An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball , farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder , the center fielder , and the right fielder . As an outfielder, their duty is to catch fly balls and ground balls then to return them to the infield for the out or before the runner advances, if there are any runners on the bases . As an outfielder, they normally play behind the six players located in the field. By convention, each of the nine defensive positions in baseball is numbered. The outfield positions are 7 (left field), 8 (center field) and 9 (right field). These numbers are shorthand designations useful in baseball scorekeeping and are not necessarily the same as the squad numbers worn on player uniforms.
43-729: The Golden Outfield , also called the Million Dollar Outfield , were the three starting outfielders of the Boston Red Sox of Major League Baseball from 1910 through 1915, considered one of the greatest outfields of all time. The three members of the Golden Outfield were left fielder Duffy Lewis , center fielder Tris Speaker , and right fielder Harry Hooper . The three helped the Red Sox win two World Series titles, in 1912 and 1915. Two members of
86-425: A center fielder . Corner outfielders are often slower and have less defensive value than the center fielder . However, there are some important differences between right fielders and left fielders . Right fielders tend to have the best throwing arms of the outfield so they can make the long throw to third base, but often are not as fast as left fielders. Center fielders are generally the fastest and most athletic of
129-531: A home run to preserve a Red Sox victory in game 7 of the series. In the 1915 World Series , all members of the trio had solid hitting performances, with Lewis batting .444, Hooper .350, and Speaker .294. In addition Speaker made a spectacular catch to rob Dode Paskert of an extra base hit that would have won game 2 for the Philadelphia Phillies . After the series, which the Red Sox won in five games, sportswriter George R. Holmes proclaimed that
172-546: A ladder is attached to the Green Monster, extending from near the upper-left portion of the scoreboard, 13 feet (4.0 m) above ground, to the top of the wall. Previously, members of the grounds crew would use the ladder to retrieve home run balls from the netting hung above the wall. After the net was removed for the addition of the Monster seats, the ladder ceased to have any real function, yet it remains in place as
215-410: A historic relic. The placement of the ladder is noteworthy given the fact that it is in fair territory; it is the only such ladder in the major leagues. On many occasions, a batted ball has struck the ladder during game play, at least twice leading to an inside-the-park home run . During a 1950s game, Red Sox outfielders Ted Williams and Jimmy Piersall both tracked a fly ball in left center, but
258-464: A result of the terrace, when overflow crowds were not seated atop it, a left fielder in Fenway Park had to play the territory running uphill. Boston's first star left fielder, Duffy Lewis , mastered the skill so well that the area became known as "Duffy's Cliff". In contrast, rotund outfielder Bob Fothergill , known by the indelicate nicknames of "Fats" or "Fatty", reportedly once chased a ball up
301-488: A shorter career, ranks 6th all-time in double plays by a left fielder with 35. The Golden Outfield was broken up when Speaker was traded to the Cleveland Indians prior to the 1916 season after a salary dispute with Red Sox owner Joseph Lannin . Speaker was the first to join the Red Sox. He joined the team in 1907 and became a regular in 1910. He starred for the Red Sox in center field until being traded to
344-401: Is a popular nickname for the 37-foot-2-inch-high (11.33 m) left field wall at Fenway Park , home to the Boston Red Sox of Major League Baseball . The wall is 310 feet (94 m) from home plate and is a popular target for right-handed hitters. The wall was part of the original ballpark construction of 1912 , along Fenway's north side facing Lansdowne Street. It is made of wood and
387-462: Is often considered the most difficult outfield position, requiring both a good throwing arm and speed. Center fielders on many teams often bat lead off . Players who do not routinely start games, but often substitute as a pinch hitter or defensive replacement in the outfield are referred to as fourth outfielders or even fifth outfielders . These players can usually play any of the three outfield positions. Corner outfielders are outfielders who play
430-406: Is the last of the exceptionally high-walled major league ballparks. Relatively high walls in modern ballparks have been constructed for their novelty rather than by necessity, as Fenway's wall had been. The Green Monster is famous for preventing home runs on many line drives that would clear the walls of other ballparks. A side effect of this is to increase the prevalence of doubles , since this
473-405: Is the most common result when the ball is hit off the wall (often referred to as a "wallball double"). Some left fielders, predominantly those with vast Fenway experience, have become adept at fielding caroms off the wall to throw runners out at second base or hold the batter to a single . Compared with other current major league parks, the wall's placement creates a comparatively shallow left field;
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#1732797307229516-422: The 2002–03 offseason, when the team's new ownership constructed a new seating section atop the wall to accommodate 274 fans. Wildly popular, these "Monster seats" were part of a larger expansion plan for Fenway Park seating. The Red Sox later added a smaller seating section in 2005 , dubbed the " Nation 's Nest," located between the main seating section and the center field scoreboard. Comprising yet another quirk,
559-520: The American League in sacrifice hits in 1912. He received MVP votes in 1914, finishing tied with Hooper at 20th overall in the voting. During his time with the Red Sox, he batted .286, with 1248 hits in 4325 at bats. Lewis has not been elected to the Hall of Fame, but did receive votes in several elections from 1937 through 1955. His best showing was in 1955 when he received 34 votes and 13.5% of
602-631: The Cleveland Indians before the 1916 season. He was the American League Most Valuable Player in 1912, and finished in the top 12 in the MVP voting each season from 1911 through 1914. Speaker was known for playing very shallow in center field, allowing him to participate in 64 double plays in 1053 games as a Red Sox outfielder, and set a career record for outfield assists. He was able to play so shallow because he
645-463: The Golden Outfield was the greatest outfield of all time. In October 1965, Baseball Digest wrote that the 1915 Boston performance was the greatest by an outfield in World Series history. It would be the last time that all three men played on the same team, as Speaker was traded to Cleveland before the 1916 season. During the 1910s, the Red Sox were beset by a religious rivalry, and members of
688-585: The Golden Outfield were not immune to this. Lewis and catcher Bill Carrigan were leaders of the Catholic faction, while Speaker, pitcher Smokey Joe Wood , and third baseman Larry Gardner were leaders of the Protestant faction. Speaker and Lewis, in particular, did not get along. One day in 1913, Speaker annoyed Lewis by repeatedly knocking Lewis' cap off. Lewis said, "Do that again and I'll kill you." After Speaker continued to do it, Lewis hit him in
731-507: The Golden Outfield, Speaker and Hooper, are enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame . All three were effective hitters, but were especially known for their fielding skill. Baseball writer Grantland Rice said that they were "the greatest defensive outfield I ever saw...They were smart and fast. They covered every square inch of the park – and they were like three fine infielders on ground balls. They could move into another country, if
774-457: The Green Monster's height record was temporarily beaten by the center field wall at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio . During the construction of Great American Ball Park , located right next to Riverfront Stadium, a large section of seats was removed from the center field area to make room and a 40-foot (12 m) black wall was erected as a temporary batter's eye . The entire wall
817-409: The ball happened to fall there." Speaker, Hooper, and Lewis all had powerful throwing arms, as well. Both Ty Cobb and Babe Ruth said that it was the best outfield that they had ever seen. Of the three, Speaker is the all-time Major League leader in double plays by a center fielder with 146. Hooper is the all-time Major League leader in double plays by a right fielder with 86. And Lewis, who had
860-412: The ball struck the ladder and caromed into center field, giving batter Jim Lemon enough time to round the bases. Later, in 1963 , the slow-footed Dick Stuart hit a high fly that ricocheted first off the ladder, and then the head of outfielder Vic Davalillo , before rolling far enough away to allow Stuart to score. One common myth perpetuated is that if a ball strikes the ladder and then bounces over
903-400: The ball was finally caught. This forced a rule change in which runners could advance as soon as the ball was touched by the fielder, rather than having to wait until the ball was caught. Hooper received MVP votes in both 1913 and 1914. He led the American League in at bats and sacrifice hits in 1910. With the Red Sox from 1909 through 1920, he batted .272 with 1707 hits in 6270 at bats. He
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#1732797307229946-521: The corner positions of right field and left field . Corner outfielders often have less speed than center fielders , but make up for this deficiency with their offensive play. The main differences between left and right fielders are, first, that left fielders handle more chances because right-handed pull hitters tend to hit balls to left; second, that right fielders typically have stronger arms; third, that right fielders are frequently (not always) slower and less agile defensively. Many left fielders have had
989-544: The field from external viewers, particularly behind open areas of the outfield where bleacher seating is low-lying or non-existent. The wall might also reduce the number of "cheap" home runs due to the barrier's relatively tall height above the playing surface. Fenway's wall serves both purposes. Past ballparks of Fenway's era or even later which featured high fences in-play included Baker Bowl , Washington Park , Ebbets Field , League Park , Griffith Stadium , Shibe Park , and more recently, Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum . Fenway
1032-407: The left light tower were a target for power-hitters when they were placed in 1997. These 3D advertisements were taken down before the 2008 season, when an LED sign was built above the new left-field upper deck seats. As a lead up to his 500th career home run, Manny Ramirez 's home run count was tallied on the bottom of the light tower. Ads beside the manual scoreboard were added when the scoreboard
1075-437: The left-field foul pole to the center field flag pole. This earthwork formed a "terrace", a common feature of ballparks of the day (where a dirt-surfaced warning track would normally be today), whose purpose was to make up the difference in grade between street level and field level, as with Cincinnati's Crosley Field . It also served to double as a seating area to handle overflow crowds, another common practice of that era. As
1118-502: The lower half of the Green Monster and is still updated by hand from behind the wall throughout the game. The American League scores are also updated from behind the wall. The National League scores need to be updated from the front of the wall between innings. There is also a board which shows the current American League East standings. There are 127 slots in the wall and a team of three score keepers move around two-pound (0.9 kg), 13-by-16-inch (33 by 41 cm) plates to represent
1161-546: The pitcher behind their back to determine the pitch and tell where the ball could possibly be hit to. Many of the best power hitters in baseball play in the outfield , where they do not have as constant involvement in fielding plays as other positions, especially before the institution of the designated hitter . For example, Babe Ruth was moved from pitcher to the outfield. Left fielders and right fielders are more often slow power hitters, and center fielders are usually fast base-runners and good defensive players. Center field
1204-470: The same as in left), but 380 feet (120 m) at its deepest. The bullpen was added along the right field wall in 1940 to shorten the distance for left-handed slugger Ted Williams ' home runs to clear the fence. For years afterward, the bullpens were known as "Williamsburg". In 1936 , the Red Sox installed a 23-foot (7.0 m) net above the Monster in order to protect the storefronts on adjoining Lansdowne Street from home run balls. The net remained until
1247-472: The score. Yellow numbers are used to represent in-inning scores and white numbers are used to represent final inning tallies. The numbers of the current pitchers weigh three pounds (1.4 kg) and measure 16 by 16 inches (41 by 41 cm). Carlton Fisk 's "body English" when he hit his game-winning home run in Game 6 of the 1975 World Series , "waving" the ball fair, was captured on a TV camera stationed in
1290-411: The scoreboard. The Morse Code that appears from top to bottom in the white lines of the American League scoreboard are the initials of former owners Thomas A. Yawkey and Jean R. Yawkey . Fenway's left-field distortion is offset by the odd shape and generous size of right field, which is 302 feet (92 m) (although its actual distance has been disputed over the years) along the foul line (almost
1333-666: The shins with a baseball bat, and Speaker had to be helped off the field. According to a Red Sox clubhouse insider, there was one full season where Speaker did not speak to Lewis or Hooper "because they were Catholics and he wasn't...They used to hate each other. Hate each other!" Outfielder Outfielders named to the MLB All-Century Team are Hank Aaron , Ty Cobb , Joe DiMaggio , Mickey Mantle , Willie Mays , Stan Musial , Pete Rose , Babe Ruth , Ted Williams , Carl Yastrzemski , and Ken Griffey Jr. Players can be characterized as either corner outfielders or
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1376-401: The speed to play center field, but have lacked the throwing ability required. An example of an ultra-fast left fielder is Rickey Henderson ( Ben Oglivie and Lou Brock can fit this description too), whereas the slow-footed but very strong-armed Carl Furillo , "The Reading Rifle", sets a standard for right fielders in the terms specified here. Duffy%27s Cliff The Green Monster
1419-419: The terrace, slipped and fell, and rolled downhill. In 1934 , Red Sox owner Tom Yawkey arranged to flatten the ground in left field so that Duffy's Cliff no longer existed, and it became part of the lore of Fenway Park. Long after the much-higher location manual scoreboard from c. 1914 existed (as seen in the 1914 photo), the placement of the modern "ground-level" manual scoreboard occurred in 1934. It forms
1462-407: The three, because they have to run the farthest in order to field balls in the gaps and back up the other outfielders when balls are hit to them. Outfielders should also be able to read where the ball may be placed based on what the pitcher is throwing. They can tell what the pitcher is throwing by the middle infielders, second base and short stop, in which they show the numbers the catcher is giving to
1505-558: The total, far below the 75% needed for election. Speaker, Hooper, and Lewis made their first start as a trio on April 27, 1910, in an 11–1 road win over the Washington Senators . In the 1912 World Series , Speaker batted .300, Hooper batted .290, and Lewis batted .188. All had three extra base hits in the series. In addition, Hooper made a famous bare-handed catch to rob the New York Giants ' Larry Doyle of
1548-426: The wall falls approximately 304–310 feet (93–94 m) from the plate along the left-field foul line. With this short distance, many deep fly balls that could be caught by the fielder in a deeper park rebound off the wall for base hits. And while the wall turns many would-be line-drive homers into doubles it also allows some high yet shallow fly balls to clear the field of play for a home run. During 2001 and 2002 ,
1591-585: The wall or out of play, the batter will be awarded a ground-rule triple. There is no such rule in the ground rules at Fenway, nor in any major league ballpark. After the wall was painted green in 1947, advertisements did not appear on the wall until 1999, when the All-Star Game at Fenway was being promoted. Various ads have appeared above the scoreboard since then, such as the Jimmy Fund , W.B. Mason , and Granite City Electric. The Coke Bottles on
1634-428: Was covered in tin and concrete in 1934 . It was then covered with hard plastic in 1976 . A manual scoreboard is set into the wall, which has been there, in one form or another, at least as far back as 1914 (see photo at right). Despite the name, the Green Monster was not painted green until 1947 ; before that, it was covered with advertisements . The Monster designation is relatively new. For most of its history it
1677-407: Was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1971. Lewis also attended Saint Mary's College of California and joined the Red Sox in 1910, completing the Golden Outfield. Until the 1930s, the Red Sox' home park, Fenway Park , had a slope in front of the left field wall. Lewis was so effective at playing balls off the cliff that it was nicknamed Duffy's Cliff . Lewis played with the Red Sox until 1917 and led
1720-429: Was in play. This new wall was often called "The Black Monster". When Riverfront Stadium was demolished in 2002, the Green Monster reclaimed the record. In honor of the famed wall, the Red Sox mascot is a furry green monster named Wally the Green Monster , joined in 2016 by his younger sister Tessie . From 1912 to 1933 , a 10-foot-high (3.0 m) mound formed an incline in front of the Green Monster, extending from
1763-437: Was one of the first players elected into the Hall of Fame in 1937. Hooper joined the Red Sox in 1909, after attending Saint Mary's College of California , and became a regular in 1910. Hooper's fielding prowess also forced Major League Baseball to change the rules regarding runners advancing when a fly ball was caught. Hooper used to juggle fly balls as he ran back to the infield, preventing runners from trying to advance until
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1806-407: Was outstanding at catching balls hit over his head. Speaker batted .337 for the Red Sox, with 1327 hits in 3935 at bats . He also hit 241 of his all-time record 792 doubles for the Red Sox. During his time with the Red Sox, he led the American League in doubles, home runs , extra base hits , and on-base percentage in 1912, and in hits, doubles, extra base hits, and total bases in 1914. He
1849-513: Was simply called " The Wall ". The Green Monster is the highest among the walls in current Major League Baseball fields, and it is the second highest among all professional baseball fields (including minor leagues ). As of 2007 it was surpassed by the left field wall of WellSpan Park in York, Pennsylvania , which is approximately 6 inches (15 cm) taller. Ballparks occupied by professional baseball teams have often featured high fences to hide
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