Wade Boggs

Wade Boggs, born in 1958, American professional baseball player, who led the American League (AL) in batting five times (1983, 1985, 1986, 1987, and 1988). Boggs had a batting average of better than .300 in 15 of his 18 major league seasons.

Boggs had an exceptional batting eye and a knack for spraying line drives around the field. The left-handed hitter was a member of the AL All-Star team for 12 consecutive seasons (1985-1996) and won two Gold Gloves (1994 and 1995) for defensive excellence at third base.

Wade Anthony Boggs was born in Omaha, Nebraska, and attended high school in Tampa, Florida. The Boston Red Sox drafted him in 1976 and he spent six years in the minor leagues before making the major league club in 1982. Boggs hit .349 in 104 games as a rookie and the following year won his first batting title with a .361 average. That season was also the first in his AL-record string of seven consecutive years with 200 or more hits.

Boggs was the epitome of a consistent hitter. From 1983 to 1988 he hit for an average of between .357 and .368 five times, winning the AL batting title in each of those seasons. During his career Boggs played for three teams, spending 11 seasons with the Red Sox, 5 with the New York Yankees, and 2 with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. He appeared in one World Series with Boston, who lost to the New York Mets in 1986, and one with the Yankees, who defeated the Atlanta Braves in 1996. In his final season in 1999 Boggs became the 23rd player to pass the 3,000 hit mark.

Boggs retired having played in 2,440 games and compiling a total of 3,010 hits, 1,513 runs, 578 doubles, 118 home runs, and 1,014 runs batted in (RBIs). His career batting average of .328 places him among the top 40 players in major league history. Boggs was voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2005 in his first year of eligibility.