The Elite Boston Red Sox Trivia Quiz

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. When Carl Yastrzemski retired from the Boston Red Sox, only one player had more home runs than him on the team. Who was this "Splendid Splinter"?

Answer: Ted Williams

Ted Williams, also known as the "Splendid Splinter," hit 521 home runs for the Red Sox. Carl "Yaz" Yastrzemski hit 452 home runs during his career with the Red Sox. Jim Rice ended up with 382 home runs with the team. Dwight Evans hit 379 home runs during his tenure with the team. David "Big Papi" Ortiz has over 300 home runs with the Boston Red Sox.

2. What player had a .406 batting average in the 1941 season for the Red Sox? He was the last to break the .400 batting average barrier in a season during the 20th century.

Answer: Ted Williams

Ted Williams hit for a .356 batting average in 1942. However, he would not play baseball for the next 3 years due to military service. He returned to baseball in 1946. Great attempts to hit .400 came close. Wade Boggs fell short in 1985 with a .368 season average. Tony Gwynn slugged a .394 season average in strike-shortened 1994. Just to note, Babe Ruth's best batting average in a season was .393 for the New York Yankees in 1923.

3. Ted Williams and Rogers Hornsby earned this prestigous Major League Baseball (MLB) Award twice. What is the name of this award?

Answer: MLB Triple Crown

The MLB Triple Crown is the award given to a player that leads a league in three categories which is home runs, batting average, and runs batted in. Ted Williams won the MLB Triple Crown in 1942 and 1947. Rogers Hornsby won his awards in 1922 and 1925.

The Cy Young Award was established in 1956 and given to only the best pitcher in the major leagues. However, the format changed in 1967, establishing one winner of the American League and one winner of the National League. The Gold Glove Award was established in 1957 to commemorate the best fielding performance at each position.

The Rookie of the Year Award was established in 1947, first for the outstanding rookie in the major leagues, then for the outstanding first-year player in each league starting in 1949.

4. In 1967, this Red Sox player won the batting Triple Crown of Major League Baseball and was the clutch player during "The Impossible Dream" season. In addition, he was the last player of the 20th century to win the award. Who was this player?

Answer: Carl Yastrzemski

The batting Triple Crown is the award given to a player who leads a league in three categories which is home runs, batting average, and runs batted in. The other players mentioned won the Triple Crown, but Miguel Cabrera won it in 2012 in the 21st century. In addition, Frank Robinson and Mickey Mantle won the award in 1966 and 1956 respectively.

5. When Roger Clemens retired he held the Boston Red Sox career strikeout record for the team with how many strikeouts while pitching for Boston?

Answer: 2,590

When Roger Clemens retired he accrued 2,590 strikeouts for Boston, he did continue accruing strikeouts for Toronto and New York ending up with 4,167 total strikeouts. The other numbers used were from Nolan Ryan that accrued 5,714 strikeouts and Steve Carlton that accrued 4,000 strikeouts during their careers.

6. What player held the single season strikeouts record for the Boston Red Sox when he retired?

Answer: Pedro Martinez

Pedro Martinez held the Red Sox single season strikeout record with 313 strikeouts when he retired. Roger Clemens is second on the list with 291 strikeouts when he retired. Tim Wakefield's best strikeout record in a season was 169. However, he held second on the Red Sox All-Time strikeout list with 2,046 strikeouts when he retired. Cy Young would accrue 210 strikeouts for his season best with the Red Sox.

7. When Jonathan Papelbon played on the Red Sox from 2005-2011, he established the most saves of all time for them, surpassing Bob Stanley on the list. How many saves did Papelbon accumulate during his tenure?

Answer: 219

Bob Stanley accumulated 132 saves during his time with Boston. Dick Radatz would accrue 104 saves and Ellis Kinder would accrue 91 saves with the team.

8. Which of the following players would make the 3,000 hit club for the Boston Red Sox?

Answer: Carl Yastrzemski

Carl Yastrzemski made the 3,000 hit club with a total of 3,419 hits. Oddly enough Ted Williams only accrued 2,654 hits and did not make the 3,000 hit club due to his military service. Jim Rice accrued 2,452 hits and Dwight Evans accrued 2,373 hits while with Boston.

9. What Red Sox member was selected as a 9 time All-Star infielder and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1986?

Answer: Bobby Doerr

Bobby Doerr wore number #1 and played second base for the Red Sox from 1937 to 1951. He was selected as an All-Star in years 1941, 1942, 1943, 1944, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1950, and 1951. The Red Sox retired his number for his elite play during his tenure with the team. Carl Yastrzemski was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1989. Ted Williams was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1966. Carlton Fisk was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2000.

10. What Red Sox Southpaw hurler took the mound in the 1918 World Series Game 1 against the Chicago Cubs? He would throw a 1-0 complete game shutout in his effort. Subsequently, the Red Sox would go on to win the series 4-2. However, then began a curse that last 86 years before they would win another World Series.

Answer: Babe Ruth

Babe Ruth would play one more season with the Boston Red Sox. However, Harry Frazee would sell Babe Ruth to the New York Yankees on 3 January, 1920. The "Curse of the Bambino" would be started as the Red Sox would not win another World Series until 2004.

The Red Sox swept the St. Louis Cardinals 4-0 to end the curse. "Bullet" Joe Bush pitched game 2 of the 1918 World Series for the Red Sox. Carl Mays pitched in game 3 of the series for Boston winning 2-1. "Sad" Sam Jones pitched in game 5 of the series for the Red Sox losing 0-3.

Source: Author SLAPSHOT4

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor stuthehistoryguy before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

The Boston Red Sox have established elite ball players during their tenure in Major League Baseball.

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