| Ken Boswell | |
|---|---|
 Boswell in 1976 | |
| Second baseman | |
| Born: (1946-02-23)February 23, 1946 (age 79) Austin, Texas, U.S. | |
Batted: Left Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| September 18, 1967, for the New York Mets | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| October 1, 1977, for the Houston Astros | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .248 |
| Home runs | 31 |
| Runs batted in | 244 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Kenneth George Boswell (born February 23, 1946) is a formerMajor League Baseballsecond baseman.
Ken Boswell attendedWilliam B. Travis High School (Austin, Texas) and then the Mets drafted theSam Houston State University student in the fourth round of the1965 Major League Baseball draft. In three seasons in the aMets'farm system, Boswellbatted .273 with thirteenhome runs and 106runs batted in to earn a September call-up in1967.
Despite limited experience atthird base, Boswell made hismajor league debut on September 18 at third against theLos Angeles Dodgers. He handle all three chances on the field cleanly, and went 1-for-3 with asacrifice fly and adouble and three RBIs.[1] For the season, he batted .225 with four RBIs. On September 29, Boswell went 3-for-4 in the Mets' 5–1 defeat of the Dodgers.[2] The following day, he hit his first major league home run offHall of FamerDon Drysdale.[3]
Boswell spent the1968 season in a lefty/righty platoon at second base withPhil Linz. He batted .246 with four home runs and ten RBIs through June 24 when a broken finger sidelined him for the month of July and most of August. By season's end, he managed to raise his batting average up to .261 to be recognized as theTopps All-Star Rookie Team second baseman.
1969 got off to a terrible start for Boswell. In the season opener, and first game in franchise history for theMontreal Expos,[4] Boswell booted a firstinningground ball fromGary Sutherland that led to the first (unearned)run in the history of Canadian baseball. He committed a seconderror in the first onBob Bailey's double that allowed him to advance to third. He also committed an error on aCoco Laboy ground ball in the fifth, giving him three errors on the day.[5]
Boswell batted .250 with two home runs and eleven RBIs through the end of May when he left the club for a two-week military commitment. At the time, the Mets were 19–23, in third place in theNational League East, nine games back of theChicago Cubs. When he returned, the Mets were 30–26, and had jumped into second place, but were still 8.5 back of the Cubs.
In his first game back, Boswell scored the only run inGary Gentry's 1–0shutout of thePhiladelphia Phillies.[6] Two days later, his twooutsingle in the ninth inning drove in the tying and winning runs of the Mets' 6–5 victory over the Phillies.[7] His knack for key hits continued on July 2, when he drove in the winning run and scored an insurance run in anextra innings contest with theSt. Louis Cardinals.[8]
The Mets were 5.5 games back when they hosted the Cubs for a three-game set July 8–10. The Mets were losing the first game of the set 3–1 toFerguson Jenkins when Boswell pinch hit forJerry Koosman to lead off the ninth. He doubled, and came around to score onCleon Jones' double. The Mets would go on to win 4–3.[9]
Tom Seaver lost a pitchers' duel withBill Hands in the series opener when it was the Cubs' turn to host the Mets July 14–16.[10] The following day, Boswell's solo home run that put the Mets up 5–1 turned out to be the margin of victory in their 5–4 win.[11] Then he droveTommie Agee home with the first run, and came around to score on anEd Kranepool single in the Mets' four run first inning in the rubber game of the series. He turned adouble play in the bottom of the inning to thwart an early Cubs comeback. The game ended withBilly Williams andRon Santo both popping out to Boswell at second.[12] He also made a couple of base running errors that cost the Mets games.[13]
From there, Boswell fell into an all around slump. From July 26 to August 23, Boswell went into an 0-for-20 slump. On July 30, his error opened the door for a ten-run third inning for theHouston Astros.[14] He wouldn't take the field again until August 12, also against the Astros. In the sixth inning, he missed the relay on what would have been a double play. Instead, the Astros scored four runs that inning.[15]
From August 23 to September 7, Boswell was one of the hottest hitters on the hottest club in baseball. He batted .486 with four RBIs and six runs scored. The Mets were 2.5 back with the Cubs coming to Shea for two games. Boswell was held hitless, and grounded into two double plays in the first game. Despite this, the Mets won, 3–2.[16] The following day, Boswell went 2-for-4 with a double, two RBIs and a run scored in the Mets' 7–1 victory that moved them a half a game back of the Cubs.[17]
The Mets played adoubleheader with the Expos the next day. The first game went into extra innings. Boswell ended it in the twelfth with an RBI single that put the Mets in first place for the first time in franchise history.[18] In the second game, Boswell went 3-for-4 with atriple, RBI and run scored to make sure they stayed there.[19]
Over the remainder of the season, Boswell batted .333 on his way to career highs in runs (48), triples (7), batting average (.279) andslugging percentage (.381).
In game one of the1969 National League Championship Series against theAtlanta Braves, Boswell made a second-inning error that led to the Braves' first run. Coincidentally, he scored anunearned run in the Mets' five-run eighth that highlighted their game one win.[20]
He hit a two-run home run offMilt Pappas in game two, as the Mets headed home in the series up 2–0.[21] He drove in three in game three with a second two-run blast in the fourth and an RBI single in the fifth to help the Mets complete the sweep.[22] His five RBIs led the team.
With left-handersMike Cuellar andDave McNally pitching the first two games of theWorld Series for theBaltimore Orioles, Boswell didn't get a World Seriesat bat until game three againstJim Palmer. He singled, and came around to score a run onJerry Grote's double.[23] It would turn out to be his only appearance in the Mets' five-game win.
Aware that he was something of a defensive liability his first two seasons in the majors,[24] Boswell worked on his defense heading into the1970 season. His hard work culminated in a record 85-game errorless streak.[25] He only committed two errors on the season, and had an incredible .996fielding percentage. With the bat, Boswell had a career high 44 RBIs andwalked a career-high 41 times.
Heading into May, Boswell was batting below .200 when he went 3-for-5, and scored the game-winning run of the Mets' extra-innings 6–5 defeat of the Astros.[26] From July 15 to July 25, Boswell engaged in a ten-game hitting streak in which he batted .439 with eight RBIs and eight runs scored. Shoulder tendinitis hampered him toward the end of the season, but he still had a career-high 107 hits in a career-high 116 games.
The shoulder issues continued into1972. He was batting just .187 when a stretch from June 25 through July 31, in which Boswell went 1-for 37, dropped his average to .155. A hot month of September brought his average above .200, and on the last day of the season, Boswell went 4-for-6 with three RBIs, including the game winner.[27] This performance brought his season average up to .210, a 63-point drop from the previous season. He had a career-high nine home runs.
During the off-season, the Mets acquiredGold Glove second basemanFélix Millán from the Braves.[28] The acquisition severely diminished Boswell's role, with most of his playing time coming either at third or as apinch hitter.
The Mets returned to the postseason for the second time in Boswell's career. All four of his at bats in the1973 National League Championship Series and1973 World Series were as a pinch hitter. After grounding out in the NLCS, he was 3-for-3 in the World Series with a run scored.[29]
Toward the end of the1974 season, MetsmanagerYogi Berra experimented with Boswell in theoutfield. After the season, he was traded to the Astros foroutfielderBob Gallagher.[30]
In his first start with the Astros, Boswell went 3-for-4 with three RBIs and a run scored,[31] but he spent the bulk of his three-year career with the Astros as a pinch hitter or late inning defensive replacement. In1976, he set the franchise record with twenty pinch hits. He batted .242 in an Astros uniform. He had 457plate appearances without a home run.
| Games | PA | AB | Runs | Hits | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | Avg. | OBP | Slg. | OPS | Fld% |
| 930 | 2816 | 2517 | 266 | 625 | 91 | 19 | 31 | 244 | 27 | 240 | 239 | .248 | .313 | .337 | .650 | .975 |
Former Mets second baseman and managerWillie Randolph wore number 12 in Boswell's honor while with the Dodgers and Mets, as Boswell was his favorite player growing up inBrooklyn, New York.