Gulf Coast League Red Sox
Encyclopedia
The Gulf Coast League Red Sox are the Rookie Level minor league
Minor league baseball
Minor league baseball is a hierarchy of professional baseball leagues in the Americas that compete at levels below Major League Baseball and provide opportunities for player development. All of the minor leagues are operated as independent businesses...

 affiliate of the Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...

. The team plays in Fort Myers, Florida
Fort Myers, Florida
Fort Myers is the county seat and commercial center of Lee County, Florida, United States. Its population was 62,298 in the 2010 census, a 29.23 percent increase over the 2000 figure....

, at the Boston Red Sox Player Development Complex and some games at City of Palms Park
City of Palms Park
City of Palms Park is a stadium in Fort Myers, Florida primarily used for baseball, although the City of Fort Myers uses the venue for the occasional concert. Former Boston Red Sox left fielder Mike Greenwell is from Fort Myers, and was instrumental in bringing his team to the city for spring...

.

Gulf Coast League
Gulf Coast League
The Gulf Coast League is a minor league baseball league which operates in Florida. It is a Rookie League, with a season running from mid-June to late August. The season is 60 games long and teams in the league are divided into three divisions, East, North and South...

 team rosters are thirty players, and cannot have more than twelve players over 20 years old, and no more than four players over 21. No player can have more than two years of prior service, excluding Rookie leagues outside the United States and Canada. The team is composed mainly of players who are in their first year of professional baseball
Professional baseball
Baseball is a team sport which is played by several professional leagues throughout the world. In these leagues, and associated farm teams, players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system....

 either as draftees or non-drafted free agent
Free agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player whose contract with a team has expired and who is thus eligible to sign with another club or franchise....

s from the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

, Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...

, Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...

, and other countries.

History

In , the team finished 4th in the Gulf Coast League
Gulf Coast League
The Gulf Coast League is a minor league baseball league which operates in Florida. It is a Rookie League, with a season running from mid-June to late August. The season is 60 games long and teams in the league are divided into three divisions, East, North and South...

 Central division, with a final record of 18–41.

In , the team finished 3rd in the Gulf Coast League Western division, with a final record of 32–28.

In , the team finished in 2nd place in the Western division with a final record of 40–20.

In , the team finished 5th in the Southwest Division with a final record of 21–36.

In , the team finished 4th in the Southwest Division with a final record of 24–36.

In , the team finished 3rd in the Western Division with a record of 31–28.

In , the team finished 5th in the Western Division with a record of 27–33.

In , the team finished 4th in the Western Division with a record of 30–29.

In , the team finished 3rd with a record of 29–26.

In , the team finished 1st with a record of 37–22, and lost to the Gulf Coast Yankees
Gulf Coast Yankees
The Gulf Coast League Yankees are the Rookie League affiliate of Major League Baseball's New York Yankees. The GCL Yankees play in Tampa, Florida at the Yankee Complex...


1–0 in the Semifinal game.

In , the team finished 5th in the Western Division with a record of 26–34.

In , the team finished 1st with a record of 33–26, but lost to the Gulf Coast Braves in the Semifinals 1–0.

In , the team finished 1st in the Gulf Coast League South, beating the Gulf Coast Mets in the Semifinals but losing to the Gulf Coast Yankees in the Finals.

In , the team made the playoffs again, but lost in the first round of the Gulf Coast League
Gulf Coast League
The Gulf Coast League is a minor league baseball league which operates in Florida. It is a Rookie League, with a season running from mid-June to late August. The season is 60 games long and teams in the league are divided into three divisions, East, North and South...

 playoffs, again to the Gulf Coast Yankees.

In , the team won the Gulf Coast League Championship, defeating the GCL Dodgers in game 3 of the series, on August 25, 2006. They won the final game, 11–2. The team finished the season with a 35–19 record, best in the GCL.

In , the team finished 3rd in the Southern Division, with a record of 30–26.

In , the team finished 3rd again in the Southern Division, With a record of 28–27

GCL South Final Standings

Club Wins Losses PCT GB Home Away L10 Streak
GCL Pirates 37 19 .661 19–9 18–10 7–3 L1
GCL Twins 35 21 .625 2.0 17–11 18–10 6–4 L2
GCL Red Sox 28 27 .509 8.5 12–15 16–12 7–3 W3
GCL Reds 25 31 .446 12.0 11–17 14–14 3–7 W1
GCL Orioles 14 41 .225 22.5 7–21 7–20 1–9 L6


Division Winner- GCL Pirates

Wild Card Winner- GCL Twins

"Star" Player

Though many current and former Boston Red Sox players began their professional careers with the GCL Sox, perhaps their most famous player was John Henry Williams-- son of Boston legend, Ted Williams
Ted Williams
Theodore Samuel "Ted" Williams was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played his entire 21-year Major League Baseball career as the left fielder for the Boston Red Sox...

. In 2002, at 33 years old, Williams used his father's pull to secure himself a roster spot in the Red Sox organization.

After just two games with the GCL Red Sox (going 0 – 6), he broke two ribs crashing into the stands in an attempt to catch a foul ball, ending his season. His father died on July 5, 2002, while Williams was still on the GCL Sox roster.

External links

  • http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/clubs/ip_index.jsp?sid=milb&cid=t471
  • http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/leagues/ip_index.jsp?sid=milb&lid=l124
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