Dwight Evans: Hall of Fame Individual
Dwight Evans is one of the most beloved players in Red Sox history. Known for his class and dignity almost as much as for what he did on the field, the man affectionately known as “Dewey” played more games in a Red Sox uniform than anyone except Carl Yastrzemski. A member of the star-crossed 1975 and 1986 teams, he also played in some of Boston’s most-memorable games.
An underrated hitter throughout much of his career, Evans hit .272/.370/.470, with 385 home runs, and no player in baseball had more extra-base hits during the decade of the 1980s. Widely regarded as he best defensive right fielder of his era, he won eight Gold Gloves. Bill James has called him “one of the most-underrated players in baseball history.”
As good as he was between the lines — his numbers compare favorably to several players enshrined in Cooperstown — Dwight Evans has been an even better husband and father.
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Evans, on The Catch [1975]
“It was the eleventh inning, and Ken Griffey was on first base. At the time, he was probably the fastest guy in the game. Joe Morgan is batting, and I’m thinking all kinds of scenarios: `What if he hits it over my head? What if he hits it in the gap?’ I’m thinking that I have to go into the stands to catch it if I have to, because if we lose, there’s no tomorrow. All of these scenarios are going through my head.
“All great plays are actually made in your mind before they’re made in real time. You have to anticipate. A player like Ozzie Smith, with all the great plays that he made, was thinking about making them before they even happened. That’s what I would do in right field.
“When Morgan hit the ball, it came right at me, but over my head. Normally a ball like that will start curving toward the right-field line, going from my right to my left, so I would always go toward the line a little bit when I was running back. This ball did not curve.
“When I watch replays, I see that the ball was kind of out over the plate. Had it been more middle-in, he would have hooked it; but he didn’t hook it. He hit down on it and it stayed straight. I’m turned and faced the right-field line, running straight back, and the ball isn‘t curving, it‘s actually getting behind me. I’ve gone too far.
“If I had 10,000 balls hit at me in right field, 9,997 of them curved toward the line. This one stayed straight. There were only two other guys where that ever happened to me in the outfield. One was Tony Oliva, and his [ball] actually went the other way — toward center field. The other was Cecil Cooper. Those were the only balls that were ever hit to me like that
“I‘m going back — the ball is behind me — and I actually lose sight of it. I lost the ball. I jumped up and threw my glove behind my head. That’s why I looked so awkward. I lost it for a split second. That’s a scary moment in any player’s mind. Somehow, the ball landed in my glove. I was surprised.
[Reds backup catcher] Bill Plummer was in the visiting bullpen, and he said the ball would have landed two or three rows back. The fence back there is low, about three feet high, and he said it would have cleared it had I not caught the ball.
“After I caught it, I turned around to throw the ball. I remember that Fisk was interviewed after he hit his home run in the 12th inning. They said, ‘How about that catch by Evans?’ He said, ‘Oh yeah, it was a great catch, but the throw was lousy.’
“As I spun back around, the first thing I looked into was the lights. It was just like looking into the sun for a split second, like a sudden flash in your eyes. I threw it in the direction of first base and it was off by about 20 feet. Yaz caught the ball and flipped it over to Rick Burleson, who came over to cover first. It was a double play. It was a big play. It wasn’t the best catch I ever made, but it was the most important catch I ever made.”
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On Bill Buckner and Hendu’s Homer [1986]
“We were very confident going into Game Seven. Game Six was behind us. There wasn’t even a thought beyond the fact that we were going into a new game, a game that we wanted to win very badly.
“I homered in the second inning, off of Ron Darling, to put us up 1-0. It was a bomb that went over everything in left-center. Later, I hit a big double with none out in the eighth inning that scored two runs. We were still behind [6-5] but it made me the tying run and I was in scoring position. Rich Gedman then hit a line-drive to the second baseman. He hit the ball hard, but it didn’t move me over; I was still stuck at second base. Don Baylor was up next and hit a fly ball that would have scored me easily, for the tying run, had I been on third. I ended up stranded, and they hung on to win the game and the series.
“Afterwards, when I would travel, people would come up to me and say what a great World Series it was. At first, I would think, ‘What, are you nuts?’ But once time went by and I was able to look at it from a different perspective, I was able to appreciate what it was like for baseball fans — fans of teams other than the Red Sox or Mets — to watch that comeback in the sixth game, and then an exciting seventh game. It was a phenomenal series.
“Game Six was like Game Five of the [American League] playoffs, when we beat the Angels. That was when Dave Henderson hit a game-saving home run with two out in the ninth inning. I remember seeing [former Angels catcher] Bob Boone that winter. Bob said that he was watching on TV when the ball went through Bill Bucker‘s legs, and he jumped up and yelled, ‘How does that feel? how does that feel?’ What happened to us is what had happened to them. They had been one out away. As much as it killed us to lose to the Mets, it killed them just as much to lose to us, especially the way that it happened.
“To me, Dave Henderson’s home run was bigger than Carlton Fisk’s home run. Much bigger. We were going to be out of the series. Bernie Carbo’s home run was bigger than Fisk’s. I’m not taking anything away from Pudge. His home run was great — it was a game-winner — but the game was tied. Carbo’s home run came in the eighth inning with us down by three runs. It was huge. It was the second biggest home run I ever saw, right ahead of Fisk’s.
“When Henderson hit his home run, we had been pushed down, out of the dugout, by the stadium police. They had pushed us down into the runway. We were looking at Dave Henderson hitting through the legs of the stadium cops. He was fouling off pitch after pitch against Donnie Moore, who a few years later committed suicide. He was fouling off nasty forkballs, nasty pitches, and then connected with one to [save] the game. There were 65,000 people in the stadium and they were loud and ready to pour onto the field. To them it was like, game over. It was two outs, two strikes, and their top reliever was on the mound. Then, bam! Henderson hits one and we’re right back in it. We won in extra innings, then came back to Boston and won the next two easily. That, to me, is the biggest home run I ever saw.”
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On The Spiritual Home Run [1982]
“My son, Tim, has a disease called neurofibromatosis. He has had 40 major surgeries and one of them happened in 1982 when he was 12 years old. We were at the hospital, where he had just undergone a six- or seven-hour surgery, and after going through recovery he finally was brought up to the room. He was groggy, kind of out of it, but aware of things and able to communicate. I said, ‘Tim, I have to go to the ballpark. I love you and I’ll talk to you later; I’ll see you after the game.’ Then I kissed him on the forehead.
“When I got to the door, he said, ‘Dad, can you do me a favor?’ I said, ‘Sure, Tim, what’s that?’ He said, ‘Can you hit me a home run tonight?’ I hated to say yes, because it obviously isn’t that easy, but I came back to his bed and said, ‘Tim, I’ll hit you a home run tonight.’ I said goodbye and walked back over to the door, and he said, ‘Dad, can you do me another favor?’ I said, ‘Sure, Tim, what’s that?’ He said, ‘Can you hit me two home runs tonight?’ Now I don’t what to say. I hadn’t been sure that I should have promised one, and now he was asking for two. I had to get to the ballpark, so I said to him, ‘Tim, I’ll hit you two home runs tonight.’
“That night, he and Susan, my wife, watched the game at the hospital. He’s in and out, so Susan told him, ‘Tim, your dad just hit you a home run.’ Twice. It didn’t dawn on me until after the game what I had done. When you’re in the moment, and have your game face on, you’re not thinking, ‘Wow, I just hit a home run, and it was for Tim.’ But after the game, I realized what had happened. If there was ever a spiritual moment in my life, that was it. I knew that someone had been looking over me.
“When I got back to the hospital, he was still in and out, but very happy that I had hit two home runs. I was probably even happier. Sometimes I wish he had maybe asked me to hit a home run for him a thousand times.”
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Thanks for this article – it reminded me of one of my fondest baseball memories. I went to Fenway on June 23, 1990 with my sister. In the bottom of the 8th, Evans hit a home run to tie the game, a bright spot on a dreary cloudy day in a game that had to that point been pretty uneventful. Evans came up again in the 10th with a runner on, with the Sox now down a run. For the first time all day, the clouds parted and the sun lit up the park beautifully. My sister turned to me and made a comment about how the sun being out was a sign that Evans would do something great, and he hit the very next pitch for a walk off home run. I had never really looked back at just how impressive a day Evans had had that day until now. It turns out that in this game Evans had one of the highest single-game WPAs ever, and the highest of the 1990s.
The walk-off was against Gregg Olson, who had given up only 2 HR in his career — the last one being April 15th of the previous season. By Evans.
The walk-off, his career #373, was Evans most valuable career HR by WPA. The runner-up came less than two weeks later, when he hit #376, a 2-out 3-run bomb off of Rick Aguilera in the top of the 9th with the Sox down 2-1. His next was five weeks later, when he broke a 2-2 tie in the top of the 14th in Seattle with a 2-run shot off of Mike Schooler. That was the 15th most valuable HR of his career. Talk about swan songs: he would only hit 2 more in a Sox uni.
I realize it might be difficult or impossible to find them, but it would be neat if you could post videos of these plays. I enjoyed reading the article and that’s more important. Thanks.
Here’s a video about his catch in ’75: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DYR0sN0CnQ
And here’s Henderson’s home run in ’86: http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=13062929
Thanks for this.
Among my favorite baseball memories– something I saw many times. Dewey in the OF with a runner on third and less than two outs. Fly ball is hit to him. Runner tags and Dewey settles under it, then delivers a perfect one hop throw to the catcher to send the runner back to third. The crowd would roar at Fenway or applaud appreciatively on the road.
My dad and I have gone to Red Sox spring training many times and had several nice chats with Dewey. He’s a genuinely good guy. Thanks for the article!
Touching final story. Unbelievable.
Awesome!
Question – in ’82, Dewey had a pair of 2-HR games, July 28th vs Blue Jays & Aug 30th vs A’s. Which night was the one he hit ‘em for his boy? I really want to know.
The July series was a 3 game home stand sandwiched between two road trips, but the August game was in the middle of a longer home stand. I would lean a bit toward Aug. based on that.
Devon, hope this helps answer your question.
Monday, August 30, 1982 vs Oakland at Fenway
HR (1) Bottom of 3rd vs Matt Keough
HR (2) Bottom of 7th vs Matt Keough
The guy is actually much more deserving of the Hall than Rice was (and I’m not anti-Rice).
When MLB had the fans of every team vote for their all-time lineup (sometime in the 90′s, I think), the Sox OF was Williams, Yastrzemski … and Dwight Evans, not Jim Rice. And no one at the time regarded this as unexpected or controversial.
I looked up the most important HRs of each player’s career by WPA. Between them they had 11 of .489 or higher. Evans had 10 of them, Rice 1.
Well, I wouldn’t expect anything other than that from the team that said Willie Mays was not “its type of player”. That said, I do think Dewey was better than Rice.
This is so true. Nothing against Rice, but Evans was better and in a lot of ways.
Phenomenal piece. Always a Dewey fan. Lets get a Q & A with him on here.
Better than Rice, meh. HOF definitely.
The late 70s 80s and early 90swere such a down time for offensive#s. .. hence Dewey, Dale Murphy should get second looks.
Dwight Evans was one of my favorties. This is a short chapter on Dewey that appears in my book: Six Decades of Baseball: A Personal Narrative:
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Actually I never called him Dewey. To me he was just Dwight Evans. He played for the Red Sox from September 1972 through September 1990, most of the time as the regular right fielder. His career with the Red Sox spanned two league championships and a number of near misses. With great instincts and a cannon of an arm, he was considered the premier defensive right fielder during that time. Offensively, however, his career was a bit strange. He is one of the relatively few players who was more successful in his thirties than he was in his twenties.
I first saw Dwight Evans play on Sunday afternoon, April 15, 1973, at Yankee Stadium. Dwight had been a September call-up the year before and had done well. He was considered a grade A prospect and much was expected of him. However, he looked anything but grade A that day as veteran Mel Stottlemyre struck him out three times. Some players can look good even when they strike out. Dwight Evans did not look good that day; he simply looked overmatched. He went on to hit .223 for the season, not a great beginning.
The Red Sox during that time period had an abundance of talented young outfielders: Reggie Smith, Ben Oglivie, Bernie Carbo, Juan Beniquez, and Rick Miller. Yet the Sox for the most part stuck with Dwight Evans as their right fielder. There was no denying his defensive excellence, and his offensive production (after that rough 1973 start) was reasonably strong, an OK batting average with some power. There just was that feeling that there should be more.
As time went on and other outfielders got discarded, Evans became increasingly entrenched as the right fielder. He did have some tough times physically. He was injured for part of the 1977 season. Then in late August 1978, he was hit in the head by a pitch thrown so hard that it partially shattered his batting helmet. There was no lasting injury, but for the next few weeks, Evans suffered dizzy spells and was just not himself. On Monday evening, September 4, I attended a Red Sox game in Baltimore. The Sox were at the time desperately trying to hold on to their shrinking lead in the American League East. Clearly suffering from the aftereffects of the beaning, Evans was hitless in three at bats with two strikeouts and committed two errors in right field (one was a dropped fly ball).
Evans was physically all right in 1979, but the hoped-for breakout season still did not occur. The next season (1980) started out slowly. When I attended a Sox game in early July, Evans was batting close to .200 and was hitting last in the batting order. By then I had reached the point where I thought that it might be time to cut bait with Evans, no matter how good a defensive player he was.
Something happened however to Dwight Evans that second half of 1980. He allowed himself to be put under the tutelage of the Red Sox hitting coach Walt Hriniak (you don’t pronounce the H). Hriniak was a disciple of Charlie Lau, who had some definite theories concerning hitting. I will not try to describe these theories because that sort of thing never really interested me, but the result is that Evans took a completely new view toward hitting. His stance changed (for further details, check on the Dwight Evans entry on Wikipedia), and he became much more selective in which pitches to swing at. The upshot to all this is that his batting average went up a bit, his power went up more than a bit, and his on-base percentage went up a whole lot. His end-of-year stats for 1980 did not show it because of the horrendous first half of the season, but as a hitter, Dwight Evans was a new man.
Evans produced one solid season after another during the 1980s. Each year during that decade, I would attend at least one (and usually multiple) Red Sox games at Baltimore’s Memorial Stadium, and I recall Dwight Evans as being what they call a tough out. I remember some key home runs, numerous doubles, and a willingness to “take a walk” if the pitch did not suit him.
However, by the end of the decade, he was wearing down. At times the Red Sox would play him at first base as he had slowed down some in the field. In 1990, a back condition prevented him from playing any defense at all, so he served as the team’s designated hitter. His production, while still respectable, declined quite a bit. At the conclusion of the season, the Red Sox decided it was time for his distinguished career to end, and he was given his release.
Dwight Evans, however, still wanted to play baseball. His back condition healed sufficiently for him to play in the field, and he latched on with the Baltimore Orioles for the 1991 season. I saw him quite a few times playing for the Birds that year. He shared the right field slot with Joe Orsulak and Chito Martinez and recovered some of his batting average although his power numbers continued to decline. He went to spring training with the Birds in 1992 but was cut in mid-March. At that point, he decided to retire.
I cannot look at Dwight Evans’s career without feeling a great deal of respect. He came up to the Red Sox as a talented but flawed young player, of whom much was expected. He never let his ups and downs as a hitter affect his play in the field. As far as I know, he never whined or complained. He was willing to play hurt. When his career hit the skids, he was wise enough to accept the help of his coach and literally turned it around. And he loved playing baseball enough so that rather than accepting the Red Sox’ scripted ride off into the sunset, he accepted a part-time role for a second-division team. I do feel fortunate to have witnessed his career.
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Eric, as always, your comments add so much. I used to go to camp in MN during the summer in the 80′s and I was there for the homerun off Aguilera. He was fouling off pitch after pitch and I said to my friends that Dwight was going to get him. One of my favorite games.
Dwight Evans was the greatest right fielder of his Era. He won eight gold gloves in 10 years, including five straight (’81-’85) and is the ONLY right fielder throughout the span of two decades (1970-89) to win eight gold gloves. He ranks third all-time in putouts, sixth all-time in games played and 10th all-time in assists. He was selected by MLB as having one of the nine greatest arms in baseball history
So it would be easy to see how his offensive skills could often be overshadowed by his own defensive exploits, but his numbers are HOF worthy.
In comparison to the average hitting hall of fame player, Evans averages higher in Runs, Hits, Doubles, HR, RBI, Base on balls, Slugging and OPS.
Over a 20-year career, few could ever match Evans’ combined offensive and defensive accomplishments, making Evans one of the games best and most unique all-around players of his era.
Since its inception in 1957 (55 years-2012), Dwight Evans has been the ONLY player in baseball history to win eight gold gloves, lead all of major league baseball for an entire decade (1980’s) in Extra Base Hits, Runs Created and also lead his (AL) league in HR. (The only other player to lead his decade in offense while also being recognized for their defensive prowess, is Hall of Famer Hank Aaron with three gold gloves-1960’s).
Evans was selected to the All-Decade Team of the 80?s, and lead all of MLB in Runs Created (1067) ahead of HOF’s Ricky Henderson, Eddie Murray, Robin Yount and Mike Schmidt. Also, first in Extra Base hits (605) ahead of Messrs. Yount, Murray, Schmidt and Brett. He hit more home runs (256) throughout the decade than any other AL player and was the ONLY player in MLB to hit 20 or more home runs in nine consecutive seasons (’81-’89).
Since the turn of the century, all players to lead their respective decade in extra base hits through 1980 have been inducted into baseballs Hall of Fame.
Extra Base Hit Leaders by Decade: 1900s – Honus Wagner, 1910s – Tris Speaker, 1920s – Babe Ruth, 1930s – Jimmie Foxx, 1940s – Stan Musial, 1950s – Stan Musial, 1960s – Hank Aaron, 1970s – Reggie Jackson, 1980s – Dwight Evans.
Of MLB right fielders from the decade of the ‘80s, Evans led all in HR, RBI, walks, runs, runs created, extra base hits, times on base, runs produced, OPS and doubles as well as finishing four times in the top 10 for the leagues most valuable player award.
Evans led the Red Sox Team for the ENTIRE decade of the 80?s in: HR’s, RBI’s, Runs Created, Runs Produced, Base on Balls, Runs Scored, Total Bases, Games Played, Plate Appearances, At Bats, Triples, Slugging, Times on Base and Extra Base Hits. (Let’s not forget, Jim Rice and Wade Boggs were on that team too!)
Of only 13 players in baseball history to have at least 2400 hits, 1450 runs, 1,375 walks, 1375 RBI, 480 doubles and 385 HR, Evans is the only player that’s been eligible not to have been enshrined in major league baseballs Hall of Fame. This list includes such Hall of Fame greats as: Aaron, Ruth, Mays, Robinson, Williams, Ott, Gehrig, Musial and Yastrzemski.
When Evans retired from MLB in 1991he was Ranked in the Top 10 in the History of MLB as an American League Right Handed hitter in HR (385, fourth), Extra Base Hits (941, fourth), Total Bases (4,230, sixth), Base on Balls (1,391, fourth), Times on Base (3,890, fourth), Runs Created (1,612, fourth), Runs Produced (2,469, seventh) and RBI (1,384, ninth).
In the post season, Evans raised his game to another level. He was involved in four postseason appearances and two World Series with the Red Sox. In 14 World Series games (two series, ‘75, ‘86) Evans hit .300, 15 hits, three HR, 14 RBI, seven walks, seven runs, .397 OBP, .580 SLG, .977 OPS, 29 total bases and made one of the greatest catches in a crucial World Series game in extra innings that eventually led to Carlton Fisk’s 11th inning infamous walk-off home run.
Hall of Famer Carl Yastrzemski was Evans’ teammate for 13 seasons. He tells Dick Bresciani, Vice President and team historian for the Red Sox, “Dewey was a great offensive player and one of the greatest right-fielders to play the game, there’s no doubt in my mind that he belongs in the Hall of Fame.”
A decade of documented offensive dominance, eight gold gloves, a proven post season performance and one of the greatest arms the game has ever seen should earn Dwight Evans enshrinement into baseball’s Hall of Fame.
Dwight Evans was the greatest right fielder of his Era. He won eight gold gloves in 10 years, including five straight (’81-’85) and is the ONLY right fielder throughout the span of two decades (1970-89) to win eight gold gloves. He ranks third all-time in putouts, sixth all-time in games played and 10th all-time in assists. He was selected by MLB as having one of the nine greatest arms in baseball history
So it would be easy to see how his offensive skills could often be overshadowed by his own defensive exploits, but his numbers are HOF worthy.
In comparison to the average hitting hall of fame player, Evans averages higher in Runs, Hits, Doubles, HR, RBI, Base on balls, Slugging and OPS.
Over a 20-year career, few could ever match Evans’ combined offensive and defensive accomplishments, making Evans one of the games best and most unique all-around players of his era.
Since its inception in 1957 (55 years-2012), Dwight Evans has been the ONLY player in baseball history to win eight gold gloves, lead all of major league baseball for an entire decade (1980’s) in Extra Base Hits, Runs Created and also lead his (AL) league in HR. (The only other player to lead his decade in offense while also being recognized for their defensive prowess, is Hall of Famer Hank Aaron with three gold gloves-1960’s).
Evans was selected to the All-Decade Team of the 80?s, and lead all of MLB in Runs Created (1067) ahead of HOF’s Ricky Henderson, Eddie Murray, Robin Yount and Mike Schmidt. Also, first in Extra Base hits (605) ahead of Messrs. Yount, Murray, Schmidt and Brett. He hit more home runs (256) throughout the decade than any other AL player and was the ONLY player in MLB to hit 20 or more home runs in nine consecutive seasons (’81-’89).
Since the turn of the century, all players to lead their respective decade in extra base hits through 1980 have been inducted into baseballs Hall of Fame.
Extra Base Hit Leaders by Decade: 1900s – Honus Wagner, 1910s – Tris Speaker, 1920s – Babe Ruth, 1930s – Jimmie Foxx, 1940s – Stan Musial, 1950s – Stan Musial, 1960s – Hank Aaron, 1970s – Reggie Jackson, 1980s – Dwight Evans.
Of MLB right fielders from the decade of the ‘80s, Evans led all in HR, RBI, walks, runs, runs created, extra base hits, times on base, runs produced, OPS and doubles as well as finishing four times in the top 10 for the leagues most valuable player award.
Evans led the Red Sox Team for the ENTIRE decade of the 80?s in: HR’s, RBI’s, Runs Created, Runs Produced, Base on Balls, Runs Scored, Total Bases, Games Played, Plate Appearances, At Bats, Triples, Slugging, Times on Base and Extra Base Hits. (Let’s not forget, Jim Rice and Wade Boggs were on that team too!)
Of only 13 players in baseball history to have at least 2400 hits, 1450 runs, 1,375 walks, 1375 RBI, 480 doubles and 385 HR, Evans is the only player that’s been eligible not to have been enshrined in major league baseballs Hall of Fame. This list includes such Hall of Fame greats as: Aaron, Ruth, Mays, Robinson, Williams, Ott, Gehrig, Musial and Yastrzemski.
When Evans retired from MLB in 1991he was Ranked in the Top 10 in the History of MLB as an American League Right Handed hitter in HR (385, fourth), Extra Base Hits (941, fourth), Total Bases (4,230, sixth), Base on Balls (1,391, fourth), Times on Base (3,890, fourth), Runs Created (1,612, fourth), Runs Produced (2,469, seventh) and RBI (1,384, ninth).
In the post season, Evans raised his game to another level. He was involved in four postseason appearances and two World Series with the Red Sox. In 14 World Series games (two series, ‘75, ‘86) Evans hit .300, 15 hits, three HR, 14 RBI, seven walks, seven runs, .397 OBP, .580 SLG, .977 OPS, 29 total bases and made one of the greatest catches in a crucial World Series game in extra innings that eventually led to Carlton Fisk’s 11th inning infamous walk-off home run.
Hall of Famer Carl Yastrzemski was Evans’ teammate for 13 seasons. He tells Dick Bresciani, Vice President and team historian for the Red Sox, “Dewey was a great offensive player and one of the greatest right-fielders to play the game, there’s no doubt in my mind that he belongs in the Hall of Fame.”
A decade of documented offensive dominance, eight gold gloves, a proven post season performance and one of the greatest arms the game has ever seen should earn Dwight Evans enshrinement into baseball’s Hall of Fame.
Apologies for a duplicate post, my error.
**On a more important note, aside from all of Evans’ accomplishments (noted above) I’ve had the unique opportunity to speak with him on more than one occasion. He is truly a more impressive man, father and husband than his stats will ever be…