| Boston Red Sox | |
| Season: | 1939 |
| League: | American League |
| Ballpark: | Fenway Park |
| City: | Boston, Massachusetts |
| Record: | 89–62 (.589) |
| League Place: | 2nd |
| Owners: | Tom Yawkey |
| President: | Tom Yawkey |
| General Managers: | Eddie Collins |
| Managers: | Joe Cronin |
| Radio: | WAAB (Frankie Frisch, Tom Hussey) |
| Espntn: | bos |
| Brtn: | BOS |
The 1939 Boston Red Sox season was the 39th season in the franchise's Major League Baseball history. The Red Sox finished second in the American League (AL) with a record of 89 wins and 62 losses, 17 games behind the New York Yankees, who went on to win the 1939 World Series.
In 1939, the Boston Red Sox finished 17 games behind the New York Yankees.[1] Lefty Grove won 15 games for the Red Sox while Jimmie Foxx hit .360, and had 35 home runs and 105 RBI.[1] Ted Williams made his major league debut in 1939, and batted .327 with 31 home runs. He led the American League with 145 RBIs.[1] After the first game he played against Williams, Yankees catcher Bill Dickey said about Williams, "He's just a damned good hitter."[1] On July 18, the Red Sox traded then-minor league shortstop Pee Wee Reese to the Brooklyn Dodgers, in exchange for $35,000 and two players to be named later (pitcher Red Evans and outfielder Art Parks).[2] Reese would go on to play with the Dodgers for 16 seasons, was a 10-time All-Star, and was inducted to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1984.
| 8 | CF | |
| 7 | LF | |
| 3 | 1B | |
| 4 | SS | |
| 5 | 3B | |
| 9 | RF | |
| 1 | 2B | |
| 2 | Gene Desautels | C |
| 10 | P | |
| 1939 Boston Red Sox | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roster | |||||||||
| Pitchers | CatchersInfielders | OutfieldersOther batters | ManagerCoaches (Third base) (First base) | ||||||
Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
| Pos | Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | 92 | 274 | 76 | .277 | 0 | 36 | ||
| 1B | 124 | 467 | 168 | .360 | 35 | 105 | ||
| 2B | 127 | 525 | 167 | .318 | 12 | 73 | ||
| SS | 143 | 520 | 160 | .308 | 19 | 107 | ||
| 3B | 149 | 577 | 167 | .289 | 14 | 95 | ||
| OF | 145 | 554 | 153 | .276 | 7 | 84 | ||
| OF | 137 | 589 | 183 | .311 | 0 | 56 | ||
| OF | 149 | 565 | 185 | .327 | 31 | 145 |
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
| Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 95 | 249 | 81 | .325 | 1 | 46 | ||
| 76 | 226 | 55 | .243 | 0 | 21 | ||
| 54 | 161 | 39 | .242 | 0 | 20 | ||
| 58 | 75 | 18 | .240 | 0 | 5 | ||
| 14 | 33 | 9 | .273 | 1 | 5 | ||
| 20 | 30 | 9 | .300 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 1 | 1 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 1 |
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 | 191.0 | 15 | 4 | 2.54 | 81 | |
| 31 | 151.0 | 9 | 10 | 3.56 | 53 | |
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 36 | 177.1 | 11 | 11 | 4.67 | 80 | ||
| 34 | 159.1 | 11 | 7 | 4.24 | 61 | ||
| 30 | 146.2 | 9 | 10 | 4.54 | 68 | ||
| 21 | 80.0 | 5 | 5 | 7.09 | 35 | ||
| 21 | 77.0 | 4 | 3 | 4.91 | 24 | ||
| 20 | 47.2 | 1 | 4 | 6.23 | 21 | ||
| 9 | 38.1 | 3 | 1 | 4.23 | 13 | ||
| 5 | 26.1 | 1 | 1 | 5.81 | 8 |
Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | W | L | SV | ERA | SO | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 46 | 11 | 3 | 8 | 3.70 | 43 | ||
| 48 | 8 | 3 | 6 | 4.43 | 46 | ||
| 9 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6.64 | 6 | ||
| 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7.07 | 9 | ||
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 1 |
See also: Minor League Baseball.
LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Louisville, Scranton, Canton, Elizabethton, Danville-Schoolfield
Source:[5]