David Hamilton is the hot new prospect in the Boston Red Sox infield.
Hamilton has made his big league debut and made his presence felt behind the plate. Hamilton played in every game this season. In thirty games Hamilton has a batting average of .263. The contact hitter has also stolen 14 bags in the last 30 games.
Hamilton was drafted in the 2019 MLB draft by the Milwaukee Brewers, shortly after he would be dealt to the Worcester Red Sox, Boston’s double-A affiliate.
David Hamilton Blossomed After Inconsistent Minor League Career
For the next five years, Hamilton would have rocky and inconsistent seasons in the minors. However, he showed glimpses of a star in the making. In the 2022 and 2023 minor league seasons Hamilton would hit .256. and show off his great baserunning, stealing 57 bases in 2022.
With Hamilton being called up at the start of the 2024 season for good, he is now one of a handful of middle infielders to start for the Red Sox. Pokey Reese spent his final MLB season with the Red Sox and started 57 games at short and 18 games at second base. Prior to Reese you have to go back to the first Black player in Red Sox history, Elijah “Pumpsie” Green back in 1962, to find a notable black middle infielder for the Red Sox.
Green was the first African American player to start for the Red Sox. Green was a switch hitter who mostly played second base and would also play a significant role at shortstop as well.
Green’s career was short-lived only playing from 1959-1963, his first three seasons were with the Red Sox and then playing one season with the New York Mets. For the next sixty-two years no African American has ever played every day in the infield again for this team.
David Hamilton Making History As Black Red Sox Shortstop
This is how David Hamilton can make history. If Hamilton can prove himself in the lineup, he can make history and become just the second black player in history to play infield for the Red Sox.
Who Is Pumpsie Green?
The one thing that Green and Hamilton have in common is they both had to grind to get to the majors. Green spent most of the early years in the Negro-league, which can explain why his MLB career was short. The MLB never really got to see the greatness of Green because the game simply passed him by.
With Hamilton still being a young player, he has a lot of years to look forward to. The first five years were a grind and now he finally has the opportunity to showcase his talent. Green doesn’t have any accolades in the four seasons he played in the majors.
Hamilton, however, still has a long way to go and hasn’t even hit his stride yet.
MLBbro.com’s Chris Bolton gives Gold Glove SS JPCrawford his props for being a cornerstone piece and the hustling heart and soul of the Seattle Mariners’ rise to a playoff-caliber team.
“The Captain” rolls into its second episode with the story of how Derek Jeter had matured and was ready to become the catalyst to the reemergence of a proud franchise. Behind the hazel eyes and boyish good looks, he opens up about how he took the mantle of team leader.
“I’m very loyal as a person and a player,” Jeter said. “But loyalty one way is stupidity. When I feel like you’re trying to take advantage of me I’m done.”
He braced for the real chance of being demoted had it not been for an injury to his predecessor Tony Fernandez which he says is the only reason he wasn’t optioned to Columbus to start the 1995 season.
“In 1995 my name was the subject of a lot of trade rumors,” Jeter, who was Minor League Player of the Year at the time, recalls. “My manager Billy Evers called me and told me to splash some water on my face and come to his room early in the morning and tell me congratulations you’re going to the big leagues.”
He wasn’t active for the playoffs but was in the dugout for the 1995 American League Division Series which they lost to the Seattle Mariners. By 1996, Jeter was front and center as the leadoff hitter and solidified them as a championship team. He, Bernie Williams, Jorge Posada, and Andy Petite were blossoming into cornerstones of a dynasty and the stage was a perfect hit for him.
Jeter arrived with Joe Torre as the new manager after the Yankees cleaned house in the front office and installed Bob Watson as the team’s new general manager. Jeter felt pressure and thought he was heading back to Columbus until the incumbent shortstop Tony Fernandez broke his arm two weeks before spring training ended.
“I always loved playing in front of people, period,” Jeter said. “I don’t care if you were a scout or a fan. I felt like I was performing and the more people the better. It gave me a chance to show off. Everybody’s watching now, right!”
After the first World Series victory in 1996, Jeter became “King of New York” and was the toast of every borough, especially The Bronx and Manhattan. Within 36 months of bringing a championship to the Bronx, Jeter was the A-list celebrity whose moves were being chronicled by Page 6. His entourage included hip hop icons such as Sean “P. Diddy” Combs, and Spike Lee who were as enamored by his talent as he was to be around them.
Jeter talks openly about his discipline and focus and how Don Mattingly taught him how to be a professional on the field. However, it was Darryl Strawberry, who had his problems navigating his social life as the young player with the New York Mets, who became his off-field mentor that gave him knowledge of a night life griot who blew his chances for the Hall Of Fame by making moves off field that diluted his play on it.
The complicated relationship with Alex Rodriguez is exposed and Jeter candidly explains how their relationship went from good friends to past tense. The Yankees were a championship team while A-Rod was a myth because he was playing in Seattle where many fans on the east coast never saw him play on TV because of the time zone difference.
That Jeter was photographed for the cover of Sports Illustrated posing with his arms around the neck of Rodriguez contributed to this narrative that their friendship was eroding. A-Rod’s blunt comments about being a better player than Jeter also helped fracture ties between the two generational shortstops, especially after Jeter led the Yankees to two World Series in three years, but most experts still branded the Mariners phenom as the best player.
Rachel Hill gives her Two Cents on Seattle Mariners shortstop JP Crawford. He’s a rising #MLBbro who has Gold Gloves, but is making an early case for a Silver Slugger.
Anderson made his return to the lineup Sunday against the Tigers and was 3-for-5 in Chicago’s 10-1 win over Detroit. His return to the lineup came after being suspended for the first two games of the season due to an incident that happened last season back in September, also against Detroit.
During last season, a scuffle happened on the field between the White Sox and Tigers, where Anderson made contact with an umpire. Anderson was originally handed down a three-game suspension by the league, but after an appeal, his suspension got reduced to two games. Anderson said that he received a $10,000 fine from the league for the incident as well.
Anderson’s appearance is much needed for the White Sox, as their typical leadoff hitter, not only brings his vital energy, but his incredible ability at the plate. Last season, Anderson had a batting average of .309, with 17 home runs, and 61 RBI, earning him a 2021 All-Star appearance.
Not only is Anderson’s presence needed as a whole, but he has been known to do very well against Detroit. Over his career, Anderson has had a .350 batting average against Detroit, with 13 home runs, 55 RBI, along with an OBP of .389, and a slugging percentage of .514.
After a decent start to his career when he was called up back in 2016, Anderson really took that next step to elite company back in 2019, as had a .335 batting average, which earned him the AL batting title. In the shortened 2020 year, Anderson was able to earn the Silver Slugger Award.
Anderson has been known for being a somewhat controversial player, as back in 2019, after Anderson hit a home run against pitcher Brad Keller and the Royals, Anderson had a very noticeable bat flip, in which Keller ended up intentionally hitting Anderson on his next at bat. The result of this incident earned Keller a five-game suspension.
The bat flip was also a very controversial subject throughout the league, as many people and shows were debating on whether or not what Anderson did was breaking tradition, and unwritten rules. On one side, people were saying that Anderson was showboating, and that that style does not belong in the MLB.
On the other hand, people were saying that all Anderson was doing was having a good time, and that it is good for baseball when the players are making the game more fun and exciting. MLB has seemingly sided with Anderson on this matter, as they created and embraced the campaign “Let The Kids Play,” trying to appeal to a younger audience by promoting a more fun style of overall play, which is exactly what Anderson does.
Anderson is one of MLB’s top shortstops and one of the league’s most exciting players. One thing that you can count on for certain, whether you like it or not, Anderson will always make his presence felt.
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