The 1947 Boston Red Sox season was the 47th season in the franchise's Major League Baseball history. The Red Sox finished third in the American League (AL) with a record of 83 wins and 71 losses, 14 games behind the New York Yankees, who went on to win the 1947 World Series.
Red Sox left fielder Ted Williams won the Triple Crown, leading the AL in home runs (32), runs batted in (114), and batting average (.343).
Offseason November 1, 1946: Virgil Stallcup drafted from the Red Sox by the Cincinnati Reds in the 1946 rule 5 draft.Virgil Stallcup page at Baseball Reference November 17, 1946: Tom Poholsky was drafted from the Red Sox by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 1946 minor league draft.Tom Poholsky page at Baseball Reference March 1947: Frankie Hayes was signed as a free agent by the Red Sox.Frankie Hayes page at Baseball Reference
Regular season After a memorable 1946 season, the Red Sox added lights to Fenway Park for the first time. 1947 looked like another big year for Boston, but Boo Ferriss, Mickey Harris, and Tex Hughson all had arm trouble, and from 62 wins in 1946 they dropped to 29 in 1947. Boston finished 3rd, 21 wins less than their American League Championship season a year earlier, 14 games behind the eventual world champion New York Yankees. Joe Dobson was the top winner with 18 wins, and Ted Williams hit .343, with 32 homers and 114 RBIs, to secure his second Triple Crown.
On July 20, Hank Thompson and Willard Brown of the St. Louis Browns played against the Boston Red Sox. It was the first time that two black players appear in a major league game together since 1884.Opening Day: The Story of Jackie Robinson's First Season, p. 188, Jonathan Eig, Simon & Schuster, 2007, New York,
Season standings
Record vs. opponents
Opening Day lineup 39 Eddie Pellagrini 3B 6 Johnny Pesky SS 7 Dom DiMaggio CF 9 Ted Williams LF 1 Bobby Doerr 2B 3 Rudy York 1B14 Sam Mele RF 8 Hal Wagner C21 Tex Hughson P
Notable transactions May 20, 1947: Hal Wagner was traded to the Detroit Tigers for Birdie Tebbetts.Hal Wagner page at Baseball ReferenceBirdie Tebbetts page at Baseball Reference May 21, 1947: Frankie Hayes was released.
Roster 1947 Boston Red Sox Roster Pitchers Catchers
Infielders Outfielders Manager
Coaches (Third base) (Hitting) (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 90 291 87 .299 1 28 1B 109 404 95 .235 16 76 2B 146 561 145 .258 17 95 3B 46 168 39 .232 0 11 SS 155 638 207 .324 0 39 OF 156 528 181 .343 32 114 OF 123 453 137 .302 12 73 OF 136 513 145 .283 8 71
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 Wally Moses 90 255 70 .275 2 27 Eddie Pellagrini 74 231 47 .203 4 19 Rudy York 48 184 39 .212 6 27 60 169 39 .231 0 16 Don Gutteridge 54 131 22 .168 2 5 Leon Culberson 47 84 20 .238 0 11 Merl Combs 17 68 15 .221 1 6 21 65 15 .231 0 6 Rip Russell 26 52 8 .154 1 3 Matt Batts 7 16 8 .500 1 5 Eddie McGah 9 14 0 .000 0 2 Strick Shofner 5 13 2 .154 0 0 Frankie Hayes 5 13 2 .154 0 1 Billy Goodman 12 11 2 .182 0 1 Tom McBride 2 5 1 .200 0 0 Leslie Aulds 3 4 1 .250 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 33 228.2 18 8 2.95 110 33 218.1 12 11 4.04 64 29 189.1 12 11 3.33 119 Denny Galehouse 21 149.0 11 7 3.32 38 Tommy Fine 9 36.0 1 2 5.50 10
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 Earl Johnson 45 142.1 12 11 2.97 65 Fritz Dorish 41 136.0 7 8 4.70 50 15 51.2 5 4 2.44 35 Eddie Smith 8 17.0 1 3 7.41 15 5 12.2 0 1 9.24 6 Chuck Stobbs 4 9.0 0 1 6.00 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 Bob Klinger 28 1 1 5 3.86 12 Johnny Murphy 32 0 0 3 2.80 9 Bill Zuber 20 1 0 0 5.33 23 Al Widmar 2 0 0 0 13.50 1 1 0 0 0 4.50 1
Farm system
LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: RoanokeJohnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, ed., The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, 3rd edition. Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America, 2007
References
External links 1947 Boston Red Sox team page at Baseball Reference 1947 Boston Red Sox season at baseball-almanac.com