The 1945 Boston Red Sox season was the 45th season in the franchise's Major League Baseball history. The Red Sox finished seventh in the American League (AL) with a record of 71 wins and 83 losses, games behind the Detroit Tigers, who went on to win the 1945 World Series.
Offseason Prior to 1945 season: Tom Poholsky was signed as an amateur free agent by the Red Sox.Tom Poholsky page at Baseball Reference November 13, 1944: The Athletics sell catcher Bob Garbark to the Louisville Colonels for an undisclosed sum.
Regular season April 1945: At the urging of Boston City Councillor Isadore H. Y. Muchnick and with the active involvement of noted African American journalist Wendell Smith, General Manager Eddie Collins allowed three players from the Negro leagues to try out for the Red Sox. The players included Sam Jethroe from the Cleveland Buckeyes, Marvin Williams from the Philadelphia Stars, and Jackie Robinson from the Kansas City Monarchs.Opening Day: The Story of Jackie Robinson's First Season, p. 136, Jonathan Eig, Simon & Schuster, 2007, New York, August 14, 1945: Handicapped Washington Senators coach Bert Shepard pitched in a game against the Red Sox. Shepard, who had an artificial leg, managed to give up only one run in five innings to the Red Sox.Great Baseball Feats, Facts and Figures, 2008 Edition, p.193, David Nemec and Scott Flatow, A Signet Book, Penguin Group, New York,
Transactions
May 25: The Chicago Cubs claim outfielder Lloyd Christopher off of waivers from the Red Sox. May 28: The Cincinnati Reds claim pitcher Joe Bowman off of waivers from the Red Sox. May 31: The Philadelphia Phillies claim pitcher Oscar Judd off of waivers from the Red Sox. June 16: Dolph Camilli announces that he has signed for the Red Sox to play as first baseman. July 27: The St. Louis Browns purchase Lou Finney from the Red Sox.
Season standings
Record vs. opponents
Opening Day lineup 16 Ben Steiner 2B 2 Catfish Metkovich 1B15 Pete Fox RF 8 Bob Johnson LF 4 Joe Cronin 3B11 Leon Culberson CF 6 Skeeter Newsome SS26 Fred Walters C31 Rex Cecil P
Roster 1945 Boston Red Sox Roster Pitchers
Catchers
Infielders Outfielders
Other batters Manager
Coaches (Third base)
(First base)
Player stats
Batting
Starters by position 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 Bob Garbark 68 199 52 .261 0 17 1B George Metkovich 138 539 140 .260 5 62 2B Skeeter Newsome 125 438 127 .290 1 48 SS Eddie Lake 133 473 132 .279 11 51 3B Jackie Tobin 84 278 70 .252 0 21 OF Leon Culberson 97 331 91 .275 6 45 OF Johnny Lazor 101 335 104 .310 5 45 OF 143 529 148 .280 12 74
Other batters 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 Tom McBride 100 344 105 .305 1 47 Ben Steiner 78 304 78 .257 3 20 Pete Fox 66 208 51 .245 0 20 Ty LaForest 52 204 51 .250 2 16 Dolph Camilli 63 198 42 .212 2 19 Jim Bucher 52 151 34 .225 0 11 Billy Holm 58 135 25 .185 0 9 Fred Walters 40 93 16 .172 0 5 Red Steiner 26 59 12 .203 0 4 Frankie Pytlak 9 17 2 .118 0 0 Loyd Christopher 8 14 4 .286 0 4 3 8 3 .375 0 1 Nick Polly 4 7 1 .143 0 1 Lou Finney 2 2 0 .000 0 0
Pitching
Starting pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G IP W L ERA SO Dave Ferriss 35 264.2 21 10 2.96 94 Jim Wilson 23 144.1 6 8 3.30 50 Emmett O'Neill 24 141.2 8 11 5.15 55 Randy Heflin 20 102.0 4 10 4.06 39 Otey Clark 12 82.0 4 4 3.07 20 Rex Cecil 7 45.0 2 5 5.20 30 Joe Bowman 3 11.2 0 2 9.26 0 Clem Dreisewerd 2 9.2 0 1 4.66 3
Other pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G IP W L ERA SO Clem Hausmann 31 125.0 5 7 5.04 30 Mike Ryba 34 123.0 7 6 2.49 44 Pinky Woods 24 107.1 4 7 4.19 36 Vic Johnson 26 85.1 6 4 4.01 21 Yank Terry 12 56.2 0 4 4.13 28 Oscar Judd 2 6.1 0 1 8.53 5
Relief pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G W L SV ERA SO 37 4 3 3 2.62 35
Farm system
LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: LouisvilleJohnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, ed., The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, 3rd edition. Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America, 2007
References
External links 1945 Boston Red Sox team page at Baseball Reference 1945 Boston Red Sox season at baseball-almanac.com