9/8: Stomach punch game level 8

Boston Red Sox (85-57) @ Toronto Blue Jays (71-72) Andrew Miller (6-2, 5.27) @ Ricky Romero (13-10, 2.97) 7:07 PM…

Coast to Coast Tickets 9/4: The last game that doesn’t mean anything

Texas Rangers (79-61) @ Boston Red Sox (84-54) Matt Harrison (10-9, 3.59) @ John Lackey (12-10, 5.94) 1:35 PM EDT…

7/11: Home Run Derby

AL @ NL 8:00PM EDT | Chase Field (Phoenix, AZ) TV: ESPN RADIO: ESPN Radio GAME NOTES It’s not the…

Numbers

For whatever reason, I've been having a large number of conversations about retired numbers lately. From students trying to get me on a tangent by asking who they all are to discussions about whether Pedro Martinez' return on Opening Day was a play to get 45 on the facade, the frequency of the topic has gotten me thinking about what the next number retired would be. So, instead of the usual recriminations or wishful thoughts on the 2010 campaign, I wanted to run down the top 5 candidates in order of what I think is their likelihood of retirement. I don't expect everyone to agree, but it should spark some interesting conversation.

The current list stands at 1, 4, 6, 8, 9, 14, and 27 (along with Jackie Robinson's 42). Bobby Doerr, Joe Cronin, Johnny Pesky, Carl Yastrzemski, Ted Williams, Jim Rice and Carlton Fisk -- as good a rundown of Red Sox greats as you can get. Hall of Famers all, aside from Pesky, who represents a special case. The restrictions on retirement have been eased by current ownership, and the rules are now a bit fuzzy; it used to be that a player had to begin and finish a Hall of Fame career with the Sox. That seems to no longer be the case, despite a few acrobatic moves to get Fisk there. So, with that in mind, here is my list of five, along with their numbers, chances and qualifications.