Stark: Is David Ortiz having the greatest farewell season of all-time?
From SABR member Jayson Stark at ESPN.com on September 14, 2016:
Nearly 19,000 men have played baseball in the major leagues. I’ve decided that their careers all had one thing in common: Not one of them had a final season as spectacular as the grand finale currently being crafted by a man named David Americo Ortiz Arias.
Willie Mays hit .211 the year he said goodbye. Hank Aaron batted .229. Harmon Killebrew hit .199. Goose Gossage had a 4.18 ERA. Robin Roberts went 5-8, 4.82. John Smoltz and Phil Niekro both had ERAs north of 6.00. And that’s normal.
So keep that in mind as you watch Big Papi heading for the finish line. He leads the whole sport in slugging. He leads the whole sport in doubles (tied with Daniel Murphy). He leads the whole sport in OPS. And he’s 40 years old. Seriously?
Which means it’s time to begin actively debating a question I don’t ask lightly: Is this the greatest “retirement season” in baseball history — or even sports history? It just might be.
Read the full article here: http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/17536730/is-boston-red-sox-dh-david-ortiz-having-greatest-farewell-season-all
Originally published: September 14, 2016. Last Updated: September 14, 2016.