 ERA and 188 K's.

4. Curt Schilling- 2004. I know I said I wouldn't do it, and this is the second time that I have based my entire discussion on one season, I will slap myself in the face to save you the time. Hell Curt purely made my list on his work in two games. Like Willis Reed returning after busting his leg with the Knicks, Curt's performance in the ALCS and WS was mythical. Completely tearing his ankle ligament and pitching with it stapled in place, Curt completely shut down two powerful lineups. I still get jitters watching those games on TIVO.

5. Luis Tiant- El Tiante was before my time, and I wasn't alive to ever see him pitch but looking at his body of work for the Sox, man was he nasty. He was a 20 game winner three times, a career ERA of 3.06 and one of the craziest windups in the game.


Relievers (three)

1. Bob Stanley- a two time all star, and one of the goats for the 1986 WS collapse yet Stanley was probably one of the most consistent relievers in Sox history. Finishing with a career ERA of 3.64, Stanley finished his career with the Sox.

2. Tim Wakefield- Ok so for most of his 12+ seasons with the Sox have been as a starter, I had to find a way to get Tim on this list. He has been a model of consistency and health in Boston. I felt horribly for him watching Aaron Boone hit the walk off in 2003, knowing it wasn't his fault. (Thanks Grady). He has won 135 games with the Red Sox, 3rd only to Clemens and Cy Young, yet for two seasons we couldn't find a rotation spot for him instead starting Mark Portugal and Pat Rapp.

3. NONE- Number three goes to the bullpen pitchers of the past who have completely sucked. There have been many, and as I searched for another pitcher I realized that the Sox's bullpen has been atrocious for many years in the past. I could have put Keith Foulke but he only really had one or two good years for the Sox, same thing with Lee Smith, Jeff Reardon, Jonathan Papelbon, & Tom Gordon. But for every one of these solid closers or relievers there were the BK Kim's, Heathcliff Slocumb's, & Greg Harris's. Theo hasn't shown in the past few years that he can put together a bullpen either, so I don't expect this trend to change.


Also, does anyone else find it weird that the Red Sox truck has left for spring training two days before we are going to have our first major snow storm of the winter?