Remember, he was a free man

December 22, 2005|Bob Ryan, Globe Columnist

He'll be back here May 1, leading off and playing center field for the New York Yankees. Show some class. Give Johnny Damon a standing O.

Johnny did nothing wrong, and neither did the Yankees. They each played by the rules. Johnny was a free agent, fair and square, and he and his agent did what free agents and their representatives do. They shopped around for the best deal. And the Yankees offered the best deal. By far.

Johnny Damon did not owe the Red Sox or any of us anything. He signed a four-year contract to play baseball to the best of his ability, and that is what he did. No. 1, he showed up. Johnny Damon performed in 92 percent of the Red Sox regular-season games during his time here. Despite sustaining a succession of painful injuries, he spent no, as in zero, days on the disabled list. He was a trouper, a gamer, a pure professional.

No. 2, he performed at a high level. He was the best Red Sox leadoff man since Wade Boggs. Damon was not Boggs, who spoiled people by getting on base more than 300 times annually during his prime, but he got on base, and he hit with authority. Nomar Garciaparra? Well, yes, Nomah had that tremendous rookie season in 1997 (98 ribbies). But he only walked 35 times and we knew he was a three- or four-hole guy masquerading as a leadoff man. Anyway, Johnny knocked in 94 in 2004 and he also threw in 76 walks.

Damon broke into the big leagues at age 21 in 1995 and it took him three years to figure it out. But when he did, he was an instant great player. The ultimate measuring stick for a leadoff man is scoring runs, and beginning in 1998 Damon began a streak of scoring 100-plus runs that has no end in sight. For the record, his Boston totals were 118, 103, 123, and 117.

It doesn't matter to Johnny Damon who hits behind him. He scored his 100 in front of Mike Sweeney and Jermaine Dye in Kansas City. He scored his 100 in front of Jason Giambi and Eric Chávez in Oakland. He scored his 100 in front of David Ortiz and Manny Ramírez in Boston. And I think we can safely say he will score his 100 in front of Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, Gary Sheffield, and Hideki Matsui, among others, in the Bronx.

It's not just the batting average, the on-base percentage, and the basic pop in the bat that make him such a valuable man at the top of your batting order. Johnny Damon is a frustrating, annoying hitter who runs up pitch counts. If he's not No. 1 in the league in most pitches per at-bat, he's very high in the pecking order. He stood for everything the Red Sox were supposed to cherish in this regard. The man could go 0 for 4 and still have made an offensive contribution.