Youkilis Retires

Youkilis shows off hi bizarre hitting style (NYTimes)

After one season in Japan, former Red Sox corner infielder Kevin Youkilis is calling it a career.

Youkilis, known simply as Youk to Fenway Faithful, enjoyed a 10-year major league career, spending the first eight and a half of those seasons with Boston. Drafted by Dan Duquette in the eighth round of the 2001 draft, the disciplined third baseman received a new nickname--"Greek God of Walks"--from Billy Beane's Oakland A's organization. That patience would serve him well in the big leagues, where he maintained a robust .382 OBP and 12.2 BB%.

Youkilis arrived on the scene in 2004, just in time to help the beleaguered BoSox end their 86-year championship drought. He was a solid reserve on that team and the following year's squad, backing up Kevin Millar at first and Bill Mueller at third. Both left following the 2005 season, allowing Youkilis to inherit the everyday first baseman job with the Red Sox acquiring Mike Lowell, an All-Star third-sacker, in their trade for Josh Beckett.

Already 27 by that point, Youkilis was more than ready. He batted .279/.381/.429 in his first full season along with 42 doubles and a career-high 91 walks and 100 runs scored. He was even better the following year, improving from a three win player to a five win stalwart and earning his first and only Gold Glove.

More importantly, Youkilis sparked Boston to another World Series title that year. A non-factor in the '04 run with just two at-bats, he was one of the team's best hitters in '07 and proved crucial to their victory. Youk was especially lethal during Boston's come-from-behind ALCS victory over the Cleveland Indians, batting .500/.576/.929 with 14 hits, three home runs, seven RBI, and 10 runs scored. Against Colorado in the Fall Classic he capped off a terrific postseason in which he batted .388/.475/.755 with 19 hits in 14 games.

The following year, 2008, would be the best of Youk's career. He enjoyed a power breakthrough with 29 home runs--equaling his output from the previous two seasons combined--43 doubles, 306 total bases, and 115 RBI, all career highs. He also hit .312/.390/.569, made his first All-Star team, won the American League Hank Aaron Award, and finished third in the MVP race behind teammate Dustin Pedroia and Justin Morneau. Youkilis was instrumental in helping the Red Sox reach the postseason again, and enjoyed another monster LCS (1.008 OPS), but it was not enough as the Sox were outdone by the Rays in seven games.

Statistically, 2009 was just as good for Youkilis, who posted a .961 OPS and was worth 6.6 bWAR while making the All-Star team again and finishing sixth in the MVP polling. He was on track for similarly great numbers in 2010 when a torn abductor muscle in his right thumb ended his season at the beginning of August. The injury effectively marked the end of Youk's brief reign as one of the best players in baseball.

The final year of Youk's career were frustrating and tumultuous (CBSSports)

His career started heading south in 2011, his last full season with the Sox. He moved back to third base to accommodate Adrian Gonzalez but the position change likely did more harm than good, as Youkilis was again plagued by injuries during the second half. He missed 42 games in all and appeared in just 22 from August 1st on, batting a reduced .190 over that time. Had he been able to stay healthy or hit more effectively down the stretch, Boston likely would have won at least one more game and thus been spared the humiliation of its great September collapse.

In the wake of said meltdown, Youkilis lost the trust of his teammates due to suspicion that he had leaked the chicken and beer information to the press. 2012 quickly turned out to be a nightmare for him and the team, as he got off to a slow start, had his effort questioned by new manager Bobby Valentine, and spent more time on the Disabled List. In his absence rookie call-up Will Middlebrooks excelled, making Youkilis expendable in the eyes of the organization and giving them a convenient excuse to trade him away. Ben Cherington did just that, dealing Youkilis for two nobodies in return. In a fitting finale, Youkilis had two hits, including a triple, in the last game he ever played for the Red Sox.

He moved on to Chicago, where he hit better with the White Sox but not well enough to convince anybody that his glory days were coming back. That led to his signing a one-year deal with the Yankees, which turned out to be a huge bust when he got hurt yet again and appeared in just 28 games. Nobody wanted him when his contract expired, and he took off for Japan.

The end came hard and fast for Youkilis, as it does for many athletes in their early 30s. Youk was an All-Star at 32, cast-off at 33, and done at 34. It wasn't surprising he tailed off so fast given his physique and unmatched intensity. Nobody played the game harder or with more passion than Youkilis, and like a shooting star he burned out quickly. Injuries took their toll as well, but he was a great player when he did play and had a Hall of Fame peak, even if it was short-lived (three years). Though he didn't play much (barely 1,000 games) or for very long, he accomplished a hell of a lot during his all-too-brief career.

And he did it with one of the most unorthodox batting stances I've ever seen.

The Man

Stan "The Man" Musial was one of the ten best baseball players of all time, the National League's answer to Ted Williams during the 1940s and '50s. While Musial falls short of Williams as a hitter (everyone does), he was unquestionably a superior outfielder and baserunner, not to mention much kinder to St. Lo's fans and press.

Even so, Musial's career lacked the flair of his peers. He didn't make dazzling catches like Willie Mays or hit tape-measure home runs like Mickey Mantle or steal home like Jackie Robinson. He consistently hit for high averages, but never batted .400 like Williams. He swatted 475 home runs, but never topped 40 in any season or led the league in that department. He piled up 3,630 base hits, but couldn't challenge Joe DiMaggio's magical 56-game run.  His teams won three World Series, but he did not shine in the postseason the way October legends Mantle and Reggie Jackson did. Musial batted just .256/.347/.395 with one home run in his 23 Series games. He didn't have a cool nickname like "Joltin' Joe," the "Say Hey Kid" or the "Splendid Splinter."

He was simply "The Man."

It stuck because it fit; his body of work was defined by quiet, sustained excellence. As Joe Posnanski points out, he led the league in something pretty much every year. He showed up to work everyday, played hard, and gave opposing pitchers fits. He aged well, remaining productive to the very end even though his last five seasons represented a considerable drop-off from the 17 eye-popping years that preceded them.

But whereas most players remembered for their consistency (Eddie Murray, Hank Aaron, Fred McGriff) never put together that signature, standout year that jumps off the page, Musial's 1948 remains one of the greatest offensive performances a player ever had. His 10.8 bWAR led the majors that year, as did his 230 base hits, 46 doubles, 18 triples, .376 batting average, .702 slugging percentage, 1.152 OPS, 200 OPS+, 103 extra base hits, and 429 total bases (!), still the record for the integrated era. Musial received a midseason pay-raise for his outstanding performance, something that was virtually unheard of in an era when most players fought tooth and nail for every cent they earned. He recorded his 1,000th career hit in April. He crushed a two-run homer in the All-Star Game. He had five hits in a game on four separate occasions.

He was, in a word, unstoppable.

Musial breezed to his third MVP award, becoming the first National Leaguer to collect a trio of said trophies (Roy Campanella, Mike Schmidt, Barry Bonds, and Albert Pujols later joined him). Somehow, he did not win the award unanimously. Johnny Sain received five first place votes for helping lead the Boston Braves to the NL pennant and Sain's teammate, Al Dark, snagged one for his Rookie of the Year campaign.

Musial fell one home run shy of winning the Triple Crown that year. His 39 dingers placed third behind Johnny Mize and Ralph Kiner, who tied for the league lead with 40. Musial would have made it a three-way tie were it not for a rainout erasing one longball from his ledger.

Here are some more fascinating figures:

• Made 24 consecutive All-Star teams. 
• Of Musial's 3,630 hits, he pounded out 1,815 at home and 1,815 on the road
• Musial claimed seven batting titles and finished in the top five ten other times. Only Ty Cobb, Tony Gwynn, and Honus Wagner won more batting crowns
• The Man was not made of Iron like Cal Ripken Jr. and Lou Gehrig, but he was extremely durable nevertheless. He averaged 153 games played from 1943-to-1956 and led the league in the category five times
• The writers loved Musial. He received three MVP awards and totaled 6.96 award shares. Barry Bonds (9.30) was the only player to garner more MVP consideration, though Albert Pujols (6.90) is poised to pass Musial soon
• One truly remarkable stat is that of Musial's 12,717 plate appearances, only 696 ended with strike three. He didn't exceed 40 strike outs in any season prior to his forties
• Ranks second all-time in total bases and MVP shares, third in doubles, runs created, and extra base hits, and fourth in hits
• Was fortunate that he only lost one season to World War II. Hank Greenberg and Bob Feller missed nearly four full years.
• Never won the traditional Triple Crown, but won a pair of sabermetric Triple Crowns by leading the league in the triple slash stats in 1943 and 1948
• Upon retirement in 1963, Musial held or shared 17 major league records, 29 National League records and 9 All-Star Game records. He was the first player to appear in 1,000 games at two different positions, recording 1,896 in the outfield and 1,016 at first base
• Made it into the Hall of fame on the first ballot in 1969 (Roy Campanella was also inducted that year) with 93.3 percent of the vote. 23 members of the BBWAA did not believe his career was Cooperstown worthy
• My personal favorite: Stan Musial was never ejected from a game. Earl Weaver, who I just wrote about, was given the hook at least 91 times