[Highlander]

Mel Ott- Master Melvin was drafted by the Boston Red Sox with the first pick of the 1925 draft.....two years after drafting Jimmie Foxx. Not a bad couple of picks! Ott debuted with the Red Sox in 1926 as a 17 year old and stayed with them until he retired in 1947.

Mel's numbers were-

10438 AB (38th), 3024 H (44th), .290 BA, .854 OPS (90th), 1803 R (27th), 475 doubles, 67 triples, 384 HR (T-72nd), 1695 RBI (36th), 86 SB, 102.8 WAR (25th)

Ott never quite became the big HR hitter he did in real life, but he was a consistent 20-25 HR guy who scored and drove in a lot of runs. He hit over 20 HR 11 times, with a high of 28. He scored 100+ runs 8 times and drove in 100+ 6 times. His best season was probably 1930, as a 21 year old. That year, he hit .354/.461/.586, 120 R, 44 doubles, 6 triples, 23 HR, 108 RBI, 9 SB, 7.8 WAR. He had a similar season the year before.

One interesting story! His career was pretty consistent up until 1943 when he suffered a pretty bad elbow injury that kept him out about a month and a half....then another two weeks due to a set back. He missed another two weeks due to a "tired arm", but the elbow was suspected. He only hit .213 that year and at age 34, people thought he was near the end. The following season, he played a pretty full season, but only hit .261 with 15 HR....the whispers of him being done increased. Then, in 1945, at age 36, he proved everyone wrong! He came back to hit .307/.409/.505, 76 R, 27 doubles, 1 triple, a league leading 25 HR and 100 RBI, and a league leading 7.7 WAR. His next season he hit .270, but still with a .400 OBP....then in his last season, he only played in 11 games and went 1-3. That 1945 season was a great way to show he would go out on his own terms, though.

Award-wise, Ott was certainly highly honored. He won one World Series and was named Playoff MVP. He won 9 Gold Glove Awards (most we've seen so far!), 6 Silver Sluggers, was a 6-time All-Star and was named MVP once. Obviously, he had a sure-fire HOF career and was voted in with 97.9% of the vote in his first year.