Mo' Star of the Day: Trot Nixon

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I wanted to move away from those 80's Red Sox for a day (seriously, did anyone besides Roger Clemens not have a 'stache on those teams?) and bring this Mo' Tribute a little more current.

Today's Star is the original Dirt Dawg, Trot Nixon. Or, as Red Sox Nation likes to remember him as, the greatest right fielder Boston ever had because he came right before J.D. Drew. Trot was not a consistent wearer of the 'stache, usually clean shaven or be-goateed, but as you can see here, he did carry the Mo' Flame. Trot is rocking the handle bar moustache, which is often confused with the Fu Manchu. Yes, he does have a little soul patch, but this just confuses the issue more. A handle bar grows out of your face the full way down, while the Fu hangs down from the corner of your lips. The soul patch is inconsequential. Now that we got that out of the way, some fun facts:

• Trot's moustache is actually not made of hair follicles. It is all the dirt he accumulated over the years that he absorbed into his skin, bursting back out into this bad-ass style.
• Trot averaged 1.23 billion dirt particles on his uniform every year in his 12 year major league career. The only player since WW II to top that average with at least 50 games played per year was David Eckstein, who averaged 1.48 billion dirt particles per season.
• Eckstein and Trot also went head to head each season for the most grit displayed by a major leaguer. Trot led the league in '00 and '01 with 49 and 52 grits, respectively, before yielding the crown to Eckstein in '02. They traded titles for the next 4 years before they were both usurped by 5-time-defending grit champion, Dustin Pedroia.
• Other categories Trot led the league in at least once: skinned elbows ('01); skinned knees ('03); primal screams ('03 and '04); love of the game ('99); clubhouse presence ('05); right field fielding % ('05); dirtiest helmet (shared with Manny Ramirez from '00 to '06); most worn down patch of outfield grass ('99-'06); callouses ('02) (yes, I included fielding percentage in a list of absurd made up categories. I take it you can tell how I feel about fielding percentage based on this)
• Trot was almost traded for Sammy Sosa back in 2000, but the deal fell through. If I remember correctly, the Boston media was against this deal despite Sosa hitting 66 and 63 homers the previous two seasons. Let's compare Trot and Sammy from 2000-2006, Trot's last year in Boston:
• TROT - 843 games; 3350 PA; 475 R; 800 H; 180 2B; 23 3B; 118 HR; 25 SB; 400 BB; 542 SO; .278 AVG; .368 OBP; .480 SLG; .849 OPS; OPS+ 17% better than league average
• SAMMY - 831 games; 3634 PA; 581 R; 891 H; 149 2B; 9 3B; 252 HR; 10 SB; 467 BB; 825 SO; .286 AVG; .379 OBP; .583 SLG; .962 OPS; OPS+ 47% better than league average
• Trot had an unbelievable '03 ALCS against the Yankees, with 3 HR, .333 AVG and 1.179 OPS, including a 2 run HR in game 7 off Clemens.
• 2003 was his best overall year, posting an OPS+ 49% better than league average (or basically what Sosa did in the final 5 years of his career). That '03 team finished first in baseball in runs scored and routinely had Nixon batting 7th and eventual batting champion Bill Mueller batting 8th.
• Only eats meat. No carbs. No vegetables. No dairy. Only meat. That he has killed, personally. With his dirt.
• A reporter once told Trot he was the Chuck Norris of the Red Sox. He laughed so violently at the absurdity of this statement that the dirt from his uniform fell off like an avalanche and buried the reporter, who was never to be seen or heard from again. Sadly, the reporter was not named "Shaugnessy."

Let's tip our glasses to the dirtiest dawg to ever patrol the Fenway diamond, Trot Nixon. Your handle bar moustache is truly inspirational.

To conclude, here is a great clip from an episode of Seinfeld when Jerry, George and Kramer all have 'staches because George suggests they, "take a vacation from themselves." Enjoy.

Mo' Star of the Day: Luis Rivera

Please donate to prostate cancer research here: http://mobro.co/sexybostonsports 


I wanted to do a basketball player today, I really did. This site is not just called "Sexy Boston Baseball" and there are certainly some great Celtics' staches to choose from. But in light of yesterday's news that the union is going to decertify, almost ensuring the entire season is canceled, I just can't do it today.

So instead, in a panic move, you get Luis Rivera. From that same late 80's, early 90's Red Sox as Mike "Gator" Greenwell, Rivera manned the short stop position until John Valentin ascended. For some reason, Rivera has always stuck out in my head, maybe because he had a similar look to X Dad in the 80s or maybe he used to make some highlight real plays. Looking back on him now, though, it is pretty sad, because he was pretty terrible. Some fun facts (if you find bad baseball fun; I probably have a Pirate or Royals fan out there right?):

• Signed as an amateur free agent out of Puerto Rico in 1981. Puerto Rican players are no longer eligible to be signed as amateur free agents; since 1990 they have been subjected to the June draft just like American and Canadian born players.
• Was traded with John Dopson to the Red Sox for Spike Owen in 1988.
• Was a TERRIBLE hitter. In a season in which he got at least 50 plate appearances, his highest ever average was .258, OBP .318, SLG .384, OPS .702, OPS + 10% below league average, HR 8, RBI 45, walks 35, hits 107, stolen bases 4.
• He has the 46th worst OPS of any short stop since World War II with at least 2000 career plate appearances.
• As bad a hitter as he was, he may have been a worse base runner. In his career, he stole 20 total bases. But was caught 22 times. Even David Ortiz has a better success rate, with 11 steals and 7 caught stealings.
• So we've established that he can't hit or run, but what about fielding? Well, over his career he was both below average in traditional fielding stats (fielding %) and some advanced ones that we have data for (range factor). So, what would you say ya do here? He must have been a great people person.
• Despite a career that spanned 11 seasons, he only earned over $1 million in 2 of those.
• After his 1994 season with the New York Mets in which he received just 49 plate apperances, he toiled in the minors for 3 seasons before working his way back to the big leagues with the Astros for a 15 plate appearance cup of coffee in 1997. He finished his Major League career in 1998 with the Royals, the place where short stops go to die.

There's not a whole lot else to say about Rivera's playing career. Sorta inexplicable how he received so much playing time and was able to hang around until he was 34, but I guess the times were different. Depressing career for a depressing day in my sports world.

Still have no camera phone to show my own Mo Progress, but it is definitely coming together finally. You can even see it from relatively far away! I have shifted my goal from Tom Selleck to Ron Swanson after seeing last week's Parks and Recreation where Ron looks into the camera and says, "I have to file my toe nails every three weeks because they are too strong for clippers," and then gives a proud smirk. My hero.

Mo' Star of the Day: Mike Greenwell

Ol' Greenie has sort of a Steve-Martin-as-Jacques-Clouseau-in-the-horrible-Pink-Panther-remake-look here. In other words, French. Still, despite the Parisian lip coiffe, he is worthy of being recognized as our second Boston Mo' Star. Some fun facts:

• Was the heir apparent of the Red Sox left field mantle; below are the career WAR of Red Sox left fielders in chronological order (according to Baseball-Reference):
• Ted Williams: 125.3
• Carl Yastrzemski: 88.7
• Jim Rice: 41.5
• Mike Greenwell: 23.5
• Troy O'Leary: 5.5
• The only offensive category he ever led the league in was Intentional Walks, with 18 in 1988, for which he tied for the AL lead with teammate Wade Boggs. The players Greenwell most frequently batted in front of that year were Dwight Evans, Ellis Burks, and Mr. Most Feared Hitter himself, Jim Rice.
• Went to High School in Ft. Myers where the Red Sox have Spring Training. I bet he saved some serious dough not having to find a rental for February and March every year.
• Received 2 votes in his only year on the Hall of Fame ballot. Probably from a couple of moustache aficionados.
• Was famous (infamous) for a penchant for sliding into first base on close plays. Anybody who understands basic physics understands that this act actually slows down a runner, making it less likely he would be safe on a close play. Of course, the extra speed generated by his 'stache probably made it a moot point anyway.
• In 1988, Greenie finished second to Jose Canseco for MVP. At the time there was no dispute. Canseco led the way for the mighty Oakland A's, led the league in HR, RBI and SLG and had a little extra swagger with the Bash Bros routine. However, when Canseco admitted (bragged) to using steroids, Greenie became very vocal that the title should be stripped from Canseco and rewarded to him. Of course this ignores the fact that Boggs was probably the better choice all along, posting an OBP 60 points higher than Greenwell at .476, the 7th highest rate in the expansion era by anyone not named Barry Bonds.

So now you know a little bit more about Mike Greenwell and his French 'stache.

Please don't forget that these little moustache posts aren't for my health, but are to help improve the health of those suffering or at risk of prostate cancer. Please go to my Mo Page to donate anything you can: http://mobro.co/sexybostonsports

Updates of my Mo progress are coming once I find a working camera phone. Sadly, it has come in a lot slower than I thought. The goal is Tom Selleck, but right now I look more like Harris Trinsky from Freaks and Geeks:

Movember

At the request of Sexy Boston Sports’ facial hairologist Robert Boucini, I am participating in “Movember” this year. For those who don’t know what “Movember” is, here is the explanation directly from the source:

During November each year, Movember is responsible for the sprouting of moustaches on thousands of men’s faces, in the US and around the world. With their Mo’s, these men raise vital funds and awareness for men’s health, specifically prostate cancer and other cancers that affect men. Once registered at www.movember.com, men start Movember 1st clean shaven. For the rest of the month, these selfless and generous men, known as Mo Bros, groom, trim and wax their way into the annals of fine moustachery. Supported by the women in their lives, Mo Sistas, Movember Mo Bros raise funds by seeking out sponsorship for their Mo-growing efforts.

I have registered for Movember and anyone who wants to make a donation to prostate cancer research can do so at this link: http://mobro.co/sexybostonsports. Over the course of the month I will be giving updates on my ‘stache and money raised and find some awesome Boston sports moustaches to share. Today's 'stache belongs to feather haired fireballer, Dennis Eckersley.



Some fun facts about Eck:

• Eck did 2 tours of duty with the Red Sox. Eck's first run with the Sox came when he was 23 and his second when he was 43 (in 20 years between debuts he appeared to age no more than a couple years because, as they say, Eck don't crack)
• Along with John Smoltz, is the only pitcher in MLB history to have a season of 20 or more wins AND a season of 50 or more saves
• Considered the first 1 Inning closer
• A recovering alcoholic (not exactly a "fun" fact)
• Was traded for Bill Buckner in 1984 (again, not a "fun" fact)
• In 1992, won the Cy Young AND MVP Award as a reliever. As rare as this sounds, he was actually the third AL reliever to pull off the feat, all between 1981 and 1992. The voters must have been borrowing some of that sweet sweet crack from Paul Molitor.
• Of pitchers with at least 50 games pitched in a season, he has the 1st and 2nd best strike out to walk ratio, 18.33 in 1989 and 18.25 in 1990
• From 1989 to 1991 he struck out 215 batters and only walked 16, for a strike out to walk ratio of 13.44; if this were the rate for one season, it would still rank 4th best all time; for pitchers who have qualified for the ERA title (162 innings pitched; Eck threw 207 over these 3 years) it would rank first by 2.44
• In 1990 he faced 262 batters and walked 4 of them
• Still rocking the 'stache

So for me, Eck and the betterment of male health, please visit my donation page and give a little bit:  http://mobro.co/sexybostonsports.