Has 3 daughters: Alexandra Rose (1/14/00), Kendall Anne (9/30/01) and Caroline Morgan (6/13/05)...Is a 1990 graduate of Lake Brantley High School in Longwood, FL, where he was primarily a third baseman...Attended Georgia Tech, where he was a 3-time All-American and was named Baseball America's College Player of the Year in 1993...The publication later named him to its All-Time College All-Star Team...Was 1 of 3 baseball players among Georgia Tech's 50 Greatest Athletes of the 20th Century, and his No. 33 is the only jersey retired in school history...Continues to hold most Georgia Tech offensive records...Drafted by the Twins in the first round (21st overall) in 1993, but returned to school...Was a member of the 1992 U.S. Olympic baseball team in Barcelona...Inducted into the Cape Cod League Hall of Fame in 2002.
2011
Completed his 15th season with Boston, becoming the 4th-longest tenured Red Sox without ever playing for another Major League team behind Carl Yastrzemski (23 seasons), Ted Williams (19) and Jim Rice (16)...Joins the Yankees Jorge Posada as the only players to catch a game for a single team in all 15 seasons since 1997...Ivan Rodriguez is the only other player with at least 1 game caught overall in each of those 15 years...At 3.52, finished with the 4th-best catcher ERA in the AL among players with 50 games at the position...Knocked 11 homers, his 11th season with double-digit home runs, extending his lead for the most ever by a Red Sox catcher (Carlton Fisk, 9)...His 68 games marked his fewest in a full season without a stint on the disabled list...Made 64 starts behind the plate with the Red Sox going 42-22 in those games...Ended the season with 757 career RBI, 10th all-time among Red Sox...Moved past Mike Greenwell (726), Jackie Jensen (733), Joe Cronin (737) and Mo Vaughn (752) over the course of the season...Notched a sac bunt on 4/16 vs. TOR, his 1st sac hit since 4/23/06 at TOR...Finished with 3 sac hits, tied with Jacoby Ellsbury for 2nd-most on the team behind Marco Scutaro (7) and his most since he had 5 in 2003...RBI-double in the 6th on 4/23 at LAA snapped an 0-for-19 slump...Was 1st RBI since 6/29/10 vs. TB, ending a stretch of 13 tilts (with a PA) without driving in a run, the 2nd-longest drought of his career (14, 6/27-7/11/99)...Tallied a .333 clip (15-for-45) with 3 doubles, 2 homers, 7 RBI, 8 runs and 5 walks in 14 May games...Batted .309 (25-for-81) in 25 contests over May and June compared to .170 (24-for-141) over the other 4 months...In 8 Interleague games, hit .333 (9-for-27) with 4 extra-base hits (2 2B, 2 HR), 4 RBI and 4 runs...Posted a season-high, 8-game hit streak from 5/14-31 over which he hit .379 (11-for-29) with a double, 2 homers, 6 RBI, 5 runs and 3 walks...Marked his longest hit streak since a 9-gamer from 4/21-5/4/06...Played his 1,500th career game on 5/21 vs. CHC, becoming the 9th player ever to reach the mark with the Red Sox...Knocked his 1st homer of the season on 5/24 at CLE, his 1st since 5/30/10 vs. KC, ending a homerless stretch of 117 at-bats, the 3rd-longest drought of his career...Became the 1st player age 39 or older (39 years/43 days) to hit a homer for the Red Sox since Ellis Burks hit his final career homer for Boston at 39/210 on 4/8/04...Threw out 2 attempted base stealers in that 5/24 game at CLE, tying career high for 50th time (last 9/14/10 at SEA)...Collected his 300th career double on 5/29 at DET (GM 2) to become just the 6th catcher in AL history to reach 300 doubles and 150 homers...Was the 4th Major League backstop to reach those marks while playing for only 1 Major League team, joining Johnny Bench (CIN), Bill Dickey (NYY) and Jorge Posada (NYY)...Homered on 5/31 vs. CWS at 39 years/50 days, making him the oldest Sox catcher ever to homer at Fenway...Hit 4 more roundtrippers at home after that with the last coming on 8/31 vs. NYY at 39/142...Ejected in the top of the 9th on 6/4 vs. OAK by home-plate umpire Tony Randazzo...Marked 5th-career ejection...Drove in a season-high 4 RBI on 6/11 at TOR, including a 3-run homer in the 5th inning...Clubbed 2 homers on 6/30 at PHI, his 11th career multi-HR game (10th with 2 home runs)...At 39 years/80 days old, became the oldest Red Sox catcher ever with a multi-HR game, and the oldest Boston player since Andre Dawson hit 2 at 39/350 on 6/25/94...Started in the 5-hole in that game, the highest in the order he has started since also hitting 5th on 7/8/07 at DET...Caught all 16 innings of Boston's 1-0 shutout win at TB on 7/17, his most innings behind the plate since a career-high 18.1 frames on 7/9/06 at CWS...Passed Nomar Garciaparra for 10th place on the Red Sox all-time extra-base hits list with a homer on 8/16 vs. TB (GM 2) for his 508th career extra-base knock...Ended the season at 513...Notched an RBI-triple in the 5th inning of the Sox 6-1 win on 8/21 at KC...It marked his 14th career triple and 1st since 6/24/07 at SD...At 39 years/132 days old, was the oldest catcher to record a 3-bagger since Benito Santiago at 40/26 with Pittsburgh on 4/4/05 vs. MIL...Since 1983, the only other Sox to triple at 39 or older was Rickey Henderson, 5/27/02 at TOR (43/153)...Hit his 11th and last homer of the year on 9/8 at TOR at 39 years/150 days old...Elston Howard is only other Sox catcher to homer at an older age with his last 2 coming at 39/154 on 7/26/68 at WSH and 39/183 on 8/24/68 at BAL...Was hit by a pitch on the right knee on 9/25 at NYY (GM 2) and eventually left the game...Did not play in the Sox final 3-game series at BAL, 9/26-28.
2010
Appeared in just 39 games, lowest total since 1997 (1)...Missed 58 games on the DL with a right foot fracture Appeared behind the plate in all 39 contests, including 27 starts, and made no errors in 255 total chances...Homered once every 16.00 at-bats (7 HR/112 AB), 10th in the AL (min. 100 AB)...Hit his 7th homer against KC on 5/30 in his 63rd at-bat, the fastest a Sox catcher has ever reached 7 long balls in a season...Of his 7 homers, 5 came after his 38th birthday...Elston Howard (6) is the only Red Sox catcher with more such home runs...Half of 26 hits went for extra bases (6 doubles, 7 homers), matching his 2009 mark (38 XBH in 76 hits) for the highest extra-base hit percentage of his career...Made 1st appearance of the season with a start on 4/10 at KC and hit 2 homers in 4 at-bats for his 10th multi-homer game of his career, 1 shy of Carlton Fisk (11) for the club record by a catcher...Also homered in his 2nd game, becoming the 1st Sox to homer for each of his 1st 3 hits to begin a season since Mike Greenwell in 1985 (3 HR)...Caught 2 attempted base stealers on both 6/24 at COL and 9/14 at SEA, his most such tilts in any single season since 2007 (3)...Suffered a right foot fracture on 6/30 vs. TB on a foul ball when he was behind the plate...Placed on the DL 7/2 (retro to 7/1)...Made a 2-game rehab stint with Triple-A Pawtucket before being activated on 9/6...Appeared in only 5 games (4 GS) the rest of the way.
2009
Tallied 14 homers in 109 games while leading the AL with a 3.87 catcher ERA...Hit 14 home runs, reaching double digits in homers for 8 straight seasons and 10th time overall...Carlton Fisk (18), Ivan Rodriguez (14), Yogi Berra (14), Lance Parrish (13) and Jorge Posada (11) are the only AL catchers with more 10+ homer seasons...Reached base safely in 86 of his 109 games, including 84 of his 106 starts...38 of his 76 hits (50 percent) went for extra bases...Hit .267 (27-for-101) over 28 games from 4/28-6/6, but batted .179 (38-for-212) in 67 games over the remainder of the season, including a .130 (13-for-100) clip over his final 31 games beginning 7/31...Led the AL and ranked 5th in the Majors with a 3.87 catcher ERA...Finished 2nd among AL catchers with a .997 fielding percentage (3 E/896 TC), percentage points behind DET's Gerald Laird (.997)...Led the AL with 108 stolen bases against and was behind the plate for a pair of 8-steal games, 5/3 at TB and 8/15 at TEX...Appeared in 30 of the club's 60 games after the arrival of Victor Martinez on 8/1, including 28 starts...Knocked 3rd career grand slam on 4/25 vs. NYY...Hit 2 roundtrippers on 5/28 at MIN, 9th career multi-homer effort...Also had 2 long balls 5/20 vs. TOR...Is the 1st Sox catcher to record 2 multi-homer games in less than 10 days since Carlton Fisk did it in a 3-day span, 9/6-9/8/77...Doubled twice on 6/20 vs. ATL to move past Nomar Garciaparra (279) on the club's all-time list...Passed Jackie Jensen (170) in home runs with 2 blasts on 5/28 at MIN...Played in his 1,400th career game on 7/19 at TOR, passing Dom DiMaggio (1,399) for 9th on the club's all-time list...Made his 10th Opening Day start for Boston on 4/7, the most ever by a Sox catcher...Overall, is tied for 8th in club history with Wade Boggs and Dom DiMaggio...Belted his 2nd career Opening Day homer...In club history, only Carl Yastrzemski (6), Dwight Evans (5), Jim Rice (3) and Ted Williams (3) have more long balls in the 1st game of the season.
2008
Appeared in 131 games behind the plate (120 starts), his most contests since 2005
(137)...Struggled at the plate for most of the season, hitting a career low .220 (93-for-423), 3rd lowest among A.L. players with at least 400 at-bats...Became the Red Sox' all-time leader for
home runs by a catcher (158) and extended his team mark for games caught to 1,273.
BATTING NOTES: His previous lowest average was .238 in 2006...Was the lowest average for a Red
Sox with at least 400 at-bats since Tony Armas hit .218 in 574 AB in 1983...Had a .247 (23-for-93)
average in his first 28 games through May 7...Batted .417 (15-for-36) over his next 11 contests,
reaching a season-best .295 on May 21...Hit .167 (31-for-186) over next 61 games, dropping to
.212 through August 14...Went hitless in a career-high 24 straight at-bats, June 11-22...Was 13-
for-35 (.371) in a 10-game stretch from August 16-29 but was just 5-for-39 in final 15 contests.
HOMERS/RBI: Tied for 4th among A.L. catchers with 13 homers...Homer on September 15 at
Tampa Bay was his 158th while catching, passing Carlton Fisk for the all-time club lead...Homered
in 3 straight games for first time in his major league career, August 18-22...Hit 9 of 13 homers on
the road...Of his 8 go-ahead RBI, 4 came in the 7th inning or later, including a walk-off single in
the 9th on April 30 vs. Toronto.
ON DEFENSE: Finished 2nd among A.L. qualifying catchers with a .9958 (4 E/949 TC) fielding percentage
to Minnesota's Joe Mauer (.997)...Was his best figure since 2004 (.998)...Was 3rd among
A.L. backstops in total chances and catchers' ERA (3.66) and tied 3rd in games (131)...Threw out
13 of 69 runners attempting to steal (18.8 percent) and had 4 passed balls...Did not commit an
error in first 43 games and over his final 43 contests.
ODDS AND ENDS: Was 1-for-4 as a pinch-hitter, a game-winning 9th-inning homer on April 15 at
Cleveland...Was his 3rd career pinch homer, tied for 5th in club history with Joe Cronin and Olaf
Henriksen...Is a .293 (29-for-99) career pinch-hitter...Hit .284 (27-for-95) vs. lefties but a careerlow
.201 (66-for-328) against righties...Was the majors' lowest average against righthanders (minimum
300 AB)...Hit .175 (21-for-120) with runners in scoring position and was 1-for-16 with the
bases loaded...Missed 5 straight games in April and 3 contests in a row in June due to illness.
2007
SUMMARY: Enjoyed a healthy season and finished 4th on the Red Sox with 17 homers...He also
tied for 4th with 71 walks and ranked 6th with 68 RBI...Started 121 games behind the plate, 3rd
most of any A.L. catcher, and led the league with a club record 982 total chances.
BATTING: Had a slow start, batting .225 in 1st 21 games through May 1...Posted a .367 (18-49)
average over next 14 games to improve to season best .283 on May 22...Batted .265 (47-177) in his
next 53 games and was at .273 through August 4...Hit just .225 (34-151) over last 48 games...Tied
career best with 4 hits, May 8 at Toronto...Longest hitting streak was 5 games on 3 occasions.
HOMERS/RBI: His 17 homers ranked 4th among A.L. catchers and were 5 more than in 2006...
Homered in consecutive games, September 21-22 at Tampa Bay...September 22 blast tied game
in 9th as Boston went on to win and clinch playoff spot...Homered 3 times in 5-game span, May
27-June 2 with 3 in 6 games, September 21-27...Hit the Red Sox' 4th and final consecutive homer
on the 3rd inning to tie major league record on April 22 vs. the Yankees...His bat from that blast
was sent to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown...Placed 3rd among
A.L. catchers with 66 RBI, 11 more than in 2006.
FIELDING: Had a .994 fielding percentage (6 E/982 TC), 6th best in the league, in 125 total games
behind the plate...Committed just one error in his final 78 games...Threw out 23.2% (19 of 82)
of attempted basestealers.
Was behind the plate for Clay Buchholz' no-hitter on September 2 versus Baltimore...Was his 3rd
no-hitter to catch, the others being Hideo Nomo in 2001 and Derek Lowe in 2002...Is one of 12
catchers to be behind the plate for 3 regulation no-hitters since 1900.
2007 NOTES: Was 3-for-7 as a pinch-hitter and has a career pinch average of .295 (28-95)...Ranks
2nd among Red Sox players in pinch hits and average since 1974 behind Rick Miller (49/.297)...Led
the Red Sox in strikeouts (122), his 2nd most ever in a season (126 in 2004).
POST-SEASON PERFORMER: Is Boston's all-time postseason
leader in games (53) and at bats (194), ranks
2nd in doubles (12) and runs (33), and is 3rd in hits
(50), homers (10) and RBI (32)...Has appeared in 42
of Boston's last 43 playoff games beginning in 2003,
batting .268 (40-149) with 8 home runs, 27 RBI and
25 runs scored.
Appeared in all 14 of Boston's post-season games in
2007, including 13 starts at catcher...The lone game
he did not start was Game 4 of the ALCS at Cleveland,
as Doug Mirabelli was behind the plate for Tim
Wakefield's start on the mound...At the plate, Varitek
batted .269 (14-52) with 5 doubles, a home run,
10 RBI, 6 runs and 3 walks...Went 8-for-19 (.421) with
5 RBI and 4 runs in his final 5 games after batting
just .182 (6-33) in his first 9 post-season contests...Hit
safely in 10 of the 14 games overall...Homer in Game
3 of the ALCS at Cleveland off Jake Westbrook was
Varitek's 10th career post-season blast, tied with
Johnny Bench and Javy Lopez for most ever by a
catcher (while catching in game).
2006
SUMMARY: Was limited by a left knee injury to only 103 games, his lowest total since 2001 (51
games)...batted .238 with 19 doubles, 12 home runs, 55 RBI and 46 runs scored...drew 46 walks,
contributing to his .325 on-base percentage...marked his 5th straight season with double digits
in home runs...has accomplished the feat in 7 of the last 8 seasons...however, his batting average
was the lowest of his major league career, 10 percentage points below his 2000 mark of .248.
KNEE DEEP: Was placed on the 15-day disabled list on August 1 with torn cartilage in his left
knee that required surgery on August 3...was activated on September 3 after appearing in 2
rehab games for Triple-A Pawtucket, going 3-for-7 (.429) with a homer, RBI and 2 runs scored...was batting .243 with 11 homers and 50 RBI in 85 games at the time of the D.L. stint and hit .213
(13-for-61) with a homer and 5 RBI in 18 games after being reinstated.
TRENDS: Batted just .228 (29-for-127) in his first 38 games through May 24, but lifted his season
mark to .262 after hitting .320 (24-for-75) in his next 20 contests ending June 21...hit just .209
(34-for-163) over his final 45 games to finish at .238...of his 55 RBI, 23 came in 7 games (2 4-RBI;
5 3-RBI).
INSIDE THE NUMBERS: The switch-hitter batted .242 (57-for-236) from the left side and .233 (30-
for-129) from the right...hit .276 (16-for-58) with runners in scoring position and 2 outs...enjoyed
his most success from the No. 6 spot in the order, batting .285 (63-for-221) with 8 homers and 43
RBI in 58 games.
MORE 2006 HIGHLIGHTS: Established a career high with 4 runs scored on May 15 at Baltimore,
when he was 2-for-2 with a home run, 3 RBI and 3 walks...homered in back-to-back games on
July 21 and July 23 at Seattle...his home run on September 8 vs. KC was his first at home since a
May 7 grand slam vs. Baltimore, as his previous 9 homers had all come on the road...including his 2nd career grand slam May 7 vs. Baltimore, has hit 2 of Boston's last 5 slams (also August 4, 2005
vs. Kansas City)...September 20 matched his career high with his 2nd triple of the season...also
had 2 triples in 1999...has at least one triple in each of the last 8 seasons...had a season-high 3
hits 5 times.
WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC: Appeared in 3 games for Team USA in the inaugural World Baseball
Classic, going 2-for-7 (.286) with a homer, 4 RBI and a run scored...his home run was a grand
slam off Canada's Eric Cyr in an 8-6 loss on March 8.
2005
SUMMARY: An All-Star starter for the first time in his career, Varitek batted .281 with 22 home runs and 70 RBI in 133 games for the Red Sox...earned his first career Silver Slugger Award as well as his first Rawlings Gold Glove Award.
SEEING STARS: Was voted to start the All-Star Game for the first time in his career...selected
for the 2nd time (did not play in the 2003 Mid-Summer Classic), Varitek went 1-for-1 with
a walk and a run scored in the July 12 All-Star Game at Comerica Park in his native
Detroit...delivered an infield single to short off John Smoltz in the 2nd inning...walked against Livan Hernandez and came around to score in the 4th.
AND THE WINNER IS...: Was honored as the league's best offensive catcher, taking home his first career Silver Slugger Award, as well as the league's best defensive catcher, earning
his first Rawlings Gold Glove...is the first Red Sox catcher to receive a Silver Slugger honor
(presented since 1980)...is the 3rd Red Sox backstop to take home a Gold Glove, joining
Carlton Fisk (1972) and Tony Pena (1991)...Varitek's Gold Glove was the first by any Red Sox player since Pena's honor 14 years earlier...in 2005, only 3 other major leaguers won
both a Silver Slugger Award and a Gold Glove: Andruw Jones of the Braves, Derrek Lee of
the Cubs and Mark Teixeira of the Rangers.
HAPPY HUNDREDTH: Became the 26th Red Sox to hit 100 home runs when he went deep
off the Yankees' Randy Johnson April 14 at Fenway...the 4th-inning solo homer came on
the first pitch and tied the game 5-5...the Sox went on to win the game 8-5 with Varitek
adding a 2-run triple off Tom Gordon in the decisive 3-run 8th...finished the year with 119
home runs, tied for 22nd on the club's all-time list with Hall of Famer Joe Cronin and
teammate David Ortiz.
PATIENCE IS A VIRTUE: Led the club with a career-high average of 4.15 pitches seen per
plate appearance, tied for 6th most in the A.L...the Red Sox collectively led the majors in
2005 with an average of 3.86 pitches seen per plate appearance.
HEROICS: On the 2nd day of the season, April 5 at New York, hit a one-out solo homer in
the top of the 9th off Mariano Rivera to tie the Yankees 3-3...the long ball, his first of the
year, came on a 1-2 pitch...Derek Jeter led off the bottom of the 9th with a homer of his
own to give New York the win...slammed his 2nd career walk-off homer, the team's 2nd in
as many nights, May 11 off Oakland's Octavio Dotel...the one-out, 2-run blast just inside
the right field foul pole gave the Sox a 6-5 win and a 3-game series sweep after Oakland
has scored 4 in the top of the 9th...Tek's previous walk-off homer was May 13, 2001 vs.
Oakland off Jeff Tam.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS: The switch hitter batted .320 (39-for-122) with 9 homers from the
right side (vs. lefties) and .267 (93-for-348) with 13 homers from the left side (vs.
righthanders)...never saw his average dip below .297 until September 5...a .307 hitter with
16 homers and 45 RBI in 87 games through the end of July, he batted .232 (38-for-164)
with 6 homers and 25 RBI in 45 games from August 1 through the end of the season...hit
.312 (77-for-247) with 15 home runs on the road and .247 (55-for-223) with 7 long balls
at Fenway...batted .407 (22-for-54) with 3 homers and 9 RBI in 16 interleague games
against the National League...ranked 4th in the majors in interleague batting...hit 4 homers
and knocked in 11 in 15 games against the Yankees...drove in 10 runs in 16 games vs.
Baltimore...threw out 16 of 81 runners attempting to steal (20 percent)...was charged with
7 passed balls (4 with knuckleballer Tim Wakefield on the mound).
MORE 2005 HIGHLIGHTS: Went 3-for-4 with a double on Opening Night, April 3 at New York...April 20 at Baltimore, went 2-for-4 with a 3-run homer and 3 RBI in an 8-0 win...his 6th-inning long ball broke open a 1-0 game...hit his first career grand slam in an 8-run 4th in an 11-9 win August 4 vs. Kansas City...the shot came off Leo Nunez...finished with 5
RBI...hit a game-tying 2-run homer in the 5th inning August 12 vs. Chicago (AL)...the Sox
went on to build a 9-5 lead before hanging on to win 9-8...began September 6-for-51 (.118)
with no homers and 3 RBI in 15 games from September 1-19, dropping his average to .280
from .301...rebounded with hits his first 4 times up September 20 at Tampa Bay, finishing
4-for-5 with 2 RBI in a 15-2 win.
IN THE POSTSEASON: Went 3-for-10 (.300) with an RBI and a run scored in 3 games in
the ALDS vs. Chicago...had a hit and a run scored in Game 1, and went 2-for-4 with an RBI
in Game 2...started Games 1 and 2...pinch hit and remained in the game behind the plate
in Game 3, which was started by Doug Mirabelli with Tim Wakefield on the mound.
2004
SUMMARY: On the strength of a quick start and an August surge, batted a career-best .296
with 18 home runs and 73 RBI in 137 games...his 2004 average was 23 points higher than
his previous career high...also established personal bests with 137 hits, 62 walks and 10
stolen bases, finishing 2nd on the team in steals, 9 behind Sox leader Johnny Damon...his
.390 on-base percentage, 10th-best in the A.L., was another career best.
HEROICS: Capped a dramatic come-from-behind victory May 7 vs. Kansas City, doubling
home Manny Ramirez in the 9th for the winning run as the Sox battled back from a 6-2 deficit
by scoring 2 in the 8th and 3 in the 9th to win 7-6.
CENTRAL STAGE: Batted .379 (36-for-95) against the A.L. Central, .318 (34-for-107)
against the West and .260 (53-for-204) against the East.
ON A RUN: Had a 15-game hitting streak from August 17-September 10, one shy of his
2002 career high...batted .424 (25-for-59) with 8 doubles, 3 homers, 8 RBI, and 11 runs
during the tear, raising his average to .311 from .292...had multiple hits in 7 of 8 games
August 17-September 1, batting .500 (16-for-32) with a 1.000 slugging percentage.
3 TIMES OVER: Scored a career-high 3 runs in a game 3 times in 2004, finishing the year
having turned the trick 10 times in his career.
STOP, THIEF!: The 10 stolen bases by Varitek dwarfed his previous career high of 4 from
2002... swiped 2 bags May 8 vs. Kansas City, matching his single-game career high, also
accomplished May 3, 2003 vs. Minnesota.
NOT-SO-DOG-DAYS OF AUGUST: Ranked 2nd in the American League and 3rd in all of
baseball with a .449 (31-for-69) August batting average, trailing Seattle's Ichiro Suzuki
(.463) and San Francisco's J.T. Snow (.452).
WALK THIS WAY: Walked 9 times in
his first 7 games en route to his
career high of 62 bases on
balls...ranks 2nd among all big league
catchers with 109 walks over the
past 2 years, trailing only Jorge
Posada, who has a resounding 178.
CATCH THIS: With 130 games behind
the plate, has 788 in a Red Sox
uniform to rank 4th in club
history...Rich Gedman (857) is 3rd,
Sammy White ranks 2nd with 967 and
Carlton Fisk is first with 990...with
880 putouts, ran his career total to
5,278, most in Red Sox history...his 2004 putout total was 4th-highest in club annals...holds
the first- and 2nd-highest totals as well.
ETC.: The switch hitter batted .350 (48-for-137) with 6 homers and 26 RBI from the right
side (vs. lefties) and .273 (89-for-326) with 12 homers and 47 RBI from the left side (vs.
righthanders)....batted .336 (77-for-229) with 8 long balls and 41 RBI in 70 games at
Fenway and .256 (60-for-234) with 10 homers and 32 RBI on the road...batted .275 (72-
for-262) with 7 doubles prior to the All-Star break and .323 (65-for-201) with 17 doubles
after the Mid-Summer Classic...hit .337 (31-for-92) with 7 doubles, 6 homers and 12 walks
when leading off an inning...was 4-for-12 with 2 doubles and 4 RBI as a pinch hitter...was
suspended for 4 games and fined an undisclosed amount by Major League Baseball for an
altercation with Alex Rodriguez during Boston's 11-10 win over the Yankees July 24 at
Fenway Park...originally appealed the decision, but withdrew and sat out the 4 games from
August 23-26 (the Red Sox went 3-1).
IN THE POSTSEASON: Appeared in every game and started 13 of 14 post-season contests
behind the plate (all but Game 1 of the World Series, when Doug Mirabelli got the starting
nod for Tim Wakefield's lone post-season start)...hit .245 (13-for-53) in the post-season
with 3 homers and 11 RBI...went 2-for-12 (.167) in the ALDS vs. Anaheim, but, with the
Sox down 3-1 in the 6th in Game 2, launched a 2-run homer off Bartolo Colon to tie the
game they'd eventually win 8-3...hit
.321 (9-for-28) with a double, 2 homers,
7 RBI and 5 runs scored in the
ALCS against the Yankees...went 2-
for-4 with a homer and 2 RBI in Game
1...took Tanyon Sturtze deep with a
man on in the 7th...doubled in 3 atbats
in Game 2...was 2-for-3 with a
long ball, 2 RBI, and 3 runs in Game 3,
homering off Javier Vazquez with a
man on in the 7th...was 0-for-4 but
knocked in a pair of runs in Game
5...his sac fly off Mariano Rivera in the
8th capped a 2-run rally, hanging a
blown save on Rivera, as the Sox tied
the must-win game they'd eventually go on to win by a 5-4 score...had 3 hits, an RBI and
a run scored in 4 at-bats in the Game 6 win...went just 2-for-13 (.154) with 2 runs scored
in the World Series, but one of his hits was a 2-run triple with 2 outs in the first inning of
Game 2 that set Sox on their way to a 6-2 win.
2003
SUMMARY: Was selected to his first A.L. All-Star team and received the Thomas A. Yawkey Award, presented annually by the Boston chapter of the Baseball Writers' Association of America to the Red Sox MVP...established career highs with 25 home runs, 85 RBI and a .512 slugging percentage in 142 games, 2 shy of his 1999 career best...among major league catchers, ranked 2nd to Jorge Posada of the Yankees in home runs and
slugging and tied Florida's Ivan Rodriguez for 2nd, also behind Posada, in RBI...was
hitting .292 with 18 homers and 65 RBI at the end of July, but batted .237 with 7 homers
and 20 RBI in 49 August-September contests.
SEEING STARS: Although he did not appear in the game, Varitek was selected to his first
A.L. All-Star team in the etopps All-Star Final Vote on MLB.com...joined teammates
Manny Ramirez (who was chosen to start in fan balloting) and Nomar Garciaparra (who
was selected as a reserve in the first Player Vote) on the roster for the 74th All-Star
Game, which was played July 15 at U.S. Cellular Field in Chicago...more than 10.6
million votes were cast in the etopps Final Vote...Varitek outpolled White Sox first
baseman Frank Thomas, Yankees first baseman Jason Giambi, A's outfielder Eric Byrnes
and Angels catcher Bengie Molina.
CATCH THIS: With a career-best 25 home runs, Varitek became just the 2nd catcher in
Red Sox history to twice hit 20 homers in a season...only 2 others have done it
once...Carlton Fisk turned the trick 4 times (1972-73, 1977-78), Rich Gedman once
(1984) and Mike Stanley once (1996)...the only catchers to hit more in a season are Fisk,
who slammed 26 in 1973 and 1977; Gedman, who hit 24 in '84; and Stanley, who hit 24
in '96...his career-best 85 RBI were the 3rd-most RBI ever by a Boston catcher...Carlton
Fisk knocked in 102 in 1977 and 88 in 1978.
FIREWORKS ON THE FOURTH: Joined David Ortiz and Bill Mueller as one of 3 Red Sox to homer twice in a 10-3 win July 4 at Yankee Stadium...Jason finished 4-for-5 with 4 RBI...the 4 hits matched his career high for the 4th time...the 2-homer game was his 4th to go along with a 3-home run game...hit a 3-run shot off David Wells to erase a 2-0 deficit in the 3rd...touched Wells for a solo shot in the 6th...in all, the Sox hit 7 homers in
the game, most ever by an opponent at Yankee Stadium...it marked the 5th time the Red
Sox have hit as many as 7 long balls in a game and only the 2nd time in club history 3
players have hit multiple homers in the same game...on June 8, 1950, Bobby Doerr hit 3,
Walt Dropo 2 and Ted Williams 2 in a 29-4 win vs. St. Louis.
DOUBLE YOUR PLEASURE: The Sox connected for 11 sets of back-to-back home runs in 2003, and Varitek was involved in 6...according to SABR's David Vincent, only one Red Sox has been involved in more sets of back-to-back home runs in a season...George Scott was involved 7 times in 1977...the only other Boston player to participate in 6 sets was Manny Ramirez in 2001...Vern Stephens (1948), John Valentin (1995) and Ramirez
(2002) were each involved in 5 sets.
ALMOST A HERO: Came up with key hits to tie games or give the Red Sox late leads on
several occasions only to see the opposition rally: After the Sox had fallen behind 5-0,
Varitek slugged a solo home run in the top of the 9th to cap a comeback May 5 at Kansas
City, lifting Boston into a 6-5 lead...the Royals rallied with 2 in the bottom of the 9th,
however, to win...June 10 at Fenway, hit a game-tying 2-run homer off St. Louis' Kiko Calero
in the bottom of the 8th, but the Cards struck for 2 in the 9th for a 9-7 win...with the Sox
trailing St. Louis 3-0 in the bottom of the 9th 2 nights later, hit a pinch 2-run homer off
Cal Eldred to cut the deficit to 3-2...the Sox eventually tied it on a Nomar Garciaparra RBI
triple, before falling 8-7 in 13...the pinch homer was the 2nd of Varitek's career...hung a
blown save on Mariano Rivera, singling home Damian Jackson to tie the score in the 8th
July 25 at Fenway in a game the Yanks won 4-3 with a run in the 9th.
MORE 2003 HIGHLIGHTS: Launched a 428-foot 3-run homer off the catwalk above left
field at Tropicana Field to help the Sox overcome a 3-0 deficit in a 7-5 win April 2 at
Tampa Bay...trailing the Yankees 3-2 in the 4th May 20 at Fenway, hit a go-ahead 2-run
homer off Jeff Weaver, helping Boston to a 10-7 win...June 7 at Milwaukee, capped a
comeback from a 10-4 deficit by following a game-tying solo homer by Trot Nixon with a
go-ahead blast off Mike DeJean, lifting the Sox to an 11-10 victory...singled home
Johnny Damon with no outs in the 12th to give Boston a 2-1 win July 8 at Toronto...trailing
the Yankees 3-0 in the bottom of the 7th, Varitek slammed a 3-run homer off Chris
Hammond to inspire a 6-run inning en route to a 6-4 win.
ON THE DEFENSIVE: Appeared in 137 games behind the plate, making 119 starts...the
Red Sox went 72-46 (.610) when Varitek started at catcher...Red Sox pitchers posted a
4.46 ERA (533 ER/1075.1 IP) with him catching...gunned down 19 of 80 runners trying
to steal, 24 percent...was charged with 9 errors and 6 passed balls.
ETC.: The switch hitter batted .309 (42-for-136) with 10 homers from the right side (vs.
lefthanders) and .257 (81-for-315) with 15 homers from the left side (vs. righthanders)...hit .305 (67-for-220) with 13 homers and 49 RBI in 72
games at Fenway and .242 (56-for-231) with 12 homers and 36 RBI in 70 road contests...hit safely in 9 consecutive games June 24-July 4, lifting his
average to .306 from .272 by going 17-for-34 (.500) with 7 doubles, 5 homers, 15 RBI and 8 runs in the 9 games...batted .312 (49-for-157) with
12 homers and 40 RBI in 47 games in
June and July...his 7 homers in June
and his 20 RBI in both months matched
his career bests for a calendar month.
IN THE POSTSEASON: Appeared in 11
of the Red Sox' 12 post-season games,
starting 9 (all but Tim Wakefield's 3
starts)...hit .294 (10-for-34) with 2
doubles, 4 homers, 5 RBI and 8
runs...his 4 homers were 2nd on the
club to Todd Walker, and are tied for
2nd-most in club history in a single postseason...his 6 career post-season homers are
2nd-most in Sox history, one behind Nomar Garciaparra...appeared in all 5 games (4
starts) of the ALDS vs. Oakland, going 4-for-14 (.286) with 2 homers and 2 RBI...was on
base 4 times with a single, a 5th-inning homer off Tim Hudson and 2 walks in Game 1...hit
a game-tying solo homer off Barry Zito to ignite the decisive 4-run 6th in Game 5...batted
.300 (6-for-20) with 2 doubles, 2 homers, 3 RBI and 4 runs in 6 games (4 starts) in the
ALCS vs. New York...homered off Andy Pettitte in the 6th inning of Game 2 at Yankee
Stadium...sparked a 4-run 3rd inning with a leadoff homer off Pettitte in Game 6 as the
Red Sox evened the series...drove in a key insurance run with a pinch-hit fielder's choice
grounder in the 7th inning of Game 4 at Fenway...had 2 hits in both Game 2 and Game 7.
2002
After missing the final 4 months of 2001, came back to appear in 132 games, including 121 starts behind the plate...his 127 appearances at catcher were 3rd-most in the A.L., while his 121 starts behind the plate were 4th in the league...posted a .996 fielding percentage (4 errors in 970 chances), 3rd-best in a season by a Boston catcher...his 912 putouts were 2nd-most in a season in club annals, while his 970 total chances ranked 2nd in the A.L...got off to a quick start, hitting .318 with 4 doubles, 2 homers and 9 RBI in 17 April contests...went 3-for-3 with 2 walks, 2 RBI, 2 runs and his first career Opening Day
home run April 1 vs. Toronto...homered off Chris Carpenter...preserved 2 one-run victories
by throwing out runners attempting to steal...gunned down the Yankees' Alfonso Soriano
to end a 7-6 win April 13 at Fenway and nabbed Luis Ugueto to wrap up a 3-2 home win
over the Mariners May 19...matched his career best with 4 hits in game 2 of an April 21
doubleheader at Kansas City...finished 4-for-5 with 2 doubles and 3 RBI...went 3-for-5 with
a homer and a season-high 5 RBI May 8 at Oakland to cap a 12-game stretch in which
he knocked in 12 runs April 21-May 8...banged a career-best 3 doubles May 12 at
Seattle...hit a team-best .360 in 25 July games...had 7 doubles, a triple, 2 homers, 11 RBI
and 17 runs during the month, which was highlighted by a career-best 16-game hitting
streak July 14-31...hit .400 (24-for-60) with 5 doubles, a triple, 2 homers and 7 RBI during
the longest hitting streak by a Red Sox catcher since Carlton Fisk hit in 16 straight to end
the 1977 season...26 of his 61 RBI came with 2 outs, including 18 from July 2 through the
end of the season...threw out 31 of 112 potential base stealers (28 percent).
2001
Appeared in only 51 games before he fractured his right elbow on a diving catch of a foul pop up June 7 vs. Detroit...underwent season-ending surgery performed by Dr. Bill Morgan on June 12...was behind the plate for Hideo Nomo's no-hitter April 4 at Baltimore...his first long ball of the season was his first career walk-off blast, an 11th-inning shot off Jeff
Tam that gave the Sox a 5-4 win May 13 vs. Oakland...posted a career-best 3-homer, 7-RBI day in a 10-3 win May 20 at Kansas City...finished the day 4-for-4 with homers off Brian Meadows in the 2nd and 4th and off Mac Suzuki in the 8th...the 3-home run game was the first by a Red Sox since Trot Nixon turned the trick August 24, 1999 at Detroit...it was the 10th 3-homer game ever by an A.L. catcher...was named A.L. Player of the Week
for the week of May 14-20 after batting .444 with 4 homers, 10 RBI, a .474 on-base percentage and a 1.167 slugging percentage...threw out 35 percent (18-for-51) of runners attempting to steal...the Sox were 28-19 in his 47 starts behind the plate.
2000
Hit .248 with 10 homers and 65 RBI in 139 games...finished April with a .339 average, a .492 slugging percentage and a .444 on-base percentage...enjoyed a season-best 9-game hitting streak April 24-May 5...did not go hitless in back-to-back starts until June 3-5...clubbed a game-winning 2-run homer off Orlando Hernandez in the 6th inning of a 5-3 win June 13 at New York...went 2-for-4 with a double, a homer and a season-high 4 RBI June 17 vs. Toronto...finished 3-for-4 with a double, a homer, 3 RBI and a season-high 7 total bases in game one of a July 20 twinbill at Baltimore...snapped a 5-5 tie in the
8th with a game-winning 3-run homer off Kaz Sasaki July 31 at Seattle...had a career-high 9 at-bats, finishing with one hit, in a 19-inning 5-4 loss August 1 at Seattle...caught all 19 innings...threw out 23 percent of runners attempting to steal (34 of 148)...made 128
appearances (119 starts) behind the plate...the Sox were 70-49 in his starts...led A.L.
catchers with 14 passed balls, 9 with knuckleballer Tim Wakefield on the mound...underwent post-season surgery on his right wrist.
1999
Appeared in a career-high 144 games and established personal bests that still stand
with 483 at-bats, a team-high 39 doubles, 70 runs and 233 total bases...his 20 homers
and 76 RBI stood as career bests until 2003...his 39 doubles matched Carlton Fisk's 1978
total for most ever by a Red Sox catcher...hit .299 with 11 homers and 45 RBI after the All-Star Break...hit his first career triple May 5 vs. Texas off Rick Helling...posted his first career
4-hit game and slugged 2 homers in a 6-0 win May 19 vs. New York...finished 4-for-4 with
2 RBI and 3 runs...hit his first career pinch-hit homer, a 7th-inning game-tying 2-run shot
off Matt Anderson, May 31 vs. Detroit...the Sox went on to an 8-7 win...clocked a game-
winning homer off Jim Brower leading off the 13th September 15 at Cleveland...gunned down
26 percent (40 of 152) of runners attempting to steal...9 of his 20 homers tied the score
or put the Red Sox ahead, including 5 go-ahead shots in the season's final month...Boston
went 78-52 in his 130 starts...finished 2nd among A.L. catchers with 140 games and 130
starts...led M.L. catchers with 1,049 chances and 972 putouts...batted .238 (5-for-21) with
a homer and 3 RBI in 5 ALDS games vs. Cleveland and .200 (4-for-20) with a homer and
an RBI in 5 ALCS games vs. New York...was 4-for-5 with a 2-run homer, 3 RBI and a M.L.
post-season record 5 runs in the Red Sox' 23-7 Game 4 win vs. Cleveland in the
ALDS...hit a double and a triple in a 3-2 ALCS Game 2 loss at Yankee Stadium...homered
off Orlando Hernandez in the 8th inning of Boston's 6-1 Game 5 setback.
1998
In his first full M.L. season, was
named Red Sox Rookie of the Year by
the Boston baseball writers...batted
.253 with 7 homers and 33 RBI...the
Sox went 38-18 in his starts...was 1-for-5 in his first career start April 2 at
Oakland...delivered his first RBI April
10 vs. Seattle, and collected his first
steal May 8 at Kansas City...2 days
later, hit his first homer off the Royals'
Jose Rosado...posted his first 2-homer
game and knocked in 5 September 15
at New York...went 1-for-4 with an RBI
in Game 2 of the ALDS at Cleveland, his
lone appearance in the series.
1997
Started with Seattle's Triple-A
Tacoma club, but was acquired by the
Red Sox July 31...after 20 games at
Pawtucket, had his contract purchased
September 9...made his major league
debut September 24 at Detroit, delivering a 9th-inning pinch-hit single.
1996
Was named Player of the Year at Double-A Port City, batting .262 with 34 doubles,
12 homers and 67 RBI...led the club in doubles and homers, while ranking 2nd in RBI...led
Southern League catchers with a .993 fielding percentage, charged with only 5 errors in
108 games...played for Peoria in the Arizona Fall League.
1995
After being selected in the first round (14th overall) by the Mariners in 1994, made his pro debut with 104 games at Double-A Port City...hit his first pro homer May 7 vs. Jacksonville...hitting only .202 on June 12, went on a .364 (20-for-55) tear with 13 RBI June 14-30...following the season, batted .281 for Peoria in the AFL.
