In this week's edition of Happy Birthday we tip our cap to Red Sox legend Johnny Pesky who turned 90 on Sunday. In 1942 Pesky led the league in hits, finished 3rd in the MVP voting (would have won Rookie of the Year easily if it had existed) and hit .331. He then left for 3 years of military service, but returned in '46 and picked up right where he left off. He led the league in hits for each of the next 2 seasons, helped the Sox win the pennant in '46, and hit a combined .328. He played 5 more seasons in Boston, finishing his stint with a .313 average. He would continue to be a part of the Boston organization to this day as a coach, manager, broadcaster, instructor and icon. Last season, for his lifelong contributions to the Red Sox in all of these capacities, the franchise retired #6 in his honor. Happy 90th Birthday Johnny....we look forward to your "play ball" instruction for many opening days to come!
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7 comments:
I hope he had some nice gluten free birthday cake on his b-day
What's Johnny Pesky's real last name?
Troublesome? Annoying? Bothersome? Irritating? Pesky?
Alright!
Peskovich.
His mother was furious about him changing it until people started recognizing her out and saying "Hi Mrs. Pesky".
I don't think people nowadays (myself included) have a good enough appreciation for the folks that went to serve in the military in the prime of the careers. Considering how good Pesky was when he left and when he returned it's not unreasonable to assume he missed out on 600 hits...not to mention what the service time took away from him when he returned.
The just dont make them the same as they did when Walpole Joe was a kid...
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