Baylor was tough competitor
Gedman enjoyed time with Baylor
PAWTUCKET – When Don Baylor addressed the Red Sox during the 1986 season, all eyes were on him.
“When Donny spoke, you listened,” said PawSox hitting coach Rich Gedman, who was teammates with Baylor for two seasons (1986-87) and had Baylor as a hitting coach with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1992.
Baylor, the burly slugger who led the ’86 Red Sox in home runs (31), died Monday of cancer. He was 68.
During Baylor’s Red Sox tenure, which encompassed 268 games, his biggest claim to fame was belting a game-tying home run in the ninth inning of Game 5 of the 1986 American League Championship Series against the Angels. Boston was two outs away from playoff elimination. Without Baylor’s clutch poke, Dave Henderson doesn’t have a chance to hit a go-ahead two-run home run in a game the Sox ultimately won in 11 innings, 7-6.
“He was tough and a hard competitor, but he was also a wonderful human being,” Gedman said. “He was one of more respected players of his time. He was a special guy.”
Baylor was acquired by the Red Sox in a trade with the Yankees prior to the 1986 season. Beyond his contributions on the field, Baylor was a commanding presence in the Red Sox clubhouse. Teammates like Gedman fondly recall the “kangaroo court” Baylor presided over, assessing fines for whatever he deemed a transgression. In Roger Clemens’ 20-strikeout game on April 29, for example, Baylor fined Clemens $5 for giving up a single to Spike Owen of the Seattle Mariners on an 0-and-2 pitch.
“He was the guy who made sure you played the game the right way,” Gedman said. “He also made us aware of the little goals that we needed to obtain in order to get to the big goal.”
The American League Most Valuable Player for the California Angels in 1979, when he also made his only All-Star appearance, Baylor played 19 seasons in the major leagues. He played for six teams: the Orioles (1970-75), Athletics (1976), Angels (1977-82), Yankees (1983-85), Red Sox (1986-87), and Twins (1987). He returned to the Athletics in 1988 before retiring at the age of 39.
Of note, Baylor was part of a 1976 trade that sent him from Baltimore to Oakland in exchange for a slugger named Reggie Jackson. He was also hit by a pitch 244 times, which was the record. (Hall of Famer Craig Biggio, hit 285 times, is the current modern-day record-holder).
Baylor later became the inaugural manager of the expansion Colorado Rockies (1993-98), winning National League Manager of the Year honors in 1995, and also managed parts of three seasons for the Chicago Cubs (2000-02). Most recently, he was hitting coach for the Angels for 201315. One of his hitting pupils in Los Angeles was St. Raphael alum Chris Iannetta.
Backed by five shutout innings by starter Hector Velazquez and the 25th home run of the season by Bryce Brentz, the PawSox kissed a pair of dubious streaks involving the number eight goodbye on Monday night.
With a 7-0 win over Charlotte before 3,208 fans, the PawSox bid adieu to an eight-game losing streak and an eight-game slide at McCoy Stadium. Brentz hammered a three-run home run to push the home team’s lead to 5-0 in the third inning, which proved more than enough Velazquez and Edgar Olmos, who combined on a three-hitter. The shutout is the 16th of the season, which leads the International League and is one off the single-season franchise record.
Velazquez recovered nicely after taking a line drive off his right foot in the first inning to hold the Knights (46-68) in check. He struck out nine and walked two.
Olmos followed Velazquez with four scoreless innings en route to his fourth save. Brentz finished with two hits as did Tzu-Wei Lin. Pawtucket is now 55-59.
EXTRA BASES:
Outfielder Rusney Castillo is day-to-day after getting hit by a pitch in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Sunday. Good news: the X-ray came back negative. … Outfielder Anuery Tavarez (right hand inflammation) could be visiting a specialist soon. Tavarez has made three trips to the DL this season, all involving his right hand. “It’s been frustrating to see him go through the same thing over and over, but we’ve got to make sure we got on this,” Paw-Sox manager Kevin Boles said. “We’re going to have to take a hard look on it. Obviously he’s a guy with a lot of ability and it’s unfortunate. He’ll get it taken care of.” … Roenis Elias has now given up three home runs in each of his two starts. “Health-wise, the good thing is that he’s feeling good,” Boles said, “but the performance needs to improve. He knows that. He’s been leaving pitches over the plate. It looks like he needs to establish the fastball a bit better.” … Blake Swihart (left ankle inflammation) made his first professional appearance at first base on Monday, going 1-for-3 with a double in a rehab game with the Gulf Coast League Red Sox.