Wade Boggs Reveals He Would've Accepted Contract To Stay In Boston If Not For Unfortunate Accident

Boggs should have finished his career in Boston

Scott Neville | Apr 20, 2023

Wade Boggs Reveals He Would've Accepted Contract To Stay In Boston If Not For Unfortunate Accident /

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First-Ballot Hall of Famer Wade Boggs was a homegrown star that spent the first 11 seasons of his 18-year career with the Boston Red Sox.

Boggs recently revealed that he was very close to staying in Boston for his entire career.

"It wasn't that I didn't want to stay (in Boston), that was far from the point," Boggs told Steve Perrault and Joey Copponi while appearing on our very own ITM Podcast on Wednesday. "Mrs. Yawkey offered me a contract at the end of the 1991 season and it was a seven-year deal for $37 million. I told her right then, 'Where's the pen and napkin, I'll sign it right now.' I wish I had because it would have been binding. Then she slips in the tub in January and eventually dies (a month later)."

Boggs then explained that after Mrs. Yawkey passed, he went into the following season without a contract and Boston let him walk in free agency.

As the 12-time All-Star noted, the offer was for seven years, the exact amount of time he would go on to play between the New York Yankees and Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

Boggs hit .307 with 203 extra-base hits including 33 home runs, an astounding 275-to-408 strikeout-to-walk ratio and .790 OPS in 814 games in those last seven seasons.

Boston passed on a player who also racked up four All-Star games, two Silver Sluggers and two Gold Gloves in that span.

It would have been special if Boggs played his entire career in Boston but the Red Sox did see the bulk of his prime.

Boggs resurfaced in this interview to call out Pabst Blue Ribbon for stealing his likeness to create their mascot Cool Blue.

Boggs has decided to go public with his claims, dropping a video exposé, and demanding beer justice for baseball fans and beer drinkers across the country. To see the all-time greats argument, visit his site here.

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Published Apr 20, 2023

SCOTT NEVILLE

Scott Neville covers the Boston Red Sox for Sports Illustrated's new page "Inside The Red Sox." Before starting "Inside The Red Sox", Neville attended Merrimack College, where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Communication and Media with a minor in Marketing. Neville spent all four years with Merrimack's radio station WMCK, where he grew as a radio/podcast host and producer. His propensity for being in front of a microphone eventually expanded to film, where he produced multiple short films alongside his then-roommate and current co-worker Stephen Mottram. On a journey that began as a way to receive easy credits via film classes, he received a call from "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" star Charlie Day. Day advised him to make a feature-length film, which he completed his senior year. While writing the film, Neville completed an internship for United Way as part of their NFL Partnership Program. Neville ran the blog for a team of interns and hosted an internet show called "United Way's NFL Partnership Series" where he interviewed NFL alumni. After college Neville wrote for SB Nation's "Over The Monster," a Red Sox sister site of the flagship brand. His work would eventually lead him to a job as a content producer with NESN, where he would cover all sports. After developing as a writer with the top regional network in the world, he was given the opportunity to join the Sports Illustrated Media Group in his current endeavor as the publisher of "Inside The Red Sox." The successful launch and quick rise of "Inside The Red Sox" led to Neville joining the Baseball Essential ownership group, a national baseball site under SIMG. Follow him on Twitter: @ScottNeville46 Email: nevilles@merrimack.edu