Keeping Up With The Jones (And Garcias, Smiths, Etc)

Earlier this month, Joe of The Shlabotnik Report had a post where he took the most common surnames and determined who were the greatest Mets players with those surnames. It was a fun post and I couldn't help but think of who the Red Sox counterparts were. So now of course I'm writing a post with my findings as well.

Joe used the 10 most common surnames in the 2010 U.S. Census, plus a bonus surname (Ramirez) since the idea came from an article debating who the greatest Ramirez was in Guardians History (I'm guessing Jose or Manny!). I'll be doing the same.

1. Smith

1971 Topps #305 Reggie Smith

 

No offense to Hall Of Fame reliever Lee Smith, who spent parts of 3 seasons in Boston, but the greatest Smith in Red Sox history was easily Reggie Smith. Reggie spent the first 8 seasons of his career in Boston, where he won a Gold Glove, made 2 All-Star teams, and had a 4-year stretch where he got MVP votes.

2. Johnson

1983 TCMA 1944 Play Ball
#10 Bob Johnson

 

"Indian Bob" Johnson was an 8 time All-Star who finished his career playing in Boston in 1944 and 1945 (He made the All-Star team both of those years). When he retired, his 288 career home runs ranked 8th all-time! (If you're curious, he's 174th all-time now).

 

3. Williams

1957 Topps #1 Ted Williams

 

Who else but Ted? One of the greatest to ever play the game, Ted Williams isn't just the greatest Williams to play for Boston, but in MLB history. 

 

4. Brown

1975 TCMA 1946 Boston Red Sox
#NNO Mace Brown

 

Among the half-dozen Browns to have played for the Red Sox, there wasn't any standout players. The nod here goes to Mace Brown, the only one to play more than 100 games for the team. He also deserves the nod for spending over 40 years with the Red Sox as a scout and coach. He was the Red Sox scout who discovered a young slugger by the name of Jim Rice.

5. Jones

1991 Conlon Collection TSN
#140 Sam Jones ('16CH)

 

"Sad Sam" Jones won two World Series Championships in Boston (1916 and 1918). He was part of the trade that sent Hall of Famer Tris Speaker to Cleveland.

6. Garcia

2024 Topps #359 Luis Garcia

 

In the 124 seasons the Red Sox have been in existence, they have never had a player with the surname of Garcia until this past trading deadline when they made a trade with the Angels for relief pitcher Luis Garcia.

 

7. Miller

1984 Fleer #403 Rick Miller

 

Rick Miller spent 12 of his 15 season over two stints with the Boston Red Sox. His biggest Boston claim to fame is marrying Carlton Fisk's sister.

8. Davis

2024 Choice El Paso Chihuahuas
#03 Austin Davis

 

"Davis" has appeared on the back of a Red Sox uniform three times, but unfortunately,  none of them played well. The best Davis is reliever Austin Davis, who not only played the most games of the three, but also has the best nickname ("Big Fudge").

9. Rodriguez

2019 Topps #461 Eduardo Rodriguez

 

Eduardo Rodriguez was a member of the 2018 World Series Champions and spent a total of 7 season with the Red Sox. He won 19 games for the team in 2019.

10. Martinez

2005 Ultra #69 Pedro Martinez

 

This group is led by a trio of great players. Catcher Victor was an All-Star in 2010. Hitter extraordinaire J.D. became the first hitter to win a Silver Slugger Award at two positions in the same season. The greatest Martinez however could only be Pedro, the Hall of Famer who won 2 Cy Young awards in Boston and helped break "The Curse". 

 

Bonus: Ramirez

2008 Topps
#26 Manny Ramirez (PSH, ALS)

 

Manny may not be the greatest Ramirez to have played in Cleveland, but he's easily the greatest to have played in Boston. 

Thanks for the idea Joe! Hopefully other bloggers will do other teams!