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James Edward Rice

Born: March 8, 1953, Anderson, SC  Height: 6'2"  Weight: 210  Bats: Right  Throws: Right  
Position: Left field 1974-89; Hitting coach 1995-2000  #14  


Jim Rice


Jim Rice's days with the Red Sox began in 1971, when he was the team's first round pick in the June draft.  He went on to play sixteen major league seasons for the Sox, making the All-Star Team eight times, and winning the American League M.V.P. in 1978.  In 1992, "Jim Ed" was named roving minor league hitting coach in the Red Sox organization, and in 1995 he became the hitting coach for the big league club.  Respected by teammates, opponents, and fans (and my first favorite player!), Jim Rice easily followed the footsteps of his left field predecessors Ted Williams and Carl Yastrzemski into Red Sox lore. In 2009, he followed Ted and Yaz once more, when he was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.


Career Stats

AVGGABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSOSB
 1974  Boston .269 24 67 18 13 12 
1975Boston.309 144 564 92 174 29 22 102 36 122 10 
1976Boston.282 153 581 75 164 25 25 85 28 123* 
1977Boston.320 160 644 104 206 29 15 39* 114 53 120 
1978Boston.315 163* 677* 121 213* 25 15* 46* 139* 58 126 
1979Boston.325 158 619 117 201 39 39 130 57 97 
1980Boston.294 124 504 81 148 22 24 86 30 87 
1981Boston.284 108 451* 51 128 18 17 62 34 76 
1982Boston.309 145 573 86 177 24 24 97 55 98 
1983Boston.305 155 626 90 191 34 39* 126** 52 102 
1984Boston.280 159 657 98 184 25 28 122 44 102 
1985Boston.291 140 546 85 159 20 27 103 51 75 
1986Boston.324 157 618 98 200 39 20 110 62 78 
1987Boston.277 108 404 66 112 14 13 62 45 77 
1988Boston.264 135 485 57 128 18 15 72 48 89 
1989Boston.234 56 209 22 49 10 28 13 39 
M.L. Totals .298 2089 8222 1249 2452 373 79 382 1451 670 1423 58 

* Led league
** Tied for league lead

Career Notes

•  Jim had an excellent year with AAA Pawtucket in 1974. He won the International League triple crown with a .337 average, 25 home runs, and 95 RBI. He was chosen as the International League M.V.P. and Rookie of the Year, and the minor leagues' Player of the Year. He made his major league debut in August of 1974.

Rice's 1989 card •  He batted .309 in his rookie year of 1975, with 22 home runs and 102 RBI. His offense helped the team capture the 1975 A.L. pennant. Unfortunately, he broke his hand in one of the last few games of the season, and was unable to play in the playoffs or World Series that year.

•  Jim was chosen to play in his first All-Star game in 1977. It was the first of eight All-Star selections, including 1978, 1979, 1983, and 1985, when he was voted in as a starter.

•  On August 29, 1977, Jim Rice hit three home runs. His only other three-homer game came exactly six years later, on August 29, 1983.

•  In 1977, he led the league with 39 home runs. He also had 206 hits, marking the first of three consecutive years with at least 35 homers and 200 hits. He was the first player ever to have accomplished that feat. He also led the league in total bases for three straight years, becoming only the third A.L. player - after Ty Cobb and Ted Williams - to do so.

•  Rice had an even better year in 1978, leading the majors in several categories, including hits (213), home runs (46), RBI (139), triples (15) and slugging percentage (.600) - enough to make him an easy choice for the American League M.V.P.

•  In 1983, he had 21 outfield assists, becoming the first Red Sox player to record over 20 since 1944.

•  He finished third in M.V.P. balloting in 1986, when he finished the season with a .324 average, 200 hits, 20 home runs, and 110 RBI.

•  Jim Rice hit over 20 homers in 11 seasons, topped 100 RBI eight times, and had four 200-hit seasons. He ended with 382 homers, third on the all-time Red Sox list, behind Ted Williams and Carl Yastrzemski. On the all-time Red Sox leaders list, he places third in home runs, RBI, hits, at-bats, and total bases; fourth in runs scored and extra-base hits; fifth in slugging percentage; and sixth in doubles and triples.

•  Jim was inducted into the Red Sox Hall of Fame in 1995, the year it opened.

•  From 1995 to 2000, Rice served as hitting coach for the Red Sox. The team hit .284 in the first four years since he joined, after hitting only .260 in the four years prior to his arrival. In 1996, they hit 209 home runs, the second highest total in Sox history.

•  Jim was selected as a coach for the 1999 All-Star Game, held at Fenway Park. He participated in the celebrity hitting contest, and delighted the crowd by knocking several balls off the Wall and several more over it, as he led his team to victory.

•  On July 26, 2009, Jim Rice was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. He is only the fourth Hall-of-Famer, joining Ted Williams, Carl Yastrzemski, and Bobby Doerr, to have played his entire career for the Red Sox. Two days after his Hall of Fame induction, Rice's uniform #14 was retired by the Red Sox.


Me and Jim Rice
I met Jim Rice at Fenway Park in 2005.


Before and After

Red Sox team hitting statistics before the arrival of Jim Rice as hitting coach:
(Season average for 1991 - 1994)

Team average per season, 1991-1994ABRH2B3BHRRBIAVGOBPSLGBBK
5107642133027624111606.260.331.389524820

Red Sox team hitting under Jim Rice's instruction:
(Yearly statistics since 1995)

ABRH2B3BHRRBIAVGOBPSLGBBK
  1995  4997791139928631175754.280.357.455560923
 1996 5756928163130831209882.283.359.4576421020
 1997 5783851168437332185810.291.352.4635141045
 1998 5620878157233935205829.280.347.4625411055
 1999 5579836155133442179808.278.350.448597928
 2000 5630792150331632167755.267.341.4236111019



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