1997 Boston Red Sox season

1997  Boston Red Sox
League	American League
Division	Eastern Division
Ballpark	Fenway Park
City	Boston, Massachusetts
Record	78–84 (.481)
Divisional place	4th (20 GB)
Owners	JRY Trust
President	John Harrington
General managers	Dan Duquette
Managers	Jimy Williams
Television	WABU (Sean McDonough, Jerry Remy) NESN (Bob Kurtz, Jerry Remy)
Radio	WEEI (Jerry Trupiano, Joe Castiglione) WROL (Bobby Serrano, Hector Martinez)
Stats	ESPN.com BB-reference
←  1996 Seasons 1998  →

The 1997 Boston Red Sox season was the 97th season in the franchise's Major League Baseball history. The Red Sox finished fourth in the American League East with a record of 78 wins and 84 losses, 20 games behind the Baltimore Orioles. It was the last time the Red Sox had a losing record until 2012. The Red Sox had 5,781 at bats, a single-season major league record. ^[1]

Offseason

• December 9, 1996: Bret Saberhagen was signed as a free agent with the Boston Red Sox. ^[2]
• January 22, 1997: Steve Avery was signed as a free agent with the Boston Red Sox. ^[3]
• January 27, 1997: José Canseco was traded by the Boston Red Sox to the Oakland Athletics for John Wasdin and cash.
• January 31, 1997: Mike Benjamin was signed as a free agent with the Boston Red Sox. ^[4]

Regular season

Season standings

v t e AL East	W	L	Pct.	GB	Home	Road
Baltimore Orioles	98	64	0.605	—	46–35	52–29
New York Yankees	96	66	0.593	2	47–33	49–33
Detroit Tigers	79	83	0.488	19	42–39	37–44
Boston Red Sox	78	84	0.481	20	39–42	39–42
Toronto Blue Jays	76	86	0.469	22	42–39	34–47

Record vs. opponents

1997 American League record v t e Sources:
Team	ANA	BAL	BOS	CWS	CLE	DET	KC	MIL	MIN	NYY	OAK	SEA	TEX	TOR	NL
Anaheim	—	4–7	6–5	6–5	7–4	5–6	6–5	7–4	4–7	4–7	11–1	6–6	8–4	6–5	4–12
Baltimore	7–4	—	5–7	5–6	6–5	6–6	7–4	5–6	10–1	8–4	8–3	7–4	10–1	6–6	8–7
Boston	5–6	7–5	—	3–8	6–5	5–7	3–8	8–3	8–3	4–8	7–4	7–4	3–8	6–6	6–9
Chicago	5–6	6–5	8–3	—	5–7	4–7	11–1	4–7	6–6	2–9	8–3	5–6	3–8	5–6	8–7
Cleveland	4–7	5–6	5–6	7–5	—	6–5	8–3	8–4	8–4	5–6	7–4	3–8	5–6	6–5	9–6
Detroit	6–5	6–6	7–5	7–4	5–6	—	6–5	4–7	4–7	2–10	7–4	4–7	7–4	6–6	8–7
Kansas City	5–6	4–7	8–3	1–11	3–8	5–6	—	6–6	7–5	3–8	3–8	5–6	6–5	5–6	6–9
Milwaukee	4–7	6–5	3–8	7–4	4–8	7–4	6–6	—	5–7	4–7	5–6	5–6	7–4	7–4	8–7
Minnesota	7–4	1–10	3–8	6–6	4–8	7–4	5–7	7–5	—	3–8	7–4	5–6	3–8	3–8	7–8
New York	7–4	4–8	8–4	9–2	6–5	10–2	8–3	7–4	8–3	—	6–5	4–7	7–4	7–5	5–10
Oakland	1–11	3–8	4–7	3–8	4–7	4–7	8–3	6–5	4–7	5–6	—	5–7	5–7	6–5	7–9
Seattle	6–6	4–7	4–7	6–5	8–3	7–4	6–5	6–5	6–5	7–4	7–5	—	8–4	8–3	7–9
Texas	4–8	1–10	8–3	8–3	6–5	4–7	5–6	4–7	8–3	4–7	7–5	4–8	—	4–7	10–6
Toronto	5–6	6–6	6–6	6–5	5–6	6–6	6–5	4–7	8–3	5–7	5–6	3–8	7–4	—	4–11

Red Sox vs. National League East

Team	ATL	FLA	MON	NYM	PHI
Boston	0–3	1–2	0–3	2–1	3–0

Notable Transactions

• July 31, 1997: Heathcliff Slocumb was traded by the Boston Red Sox to the Seattle Mariners for Derek Lowe and Jason Varitek.
• August 30, 1997: Curtis Pride was signed as a free agent with the Boston Red Sox. ^[5]

Opening Day lineup

5	Nomar Garciaparra	SS
13	John Valentin	2B
42	Mo Vaughn	1B
20	Mike Stanley	DH
11	Tim Naehring	3B
12	Wil Cordero	LF
44	Rudy Pemberton	RF
37	Bill Haselman	C
24	Shane Mack	CF
36	Tom Gordon	P

Roster

1997 Boston Red Sox
Roster
Pitchers 33 Steve Avery 47 Toby Borland 50 Mark Brandenburg 40 Robinson Checo 41 Jim Corsi 52 Vaughn Eshelman 34 Rich Garcés 36 Tom Gordon 59 Ken Grundt 32 Chris Hammond 27 Butch Henry 54 Joe Hudson 53 Kerry Lacy 43 Derek Lowe 57 Ron Mahay 59 Pat Mahomes 19 Brian Rose 17 Bret Saberhagen 26 Aaron Sele 51 Heathcliff Slocumb 55 Jeff Suppan 43 Ricky Trlicek 49 Tim Wakefield 46 John Wasdin		Catchers 37 Bill Haselman 10 Scott Hatteberg 45 Walt McKeel 47 Jason Varitek Infielders 28 Mike Benjamin  3 Jeff Frye  5 Nomar Garciaparra 18 Reggie Jefferson 11 Tim Naehring 29 Arquimedez Pozo 20 Mike Stanley 13 John Valentin 42 Mo Vaughn		Outfielders 56 Darren Bragg 44 Michael Coleman 12 Wil Cordero 15,24 Shane Mack 38 José Malavé 25 Troy O'Leary 44 Rudy Pemberton 30 Jesús Tavárez Other batters  2 Curtis Pride		Manager 22 Jimy Williams Coaches 48 Dave Jauss (First base) 16 Joe Kerrigan (Pitching) 31 Wendell Kim (Third base) 60 Dana LeVangie (Bullpen catcher) 35 Grady Little (Bench) 14 Jim Rice (Hitting) 23 Herm Starrette (Bullpen)

Wally the Green Monster

Wally the Green Monster

Main article: Wally the Green Monster

Wally the Green Monster is the official mascot for the Boston Red Sox. His name is derived from the Green Monster nickname of the 37-foot wall in left field at Fenway Park. Wally debuted in 1997 to the chagrin of many older Red Sox fans. Although he was a hit with children, the older fans did not immediately adopt him as part of the franchise. According to the Red Sox promotions department, Wally was a huge Red Sox fan who decided to move inside the left field wall of Fenway Park since it "eats up" hits that would easily be home runs at other parks in 1947. Apparently, he was very shy and lived the life of a hermit for 50 years. On the 50th anniversary of the Green Monster in 1997, he came out of the manual scoreboard and has been interacting with players and fans ever since. ^[6] Thanks to former Red Sox second baseman and broadcaster Jerry Remy, those older fans have adored him.

Player stats

Batting

Starters by position

Note: Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases

Pos	Player	G	AB	H	Avg.	HR	RBI	SB
C	Scott Hatteberg	114	350	97	.277	10	44	0
1B	Mo Vaughn	141	527	166	.315	35	96	2
2B	John Valentin	143	575	176	.306	18	77	7
SS	Nomar Garciaparra	153	684	209	.306	30	98	22
3B	Tim Naehring	70	259	74	.286	9	40	1
LF	Wil Cordero	140	570	160	.281	18	72	1
CF	Darren Bragg	153	513	132	.257	9	57	10
RF	Troy O'Leary	146	499	154	.309	15	80	0
DH	Reggie Jefferson	136	489	156	.319	13	67	1

Other batters

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases

Player	G	AB	H	Avg.	HR	RBI	SB
Jeff Frye	127	404	126	.312	3	51	19
Mike Stanley	97	260	78	.300	13	53	0
Bill Haselman	67	212	50	.236	6	26	0
Shane Mack	60	130	41	.315	3	17	2
Mike Benjamin	49	116	27	.233	0	7	2
Jesus Tavarez	42	69	12	.174	0	7	0
Rudy Pemberton	27	63	15	.238	2	10	0
Michael Coleman	8	24	4	.167	0	2	1
Arquimedez Pozo	4	15	4	.267	0	3	0
Jose Malave	4	4	0	.000	0	0	0
Walt McKeel	5	3	0	.000	0	0	0
Curtis Pride	2	2	1	.500	1	1	0
Jason Varitek	1	1	1	1.000	0	0	0

Pitching

Note: G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Starting pitchers

Player	G	GS	IP	W	L	SV	ERA	SO
Tim Wakefield	35	29	201.1	12	15	0	4.25	151
Tom Gordon	42	25	182.2	6	10	11	3.74	159
Aaron Sele	33	33	177.1	13	12	0	5.38	122
Jeff Suppan	23	22	112.1	7	3	0	5.69	67
Steve Avery	22	18	96.2	6	7	0	6.42	51

Main relief pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player	G	GS	IP	W	L	SV	ERA	SO
Heathcliff Slocumb	49	0	46.2	0	5	17	5.79	36
John Wasdin	53	7	124.2	4	6	0	4.40	84
Butch Henry	36	5	84.1	7	3	6	3.52	51
Jim Corsi	52	0	57.2	5	3	2	3.43	40
Kerry Lacy	33	0	45.2	1	1	3	6.11	18

Other pitchers and secondary relief pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player	G	GS	IP	W	L	SV	ERA	SO
Chris Hammond	29	8	65.1	3	4	1	5.92	48
Vaughn Eshelman	21	6	42.2	3	3	0	6.33	18
Mark Brandenburg	31	0	41.0	0	2	0	5.49	34
Joe Hudson	26	0	35.2	3	1	0	3.53	14
Bret Saberhagen	6	6	26.0	0	1	0	6.58	14
Ron Mahay	28	0	25.0	3	0	0	2.52	22
Ricky Trlicek	18	0	23.1	3	4	0	4.63	10
Derek Lowe	8	0	16.0	0	2	0	3.38	13
Rich Garcés	12	0	13.2	0	1	0	4.61	12
Robinson Checo	5	2	13.1	1	1	0	3.38	14
Pat Mahomes	10	0	10.0	1	0	0	8.10	5
Toby Borland	3	0	3.1	0	0	0	13.50	1
Ken Grundt	2	0	3.0	0	0	0	9.00	0
Brian Rose	1	1	3.0	0	0	0	12.00	3
Mike Benjamin	1	0	1.0	0	0	0	0.00	0

Game log

Red Sox Win

Red Sox Loss

Game Postponed

1997 Boston Red Sox Season Game Log: 78–84 (Home: 39–42; Away: 39–42)
April: 13–12 # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record Streak 1 April 2 @ Angels 6–5 Mahomes (1–0) Percival (0–1) Slocumb (1) Anaheim Stadium 30,874 1–0 W1 2 April 3 @ Angels 0–2 Dickson (1–0) Wakefield (0–1) — Anaheim Stadium 17,323 1–1 L1 3 April 4 @ Mariners 10–5 Sele (1–0) Wolcott (0–1) Henry (1) Kingdome 40,716 2–1 W1 4 April 5 @ Mariners 8–6 Trlicek (1–0) Charlton (0–1) Slocumb (2) Kingdome 57,110 3–1 W2 5 April 6 @ Mariners 7–8 (10) Charlton (1–1) Trlicek (1–1) — Kingdome 33,450 3–2 L1 6 April 7 @ Athletics 2–6 Lewis (2–0) Gordon (0–1) Taylor (4) Oakland Coliseum 8,482 3–3 L2 7 April 8 @ Athletics 13–7 Trlicek (2–1) Wengert (0–2) Henry (2) Oakland Coliseum 9,010 4–3 W1 8 April 9 @ Athletics 3–4 (10) Small (1–0) Trlicek (2–2) — Oakland Coliseum 11,057 4–4 L1 9 April 11 Mariners 3–5 Johnson (1–0) Avery (0–1) Charlton (2) Fenway Park 34,210 4–5 L2 10 April 12 Mariners 1–5 (10) Fassero (2–0) Corsi (0–1) — Fenway Park 15,358 4–6 L3 11 April 13 Mariners 7–1 Gordon (1–1) Sanders (0–3) — Fenway Park 30,300 5–6 W1 12 April 14 Athletics 10–1 Wakefield (1–1) Adams (0–1) — Fenway Park 18,166 6–6 W2 13 April 15 Athletics 7–2 Sele (2–0) Karsay (0–1) — Fenway Park 17,862 7–6 W3 14 April 16 Indians 11–6 Avery (1–1) Ogea (2–1) — Fenway Park 21,305 8–6 W4 15 April 17 Indians 3–4 Kline (3–0) Trlicek (2–3) Mesa (1) Fenway Park 17,988 8–7 L1 — April 18 Orioles Postponed (rain). Makeup date June 10. — April 19 Orioles Postponed (rain). Makeup date June 12. 16 April 20 Orioles 1–11 Key (3–0) Gordon (1–2) — Fenway Park 32,290 8–8 L2 17 April 21 Orioles 4–2 Sele (3–0) Erickson (2–1) Slocumb (3) Fenway Park 33,608 9–8 W1 18 April 22 @ Indians 8–2 Avery (2–1) Ogea (2–2) Henry (3) Jacobs Field 41,800 10–8 W2 19 April 23 @ Indians 7–11 McDowell (1–2) Trlicek (2–4) — Jacobs Field 42,430 10–9 L1 20 April 24 @ Orioles 2–1 (12) Trlicek (3–4) Mathews (0–1) Henry (4) Camden Yards 40,000 11–9 W1 21 April 25 @ Orioles 0–2 Erickson (3–1) Gordon (1–3) Myers (9) Camden Yards 45,227 11–10 L1 22 April 26 @ Orioles 5–14 Key (4–0) Sele (3–1) Johnson (1) Camden Yards 47,727 11–11 L2 23 April 27 @ Orioles 13–7 Henry (1–0) Rhodes (2–1) — Camden Yards 47,307 12–11 W1 24 April 29 Angels 4–5 Holtz (2–0) Henry (1–1) James (2) Fenway Park 19,347 12–12 L1 25 April 30 Angels 11–2 Hammond (1–0) Dickson (4–1) — Fenway Park 20,322 13–12 W1
May: 9–17 # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record Streak — May 1 Angels Postponed (rain). Makeup date July 25. 26 May 2 @ Rangers 5–4 Henry (2–1) Patterson (2–3) Slocumb (4) The Ballpark in Arlington 35,338 14–12 W2 27 May 3 @ Rangers 6–7 Vosberg (1–1) Slocumb (0–1) — The Ballpark in Arlington 43,577 14–13 L1 28 May 4 @ Rangers 6–7 Patterson (3–3) Henry (2–2) Wetteland (7) The Ballpark in Arlington 37,294 14–14 L2 29 May 5 Royals 0–2 Appier (4–1) Hammond (1–1) — Fenway Park 19,061 14–15 L3 30 May 6 Royals 2–7 Rosado (3–0) Gordon (1–4) Pichardo (5) Fenway Park 20,178 14–16 L4 31 May 7 Twins 11–3 Sele (4–1) Radke (2–2) — Fenway Park 19,075 15–16 W1 32 May 8 Twins 7–10 Robertson (3–1) Garcés (0–1) Aguilera (6) Fenway Park 24,959 15–17 L1 33 May 9 Rangers 1–5 Witt (6–0) Wasdin (0–1) — Fenway Park 23,514 15–18 L2 34 May 10 Rangers 5–11 Patterson (4–3) Slocumb (0–2) — Fenway Park 25,084 15–19 L3 35 May 11 Rangers 6–8 Santana (1–0) Gordon (1–5) Wetteland (8) Fenway Park 27,025 15–20 L4 36 May 13 @ Royals 9–0 Belcher (5–3) Sele (4–2) — Kauffman Stadium 13,035 15–21 L5 37 May 14 @ Royals 2–6 Veres (3–0) Wakefield (1–2) Pichardo (6) Kauffman Stadium 13,254 15–22 L6 38 May 16 @ Twins 5–11 Aldred (2–5) Hammond (1–2) — Metrodome 15,311 15–23 L7 39 May 17 @ Twins 4–0 Gordon (2–5) Radke (2–2) — Metrodome 18,388 16–23 W1 40 May 18 @ Twins 5–7 Robertson (4–2) Sele (4–3) Aguilera (7) Metrodome 13,879 16–24 L1 41 May 20 @ White Sox 1–10 Navarro (4–2) Wakefield (1–3) — Comiskey Park 16,563 16–25 L2 42 May 21 @ White Sox 5–10 Drabek (3–3) Hammond (1–3) — Comiskey Park 18,814 16–26 L3 43 May 22 @ Yankees 8–2 Gordon (3–5) Wells (4–3) — Yankee Stadium 28,255 17–26 W1 44 May 23 @ Yankees 9–3 Sele (5–3) Nelson (1–4) — Yankee Stadium 29,003 18–26 W2 45 May 24 @ Yankees 2–4 Rivera (1–1) Wasdin (0–2) — Yankee Stadium 44,094 18–27 L1 — May 25 @ Yankees Postponed (rain). Makeup date September 16. 46 May 26 Brewers 3–2 Hammond (2–3) Jones (3–1) — Fenway Park 28,438 19–27 W1 47 May 27 Brewers 7–6 Corsi (1–1) Adamson (1–1) Slocumb (5) Fenway Park 24,396 20–27 W2 48 May 28 White Sox 5–3 Sele (6–3) Álvarez (3–6) Slocumb (6) Fenway Park 28,078 21–27 W3 49 May 29 White Sox 2–5 (11) Hernández (3–1) Wasdin (0–3) Simas (1) Fenway Park 27,775 21–28 L1 50 May 30 Yankees 10–4 Hammond (3–3) Mendoza (3–2) — Fenway Park 32,341 22–28 W1 51 May 31 Yankees 2–7 Pettitte (7–3) Wakefield (1–4) — Fenway Park 55,191 22–29 L1
June: 14–15 # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record Streak 52 June 1 Yankees 6–11 (15) Nelson (2–4) Lacy (0–1) — Fenway Park 31,798 22–30 L2 53 June 2 Yankees 2–5 Wells (6–3) Sele (6–4) Rivera (16) Fenway Park 31,329 22–31 L3 54 June 3 @ Brewers 4–6 Wickman (3–2) Slocumb (0–3) — Milwaukee County Stadium 16,139 22–32 L4 55 June 4 @ Brewers 11–13 Eldred (6–5) Brandenburg (0–1) Jones (14) Milwaukee County Stadium 13,089 22–33 L5 56 June 5 @ Brewers 2–1 Wakefield (2–4) McDonald (6–4) Lacy (1) Milwaukee County Stadium 13,196 23–33 W1 57 June 6 Indians 3–7 Hershiser (6–2) Gordon (3–6) — Fenway Park 30,202 23–34 L1 58 June 7 Indians 5–9 Colón (1–2) Sele (6–5) — Fenway Park 32,780 23–35 L2 59 June 8 Indians 12–6 Hudson (1–0) Ogea (5–5) — Fenway Park 32,155 24–35 W1 60 June 10 (1) Orioles 2–7 Erickson (9–2) Eshelman (0–1) — Fenway Park — 24–36 L1 61 June 10 (2) Orioles 2–4 Rhodes (3–2) Wakefield (2–5) Myers (20) Fenway Park 30,995 24–37 L2 62 June 11 Orioles 10–1 Gordon (4–6) Johnson (0–1) — Fenway Park 26,479 25–37 W1 63 June 12 Orioles 9–5 Sele (7–5) Kamieniecki (4–3) — Fenway Park 24,970 26–37 W2 64 June 13 @ Mets 8–4 Suppan (1–0) Reed (4–4) Lacy (2) Shea Stadium 44,443 27–37 W3 65 June 14 @ Mets 2–5 Clark (6–4) Wakefield (2–6) Franco (17) Shea Stadium 35,456 27–38 L1 66 June 15 @ Mets 10–1 Eshelman (1–1) Jones (11–3) — Shea Stadium 23,557 28–38 W1 67 June 16 Phillies 5–4 (10) Wasdin (1–3) Bottalico (1–3) — Fenway Park 26,926 29–38 W2 68 June 17 Phillies 12–6 Sele (8–5) Ruffcorn (0–1) Lacy (3) Fenway Park 25,591 30–38 W3 69 June 18 Phillies 4–2 Suppan (2–0) Schilling (8–6) Hammond (1) Fenway Park 27,502 31–38 W4 70 June 20 @ Tigers 6–12 Thompson (7–5) Wakefield (2–7) Sager (3) Tiger Stadium 20,091 31–39 L1 71 June 21 @ Tigers 4–15 Bautista (1–1) Eshelman (1–2) — Tiger Stadium 20,559 31–40 L2 72 June 22 @ Tigers 2–1 Gordon (5–6) Blair (4–4) Slocumb (7) Tiger Stadium 19,477 32–40 W1 73 June 23 @ Blue Jays 7–6 Sele (9–5) Williams (2–7) Slocumb (8) SkyDome 30,380 33–40 W2 74 June 24 @ Blue Jays 9–6 Wasdin (2–3) Andújar (0–4) Slocumb (9) SkyDome 27,263 34–40 W3 75 June 25 @ Blue Jays 13–12 Wakefield (3–7) Hentgen (8–4) Slocumb (10) SkyDome 27,605 35–40 W4 76 June 26 Tigers 6–10 Moehler (5–6) Eshelman (1–3) — Fenway Park 31,878 35–41 L1 77 June 27 Tigers 1–2 (11) Miceli (1–1) Hammond (3–4) Jones (9) Fenway Park 26,753 35–42 L2 78 June 28 Tigers 2–9 Lira (5–4) Sele (9–6) — Fenway Park 30,886 35–43 L3 79 June 29 Tigers 8–6 Wasdin (3–3) Bautista (1–2) Slocumb (11) Fenway Park 30,884 36–43 W1 80 June 30 Marlins 5–8 Fernandez (9–6) Wakefield (3–8) — Fenway Park 27,127 36–44 L1
July: 15–13 # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record Streak 81 July 1 Marlins 9–2 Eshelman (2–3) Rapp (4–6) Corsi (1) Fenway Park 25,538 37–44 W1 82 July 2 Marlins 2–3 Brown (8–5) Gordon (5–7) Nen (24) Fenway Park 31,405 37–45 L1 83 July 3 @ White Sox 4–1 Sele (10–6) Drabek (6–6) — Comiskey Park 20,521 38–45 W1 84 July 4 @ White Sox 5–6 Hernández (5–1) Slocumb (0–4) — Comiskey Park 30,007 38–46 L1 85 July 5 @ White Sox 8–11 Darwin (3–6) Avery (2–2) — Comiskey Park 25,802 38–47 L2 86 July 6 @ White Sox 5–6 Baldwin (6–9) Wakefield (3–9) Hernández (20) Comiskey Park 25,153 38–48 L3 87 July 10 Blue Jays 8–7 (11) Eshelman (3–3) Timlin (2–1) — Fenway Park 30,913 39–48 W1 88 July 11 Blue Jays 4–8 Hentgen (9–6) Wasdin (3–4) — Fenway Park 32,543 39–49 L1 89 July 12 Blue Jays 1–3 Clemens (14–3) Sele (10–7) Spoljaric (3) Fenway Park 33,106 39–50 L2 90 July 13 Blue Jays 2–3 Williams (4–8) Wakefield (3–10) Escobar (1) Fenway Park 32,418 39–51 L3 91 July 14 Tigers 18–4 Suppan (3–0) Jarvis (0–2) — Fenway Park 21,997 40–51 W1 92 July 15 Tigers 5–7 (12) Jones (2–3) Wasdin (3–5) — Fenway Park 25,882 40–52 L1 93 July 16 @ Orioles 4–1 Avery (3–2) Key (12–6) Slocumb (12) Camden Yards 47,712 41–52 W1 94 July 17 @ Orioles 12–9 Mahay (1–0) Orosco (2–2) Slocumb (13) Camden Yards 47,912 42–52 W2 95 July 18 @ Indians 7–0 Wakefield (4–10) Colón (2–3) — Jacobs Field 43,037 43–52 W3 96 July 19 @ Indians 7–10 Suppan (4–0) Clark (0–1) Slocumb (14) Jacobs Field 43,070 44–52 W4 97 July 20 @ Indians 2–7 Nagy (10–6) Gordon (5–8) — Jacobs Field 42,932 44–53 L1 98 July 21 @ Indians 3–1 Avery (4–2) Wright (2–1) Slocumb (15) Jacobs Field 42,851 45–53 W1 99 July 22 Athletics 4–3 Henry (3–2) Groom (1–2) Slocumb (16) Fenway Park 27,864 46–53 W2 100 July 23 Athletics 2–5 Wengert (5–9) Wakefield (4–11) Taylor (18) Fenway Park 29,213 46–54 L1 101 July 24 Athletics 3–0 Suppan (5–0) Rigby (0–4) Slocumb (17) Fenway Park 29,312 47–54 W1 102 July 25 (1) Angels 4–5 Finley (9–6) Gordon (5–9) — Fenway Park 20,427 47–55 L1 103 July 25 (2) Angels 5–8 Holtz (3–2) Wakefield (4–12) Percival (14) Fenway Park 24,631 47–56 L2 104 July 26 Angels 7–6 Henry (4–2) Percival (4–5) — Fenway Park 32,148 48–56 W1 105 July 27 Angels 6–5 Mahay (2–0) James (4–3) — Fenway Park 28,454 49–56 W2 106 July 29 @ Mariners 4–0 Wakefield (5–12) Johnson (14–3) — Kingdome 33,293 50–56 W3 107 July 30 @ Mariners 8–7 (10) Jim Corsi (2–1) Hurtado (1–2) — Kingdome 33,056 51–56 W4 108 July 31 @ Royals 2–3 (10) Carrasco (2–3) Slocumb (0–5) — Kauffman Stadium 20,544 51–57 L1
August: 16–13 # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record Streak 109 August 1 @ Royals 10–3 Avery (5–2) Rosado (7–8) — Kauffman Stadium 20,060 52–57 W1 110 August 2 @ Royals 3–10 Belcher (11–9) Sele (10–8) — Kauffman Stadium 19,701 52–58 L1 111 August 3 @ Royals 2–5 Bones (2–4) Wakefield (5–13) Montgomery (6) Kauffman Stadium 17,649 52–59 L2 112 August 4 @ Rangers 11–5 Henry (5–2) Patterson (7–5) — The Ballpark at Arlington 29,601 53–59 W1 113 August 5 @ Rangers 13–1 Gordon (6–9) Alberro (0–3) — The Ballpark at Arlington 36,289 54–59 W2 114 August 6 @ Twins 5–2 Wakefield (6–13) Robertson (7–10) Henry (5) Metrodome 12,450 55–59 W3 115 August 7 @ Twins 7–6 Sele (11–8) Bowers (0–1) Corsi (2) Metrodome 11,899 56–59 W4 116 August 8 Royals 8–2 Avery (6–2) Bones (2–5) — Fenway Park 31,777 57–59 W5 117 August 9 Royals 2–9 Rusch (4–8) Suppan (5–1) — Fenway Park 31,410 57–60 L1 118 August 10 Royals 6–4 Corsi (3–1) Carrasco (2–4) — Fenway Park 27,743 58–60 W1 119 August 11 Rangers 3–8 Oliver (9–10) Wakefield (6–14) — Fenway Park 28,640 58–61 L1 120 August 12 Rangers 2–12 Witt (11–8) Sele (11–9) — Fenway Park 26,213 58–62 L2 121 August 13 Rangers 6–7 Sturtze (1–0) Avery (6–3) Wetteland (26) Fenway Park 24,522 58–63 L3 122 August 14 Twins 6–1 Suppan (6–1) Radke (16–7) — Fenway Park 31,207 59–63 W1 123 August 15 Twins 5–4 (10) Lacy (1–1) Guardado (4–4) — Fenway Park 25,328 60–63 W2 124 August 16 Twins 12–4 Wakefield (7–14) Bowers (0–3) — Fenway Park 30,011 61–63 W3 125 August 17 Twins 10–5 Sele (12–9) Tewksbury (4–9) — Fenway Park 30,387 62–63 W4 — August 19 @ Athletics Postponed (rain). Makeup date August 20. 126 August 20 (1) @ Athletics 7–5 Wakefield (8–14) Haynes (1–3) Henry (6) Oakland Coliseum — 63–63 W5 127 August 20 (2) @ Athletics 5–4 (13) Hudson (2–0) Wengert (5–10) Gordon (1) Oakland Coliseum 11,382 64–63 W6 128 August 21 @ Athletics 6–13 Lorraine (2–0) Avery (6–4) — Oakland Coliseum 11,570 64–64 L1 129 August 22 @ Angels 5–8 Watson (11–7) Saberhagen (0–1) Percival (21) Anaheim Stadium 24,977 64–65 L2 130 August 23 @ Angels 1–6 Dickson (13–5) Sele (12–10) — Anaheim Stadium 20,944 64–66 L3 131 August 24 @ Angels 3–2 Wakefield (9–14) Hill (6–11) Gordon (2) Anaheim Stadium 20,733 65–66 W1 132 August 25 @ Mariners 9–8 Hudson (3–0) Slocumb (0–8) Gordon (3) Kingdome 29,939 66–66 W2 133 August 26 @ Mariners 2–8 Moyer (14–4) Avery (6–5) — Kingdome 32,287 66–67 L1 134 August 27 @ Mariners 9–5 Wasdin (4–5) Fassero (13–8) Gordon (4) Kingdome 34,633 67–67 W1 135 August 29 Braves 1–9 Smoltz (13–10) Sele (12–11) — Fenway Park 32,577 67–68 L1 136 August 30 Braves 2–15 Millwood (3–3) Wakefield (9–15) — Fenway Park 32,865 67–69 L2 137 August 31 Braves 3–7 Glavine (12–6) Avery (6–6) — Fenway Park 33,147 67–70 L3
September: 11–14 # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record Streak 138 September 1 @ Expos 2–4 (10) Urbina (4–8) Hudson (3–1) — Olympic Stadium 29,024 67–71 L4 139 September 2 @ Expos 5–6 DeHart (1–1) Brandenburg (0–2) Urbina (24) Olympic Stadium 12,538 67–72 L5 140 September 3 @ Expos 1–0 Pérez (12–10) Sele (12–12) — Olympic Stadium 11,509 67–73 L6 141 September 5 Brewers 1–7 Eldred (12–12) Suppan (6–2) — Fenway Park 27,522 67–74 L7 142 September 6 Brewers 10–2 Wakefield (10–15) Harnisch (0–2) — Fenway Park 28,686 68–74 W1 143 September 7 Brewers 11–2 Henry (6–2) D'Amico (8–5) — Fenway Park 27,731 69–74 W2 144 September 9 Yankees 6–8 Banks (1–0) Lowe (2–5) Rivera (41) Fenway Park 32,355 69–75 L1 145 September 10 Yankees 5–2 Sele (13–12) Wells (14–10) Gordon (5) Fenway Park 31,011 70–75 W1 146 September 12 @ Brewers 4–2 Suppan (7–2) D'Amico (8–6) Gordon (6) Milwaukee County Stadium 22,079 71–75 W2 147 September 13 @ Brewers 2–1 Wakefield (11–15) Karl (10–12) Gordon (7) Milwaukee County Stadium 22,288 72–75 W3 148 September 14 @ Brewers 2–1 Henry (7–2) Mercedes (6–10) Gordon (8) Milwaukee County Stadium 28,633 73–75 W4 149 September 15 @ Yankees 6–7 Rivera (5–4) Corsi (3–2) — Yankee Stadium 25,873 73–76 L1 150 September 16 (1) @ Yankees 0–2 Pettitte (18–7) Wasdin (4–6) Rivera (42) Yankee Stadium — 73–77 L2 151 September 16 (2) @ Yankees 3–4 Banks (2–0) Checo (0–1) Rivera (43) Yankee Stadium 29,145 73–78 L3 152 September 17 Blue Jays 4–3 Mahay (3–0) Quantrill (6–7) Gordon (9) Fenway Park 23,648 74–78 W1 153 September 18 Blue Jays 3–2 Corsi (4–2) Escobar (3–2) — Fenway Park 27,990 75–78 W2 154 September 19 White Sox 4–5 Foulke (4–5) Lowe (2–6) Castillo (3) Fenway Park 27,647 75–79 L1 155 September 20 White Sox 4–6 McElroy (1–3) Avery (6–7) Castillo (4) Fenway Park 30,549 75–80 L2 156 September 21 White Sox 5–2 Corsi (5–2) Fordham (0–1) Gordon (10) Fenway Park 27,229 76–80 W1 157 September 23 @ Tigers 0–6 Keagle (3–4) Suppan (7–3) — Tiger Stadium 43,039 76–81 L1 158 September 24 @ Tigers 9–2 Wakefield (12–15) Blair (16–8) — Tiger Stadium 10,067 77–81 W1 159 September 25 @ Tigers 3–1 Checo (1–1) Sanders (6–14) Gordon (11) Tiger Stadium 14,495 78–81 W2 160 September 26 @ Blue Jays 0–3 Williams (9–14) Henry (7–3) — SkyDome 34,155 78–82 L1 161 September 27 @ Blue Jays 5–12 Janzen (2–1) Corsi (5–3) — SkyDome 37,401 78–83 L2 162 September 28 @ Blue Jays 2–3 Plesac (2–4) Gordon (6–10) — SkyDome 40,251 78–84 L3
Reference: [7]

Awards and honors

• Nomar Garciaparra – Silver Slugger Award (SS), American League Rookie of the Year

All-Star Game

• Nomar Garciaparra, reserve SS

Farm system

See also: Minor League Baseball

This was the first season that the Red Sox fielded their own team in the Dominican Summer League.

Level	Team	League	Manager
AAA	Pawtucket Red Sox	International League	Ken Macha
AA	Trenton Thunder	Eastern League	DeMarlo Hale
A-Advanced	Sarasota Red Sox	Florida State League	Rob Derksen
A	Michigan Battle Cats	Midwest League	Billy Gardner Jr.
A-Short Season	Lowell Spinners	New York–Penn League	Dick Berardino
Rookie	GCL Red Sox	Gulf Coast League	Luis Aguayo
Rookie	DSL Red Sox	Dominican Summer League	Nelson Norman

Source: ^{[8] [9]}

References

1. "Team Batting Season Finder: For Single Seasons, from 1871 to 2018, At Bats>=5750, Standard statistics, Sorted by greatest At Bats". Baseball Reference. Retrieved June 15, 2018.
2. Bret Saberhagen Statistics - Baseball-Reference.com
3. Steve Avery Statistics - Baseball-Reference.com
4. Mike Benjamin Statistics - Baseball-Reference.com
5. Curtis Pride Statistics and History - Baseball-Reference.com
6. "The Official Site of The Boston Red Sox: Community: Wally". Archived from the original on October 20, 2006. Retrieved July 4, 2008.
7. "1997 Boston Red Sox Schedule". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved August 25, 2019.
8. Johnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, ed., The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, 3rd edition. Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America, 2007
9. Boston Red Sox Media Guide. 1997. p. 260. Retrieved March 14, 2021– via Wayback Machine.

External links

• 1997 Boston Red Sox team page at Baseball Reference
• 1997 Boston Red Sox season at baseball-almanac.com