1952 Boston Red Sox season

The 1952 Boston Red Sox season was the 52nd season in the franchise's Major League Baseball history. The Red Sox finished sixth in the American League (AL) with a record of 76 wins and 78 losses, 19 games behind the New York Yankees, who went on to win the 1952 World Series.

1952 Boston Red Sox
League	American League
Ballpark	Fenway Park
City	Boston, Massachusetts
Record	76–78 (.494)
League place	6th
Owners	Tom Yawkey
President	Tom Yawkey
General managers	Joe Cronin
Managers	Lou Boudreau
Television	WBZ-TV, Ch. 4, and WNAC-TV, Ch. 7
Radio	WHDH-AM 850 (Curt Gowdy, Bob DeLaney, Tom Hussey)
Stats	ESPN.com Baseball Reference
← 1951 Seasons 1953 →

Spring Training

Boston Win

Boston Loss

Tie Game

1952 Boston Red Sox Spring Training Log
March: 9─10 # Date Opponent Score Record Source 1 March 8 Vs. Reds 0─5 1─0 [1] 2 March 9 Vs. Phillies 13─4 1─1 [2] 3 March 10 @ Yankees 4─7 1─2 [3] 4 March 11 Vs. Yankees 7─6 1─3 [4] 5 March 12 Vs. Cardinals 7─6 1─4 [5] 6 March 13 Vs. Senators 4─1 1─5 [6] 7 March 14 Vs. Tigers 7─5 1─6 [7] 8 March 15 Vs. Braves 12─2 1─7 [8] 9 March 16 @ Reds 10─6 2─7 [9] 10 March 17 @ Braves 1─2 2─8 [10] 11 March 19 @ Cardinals 3─2 3─8 [11] 12 March 20 @ Senators 14─8 4─8 [12] 12 March 21 @ Athletics 5─3 5─8 [13] 13 March 22 @ Dodgers 5─2 6─8 [14] 14 March 23 @ Dodgers 2─14 6─9 [15] 15 March 27 Vs. Reds 9─1 6─10 [16] 16 March 28 @ Phillies 9─7 7─10 [17] 17 March 29 @ Yankees 8─5 8─10 [18] 18 March 30 @ Barons 5─2 9─10 [19]
April: 6─2─1 # Date Opponent Score Record Source 19 April 1 @ Sports 4─2 10─10 [20] 20 April 2 @ Buffaloes 13─2 11─10 [21] 21 April 3 @ Eagles 1─1 11─10─1 [22] 22 April 4 @ Cats 9─3 12─10─1 [23] 23 April 5 @ Oilers 5─3 13─10─1 [24] 24 April 6 @ Indians 8─4 14─10─1 [25] 25 April 7 @ Athletics 6─12 14─11─1 [26] 26 April 8 Vs. Athletics 4─3 14─12─1 [27] 27 April 9 @ Cubs 6─1 15─12─1 [28]

The Red Sox also faced the Braves as a Boston-based team for the final time. At Braves Field on April 10 the Braves beat the Red Sox by a score of 5─4.^[29] At Fenway Park on April 12 the Red Sox beat the Braves by a score of 12─7.^[30]

Regular season

Season standings

• v
• t
• e

American League

Team	W	L	Pct.	GB	Home	Road
New York Yankees	95	59	.617	—	49‍–‍28	46‍–‍31
Cleveland Indians	93	61	.604	2	49‍–‍28	44‍–‍33
Chicago White Sox	81	73	.526	14	44‍–‍33	37‍–‍40
Philadelphia Athletics	79	75	.513	16	45‍–‍32	34‍–‍43
Washington Senators	78	76	.506	17	42‍–‍35	36‍–‍41
Boston Red Sox	76	78	.494	19	50‍–‍27	26‍–‍51
St. Louis Browns	64	90	.416	31	42‍–‍35	22‍–‍55
Detroit Tigers	50	104	.325	45	32‍–‍45	18‍–‍59

Record vs. opponents

1952 American League record v t e Sources:
Team	BOS	CWS	CLE	DET	NYY	PHA	SLB	WSH
Boston	—	12–10	9–13	16–6	8–14	12–10	11–11	8–14
Chicago	10–12	—	8–14–1	17–5	8–14	11–11	14–8	13–9–1
Cleveland	13–9	14–8–1	—	16–6	10–12	13–9	15–7	12–10
Detroit	6–16	5–17	6–16	—	9–13	5–17–1	8–14	11–11–1
New York	14–8	14–8	12–10	13–9	—	13–9	14–8	15–7
Philadelphia	10–12	11–11	9–13	17–5–1	9–13	—	14–8	9–13
St. Louis	11–11	8–14	7–15	14–8	8–14	8–14	—	8–14–1
Washington	14–8	9–13–1	10–12	11–11–1	7–15	13–9	14–8–1	—

Opening Day lineup

7	Dom DiMaggio	CF
6	Johnny Pesky	3B
9	Ted Williams	LF
3	Walt Dropo	1B
37	Faye Throneberry	RF
2	Jimmy Piersall	SS
17	Mel Parnell	P
12	Ted Lepcio	2B
11	Gus Niarhos	C

Notable transactions

• June 3, 1952: Walt Dropo, Fred Hatfield, Don Lenhardt, Johnny Pesky, and Bill Wight were traded by the Red Sox to the Detroit Tigers for Dizzy Trout, George Kell, Johnny Lipon, and Hoot Evers.^[31]

Roster

1952 Boston Red Sox
Roster
Pitchers 25 James Atkins 27 Al Benton 26 Ralph Brickner 24 Dick Brodowski 29 Ike Delock 28 Hersh Freeman 24 Randy Gumpert 26 Bill Henry 20 Sid Hudson 16 Ellis Kinder 20 Walt Masterson 19 Mickey McDermott 21 Willard Nixon 17 Mel Parnell 18 Ray Scarborough 23 Harry Taylor 25 Dizzy Trout 15 Bill Wight		Catchers 11 Gus Niarhos 34 Len Okrie 22 Sammy White 33 Del Wilber Infielders  8 Hal Bevan 18 Milt Bolling  4 Lou Boudreau  3 Walt Dropo 14 Dick Gernert 10 Billy Goodman  1 Fred Hatfield  1 George Kell 12 Ted Lepcio  6 Johnny Lipon 37 Charlie Maxwell  6 Johnny Pesky  2 Jimmy Piersall  5 Vern Stephens		Outfielders  7 Dom DiMaggio 31 Hoot Evers 37 Paul Lehner 31 Don Lenhardt 37 George Schmees 38 Gene Stephens  2 Faye Throneberry 30 Clyde Vollmer  9 Ted Williams 32 Archie Wilson 33 Ken Wood 32 Al Zarilla		Manager  4 Lou Boudreau Coaches 41 Earle Combs (First base) 40 Bill McKechnie (Pitching) 42 Ski Melillo (Third base) 45 Paul Schreiber (Hitting) 43 George Susce (Bullpen)

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	Sammy White	115	381	107	.281	10	49
1B	Dick Gernert	102	367	89	.243	19	67
2B	Billy Goodman	138	513	157	.306	4	56
SS	Johnny Lipon	79	234	48	.205	0	18
3B	George Kell	75	276	88	.319	6	40
OF	Faye Throneberry	98	310	80	.258	5	23
OF	Hoot Evers	106	401	105	.262	14	59
OF	Dom DiMaggio	128	486	143	.294	6	33

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
Vern Stephens	92	295	75	.254	7	44
Ted Lepcio	84	274	72	.263	5	26
Clyde Vollmer	90	250	66	.264	11	50
Jim Piersall	56	161	43	.267	1	16
Del Wilber	47	135	36	.267	3	23
Walt Dropo	37	132	35	.265	6	27
Don Lenhardt	30	105	31	.295	7	24
Johnny Pesky	25	67	10	.149	0	2
George Schmees	42	64	13	.203	0	3
Al Zarilla	21	60	11	.183	2	8
Gus Niarhos	29	58	6	.103	0	4
Gene Stephens	21	53	12	.226	0	5
Archie Wilson	18	38	10	.263	0	2
Milt Bolling	11	36	8	.222	1	3
Fred Hatfield	19	25	8	.320	1	3
Ken Wood	15	20	2	.100	0	0
Charlie Maxwell	8	15	1	.067	0	0
Ted Williams	6	10	4	.400	1	3
Paul Lehner	3	3	2	.667	0	2
Lou Boudreau	4	2	0	.000	0	2
Hal Bevan	1	1	0	.000	0	0
Len Okrie	1	1	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
Mel Parnell	33	214.0	12	12	3.62	107
Mickey McDermott	30	162.0	10	9	3.72	117
Sid Hudson	21	134.1	7	9	3.62	50

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
Dizzy Trout	26	133.2	9	8	3.64	57
Dick Brodowski	20	114.2	5	5	4.40	42
Willard Nixon	23	103.2	5	4	4.86	50
Ellis Kinder	23	97.2	5	6	2.58	50
Ike Delock	39	95.0	4	9	4.26	46
Ray Scarborough	28	76.2	1	5	4.81	29
Bill Henry	13	76.2	5	4	3.87	23
Bill Wight	10	24.1	2	1	2.96	5
Hersh Freeman	4	13.2	1	0	3.29	5
James Atkins	3	10.1	0	1	3.48	2
Harry Taylor	2	10.0	1	0	1.80	1
Walt Masterson	5	9.1	1	1	11.57	3
George Schmees	2	6.0	0	0	3.00	2

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
Al Benton	24	4	3	6	2.39	20
Ralph Brickner	14	3	1	1	2.18	9
Randy Gumpert	10	1	0	1	4.12	6

Farm system

See also: Minor League Baseball

Level	Team	League	Manager
AAA	Louisville Colonels	American Association	Pinky Higgins
AA	Birmingham Barons	Southern Association	Al Vincent and Red Mathis
A	Albany Senators	Eastern League	Jack Burns
B	Roanoke Ro-Sox	Piedmont League	Owen Scheetz
C	San Jose Red Sox	California League	Red Marion
D	High Point-Thomasville Hi-Toms	North Carolina State League	Jim Gruzdis

References

1. Hurwitz, Hy (March 9, 1952). "Rookie Brickner Impressive in Bow". The Boston Globe. p. 48.
2. Hurwitz, Hy (March 10, 1952). "Hose Walloped, 13-4; Oppose Yankees Today". The Boston Globe. p. 9.
3. Hurwitz, Hy. "Mize Doubles in Clutch for Champs". The Boston Globe. p. 9.
4. Hurwitz, Hy (March 12, 1952). "Boudreau's Batting Order Shifts Faring Better Than His Pitchers". The Boston Globe. p. 12.
5. "Doorman Gorman". The Boston Globe. March 13, 2004. p. 27.
6. Hurwitz, Hy (March 14, 1952). "Red Sox Send Umphlett, Six Others to Minors". The Boston Globe. p. 35.
7. Hurwitz, Hy (March 15, 1952). "Red Sox to Use Regulars Against Braves Today". The Boston Globe. p. 5.
8. Holbrook, Bob (March 16, 1952). "Braves Trample Hapless Sox in Series Opener, 12-2: Bickford, Wilson Hold Hose in Check; St. Claire, Rookies Stand Out for Tribe". The Boston Globe. p. 48.
9. Hurwitz, Hy (March 17, 1952). "Dropo, Williams Homer as Hose Shake Slump". The Boston Globe. p. 9.
10. Barry, Jack (March 18, 1952). "Jethroe Paces Braves Over Sox, 2 to 1: Tribe Speedster Twice Cathces Hose Off Guard". The Boston Globe. p. 5.
11. Hurwitz, Hy (March 20, 1952). "Red Sox Beat Cardinals on Stephens' 3-Run Homer, 3-2: Mizell Baffling to Hose Batsmen". The Boston Globe. p. 20.
12. Hurwitz, Hy (March 21, 1952). "JV's Rescue Sox, Thump Nats, 14 to 8". The Boston Globe. p. 29.
13. Holbrook, Bob (March 22, 1952). "Red Sox Beat A's, 5-3, After Shantz Retires". The Boston Globe. p. 5.
14. "Teddy's Ready". The Boston Globe. March 23, 1952. p. 46.
15. "Let's Buy Him!". The Boston Globe. March 24, 1952. p. 9.
16. Barry, Jack (March 28, 1952). "Reds in 9 to 1 Romp Over Lackluster Sox". The Boston Globe. p. 19.
17. Birtwell, Roger (March 29, 1952). "Sox Call on Kinder 2d Day in Row, Stave Off Phils 9-7: Williams, Pesky Homer; Foe Shells Wight in 7th". The Boston Globe. p. 4.
18. Barry, Jack (March 30, 1952). "Williams Wallops Homer as Sox Defeat Yanks, 8-5". The Boston Globe. p. 45.
19. Barry, Jack (March 31, 1952). "Dropo Wallops Long Homer as Sox Defeat Barons, 5-2". The Boston Globe. p. 9.
20. Barry, Jack (April 2, 1952). "Lenhardt and Stephens Homer in 4-2 Sox Win". The Boston Globe. p. 13.
21. Barry, Jack (April 3, 1952). "Dropo Slugs as Sox Romp; Henry's Pitching Impresses". The Boston Globe. p. 10.
22. Barry, Jack (April 4, 1952). "Spring Games Pay to Top That of Marines, Says Ted". The Boston Globe. pp. 1 & 37.
23. Barry, Jack (April 5, 1952). "Dropo Clouts Grand Slam; Red Sox Beat Texans, 9-3". The Boston Globe. p. 6.
24. Birtwell, Roger (April 6, 1952). "Williams' Homer Gives Sox 5-3 Win". The Boston Globe. p. 46.
25. Barry, Jack (April 7, 1952). "Williams, Dropo Hit Two Homers Apiece". The Boston Globe. p. 7.
26. Barry, Jack (April 8, 1952). "5 Sox Homers Not Enough as A's Romp, 12-6". The Boston Globe. p. 9.
27. Barry, Jack (April 9, 1952). "200 Fans Greet Sox at Airport". The Boston Globe. p. 11.
28. "Vollmer, Dropo Homer; Sox Beat Springfield, 6-1". The Boston Globe. April 10, 1952. p. 28.
29. Barry, Jack (April 11, 1952). "Braves Clinch First City Series Since '45, Beat Sox, 5-4: Stephens Bats in All Losers' Runs; Marshall's Double Wins for Spahn". The Boston Globe. p. 8.
30. Mack Jr., Gene (April 13, 1952). "Williams' 2 Homers beat Braves 12─7: Rookies White, Gernert, Throneberry Also Star for Sox; Jethroe Homers". The Boston Globe. p. 54.
31. Walt Dropo page at Baseball Reference

External links

• 1952 Boston Red Sox team page at Baseball Reference
• 1952 Boston Red Sox season at baseball-almanac.com