1912 Boston Red Sox

1912 Boston Red Sox / Franchise: Boston Red Sox / BR Team Page

Record: 105-47-2, Finished 1st in American League (1912 AL)

Clinched Pennant: September 18, 1912

World Series Champs

Managed by Jake Stahl

Ballpark: Fenway Park

History, Comments, Contributions

A plaque commemorating Boston's 1912 World Series win stands outside Fenway Park

The 1912 Boston Red Sox were one of the best major league teams ever, winning 105 games and losing only 47. It is the most wins by a Red Sox team in a season in the 20th century, as the number would not be passed until the 2018 season, but over 162 games. It was the first season in which the Sox played at Fenway Park.

The team played at least .600 ball in every month and by June 10th was in first place to stay. In league match-ups, they beat every team except the Cleveland Naps, whom they tied 11-11. The Red Sox ended up winning the pennant by 14 games over the Washington Senators.

The team was led by the magnificent effort of Tris Speaker, who hit .383, had an on-base percentage of .464 (which led the league) and a slugging percentage of .567. Speaker led the league with 53 doubles, at the time an American League record which would last until 1923 when broken by Speaker himself. He led the league in home runs with 10 and his 52 stolen bases were tops on the team.

The second best batter, in BA and OBP and SLG, was second baseman Larry Gardner, who also led the team in triples. RF Harry Hooper was second on the team behind Speaker in runs scored, while LF Duffy Lewis led the team with 109 RBI.

The most notable back-up was Olaf Henriksen, who posted a line of .321/.457/.411 and and had approximately the same performance in 1911 and 1913.

The pitchers were led by Smoky Joe Wood with a record of 34-5. Buck O'Brien and Hugh Bedient both won 20 games while Charley Hall went 15-8 and Ray Collins was 13-8. Eddie Cicotte, appearing in 9 games, went 1-3.

Player-manager Jake Stahl hit .301 at first base and managed the team to his only pennant and World Series win in his four-year major league managing career. None of his other three teams finished above .500. The year was also Stahl's last as a regular player.

In 1913 the Red Sox would drop to fourth place and ace pitcher Wood would appear in only 23 games. By 1918, Wood would be a regular outfielder playing for Cleveland. Speaker and Hooper would end up in the Hall of Fame while Gardner would have a long career, reuniting with Wood on the Cleveland Indians.

Awards and Honors

• AL Chalmers Award: Tris Speaker

Standings

American League	W	L	Pct.	GB
Boston Red Sox	105	47	.691	--
Washington Senators	91	61	.599	14
Philadelphia Athletics	90	62	.592	15
Chicago White Sox	78	76	.506	28
Cleveland Naps	75	78	.490	30½
Detroit Tigers	69	84	.451	36½
St. Louis Browns	53	101	.344	53
New York Highlanders	50	102	.329	55

<< 1911 1912 World Series 1913 >>

Red Sox over Giants (4-3-1)

Further Reading

• Bill Nowlin, ed.: Opening Fenway Park in Style: The 1912 World Champion Boston Red Sox, SABR, PHoenix, AZ, 2012. ISBN 978-1933599359
• Glenn Stout: Fenway 1912: The Birth of a Ballpark, a Championship Season, and Fenway's Remarkable First Year, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, New York, NY, 2011.
• Thomas J. Whalen: When the Red Sox Ruled: Baseball's First Dynasty, 1912-1918, Rowman & Littlefield, Lanham, MD, 2011. ISBN 978-1-56663-745-9
• "FENWAY'S FIRST TEAM: The Red Sox win the 1912 pennant", Fenwayparkdiaries.com, September 18, 1912

External Links

Account of the first game at Fenway Park on April 20