[The twenty-fifth in a series: I’m picking one player that I associate with a team (whether they spent the majority of their career there or not) that I would strongly consider adding to my official want lists. They may not always be superstars, or the most popular, and honestly they may not always be my favorite player from the team, but that’s what will make this fun, no?]
Before the series with the Yankees, the Cubs faced the Red Sox. If I had my act together, this post would have come first. But I don’t, and so here we are. I still don’t even have all the scans ready for the other 5 teams left, but at least this will finish off the AL East.
Red glove, too
Oil Can Boyd gets the call, which may be a surprise or underdog for many. Honestly, it’s all about the nickname. Growing up in the ’80s and collecting cards, I would see a lot of players come through those 15 card packs. Most would go on by without a second thought and nearly all would escape my terrible memory. It’s very hard to forget pulling a card of a guy named “Oil Can.” I thought, and still do think, that was so cool. I wish more players would have unique nicknames and have them put onto their cards.
Han Ram – not as catchy
Current player runner-up: Hanley Ramirez
This was a tough decision. I know Pedroia has been pretty good, but I really don’t care. I’m not a fan of Ortiz. Young guys need to show consistency first. I don’t care much about Hanley, either but someone has to make the cut.
How can you hate those eyebrows?
Retired player runner-up: Bill Buckner
I briefly thought about Mike Greenwell just because of his provision card, and Wade Boggs was not my cup of anything. Buckner may not have been with the Red Sox very long, but people obviously didn’t forget his time there. He gets a bad rap overall for that one play, but he was a solid player. And there’s a Cubs connection to run with.
The Series So Far
Angels – (tie) Jim Abbott & Vladimir Guerrero
Astros – J.R. Richard
Athletics
Blue Jays – Carlos Delgado
Braves – Steve Avery
Brewers – Bob Eucker
Cardinals – Jim Edmonds
Cubs
Diamondbacks – Randy Johnson
Dodgers – Jackie Robinson
Giants – Kevin Mitchell
Indians – Jim Thome
Mariners – Felix Hernandez
Marlins – Giancarlo Stanton
Mets – (tie) Darryl Strawberry & Dwight Gooden
Nationals/Expos – (tie) Marquis Grissom & Delino DeShields
Orioles – Adam Jones
Padres
Phillies – Mike Schmidt
Pirates – Andrew McCutchen
Rangers – Nolan Ryan
Rays/Devil Rays – Evan Longoria
Red Sox – Dennis “Oil Can” Boyd
Reds – Eric Davis
Rockies – Carlos Gonzalez
Royals
Tigers – Alan Trammell
Twins
White Sox – Paul Konerko
Yankees – Mariano Rivera
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