Trot Nixon's Last Stand

Well folks, this is it. My favorite baseball player of all time, the man who is responsible for me becoming a Red Sox fan, is today likely playing his last game in a Boston uniform. To be honest, I'm not exactly sure why I admire him so much. I have an idea, but it's difficult to explain. I'll give it a try.

In a way, he's a 32-year old version of myself, had many of my boyhood aspirations come true. Like me, he was born and raised in North Carolina, played right field for baseball, is Christian, and even has the same height and approximate weight. And like I once or still admire to be, he's an amazing athlete - batted .512 with a 0.40 ERA during his senior year of high school, broke school passing records held by former NFL quarterbacks, and was the number 7 overall pick in the MLB draft; he's a strong Christian who doesn't hesitate to publicly profess his faith - something I still struggle with at times; and has a beautiful wife and child - something every guy dreams of.

So that got more personal that I originally intended. Still, it's the best I can do to explain why he's my favorite ball player - so much so that I'd devote much of my life to rabidly pulling for the team he played for. Suffice it to say if Trot had by some miracle attended Wake Forest we'd be in a borderline idol worship scenario.

For those of you unfamiliar with the heroic exploits of Mr. Nixon upon the baseball diamond, I turn to this recent post from the Red Sox blog Brownie Points.

"July 24, 1999 – The rookie right fielder puts his name on the map by belting three homers at Detroit in an 11-4 win over the Tigers.

May 28, 2000 – Nixon snaps scoreless tie in epic Pedro Martinez-Roger Clemens duel at Yankee Stadium by taking the latter deep for a two-run homer with two outs in the top of the ninth. Martinez goes the distance to earn the 2-0 win. The next night, the Red Sox return to Fenway and Nixon gets a huge ovation in his first at-bat.

Sept. 1, 2003 – A wild and emotional comeback struggle at Philadelphia finally goes in Boston’s favor when Nixon snaps a 9-9 tie with a grand slam in the top of the ninth.

October 4, 2003 – A loss in Game 3 to the A’s would have swept the Red Sox out of this best-of-five Division Series. Instead, Nixon belts a walkoff homer off Rich Harden in the bottom of the 11th, sparking the win, and, eventually, a series comeback in five games.

October 15, 2003 – Nixon jumps on a Gabe White pinch and launches two-run homer into the upper deck in right at Yankee Stadium in Game 6 of the ALCS, icing the 9-6 victory that forces Game 7. Of course, he also took Roger deep to give the Sox a solid start to Game 7 but we all know what happened after that.

October 18, 2004 –- Down 4-2 in Game 5 of the ALCS, red-hot Hideki Matsui steps to the plate with the bases loaded and hammers a laser toward right field. It could have been a series-icing two-run double. Instead, Nixon makes a sliding catch to get the Red Sox out of that top of the sixth inning. In the bottom of the eighth, Nixon belts a hit-and-run single to move Dave Roberts to third. Roberts scored on a game-tying sacrifice fly. The Red Sox beat the Yankees in 14 innings, and wind up becoming the first team in postseason history to rally back from 3-0.

October 27, 2004 – Nixon opens up some breathing room for Derek Lowe in Game 4 of the World Series, unloading on a 3-0 pitch for a two-run double, leading the Red Sox to a 3-0 win over the Cardinals, and the clinching victory of the club’s first World Series championship since 1918."

So maybe you're wondering why I'm so sure today will be his last day as a Red Sox. Well, you might have noticed that none of these moments occured in either this season or the last. Sadly, Trot's production on the field is in a steadly decline. His OPS has fallen 40-90 points every season since his career year in 2003. His average home run total of 26 from '01-'03 has fallen to 9 from '04-'06. And maybe worst of all, Trot is having problems staying healthy. So with his contract expiring after this season, I can't blame Theo if he comes up empty when looking for reasons to re-sign him, especially when a guy like Wily Mo Pena is waiting in the wings.

So here's to you, Trot - hero of my heart, baron of baseball, saint of the crimson stockings. You're still a damn fine ball player, and whatever team you play for next season, with one notable, glaring exception, that team will automatically become my second favorite in all the land (sorry, St. Louis).

Soldier of swing, daredevil of the diamond, champion of- ok, that's enough.

Update #1 - Trot is scheduled to lead-off, but it's pouring down rain in Boston. Trot's last game might have been yesterday. :-(

Update #2 - while singing "rain rain go away," I've been tracking the tight AL batting champion race. Derek Jeter was slightly ahead earlier today, but Joe Mauer's double in the 4th might seal it for him. He's currently at .346, with Jeter at .344 and Robinson Cano at .343.

Update #3 - tarps are being cleared and the first pitch will be thrown shortly. I've got my Trot shirt, Trot jersey and Fenway-bought Red Sox cap on. Hey, it's the grand finale.

Update #4 - Trot went 1-3 with a run scored. His last at-bat was a deep fly out to right field. He was replaced in the top of the 5th with 2 outs, I'm sure to a standing ovation. They were just able to squeeze in five full innings of ball (making it official) before the grounds crew had to bring out the tarp again. I'd imagine the game will be called, which is too bad because Boston's starting picther had a no-hitter going. Boston's rain-delayed game is now the last one in the 2006 regular season.