Remembering The Impossible Dream: Carl Yastrzemski's Importance To 1967 Red Sox
BOSTON (CBS) -- Red Sox legend Carl Yastrzemski was already a perennial MVP candidate and three-time All-Star before 1967, but that season put both the outfielder and his team on the map.
Yaz paced the American League with a .326 average and led the majors with 44 home runs and 121 RBI, as well as a 1.040 OPS. The AL MVP won baseball's triple crown, but he was so much more than a statistical sensation for the Sox. Yastrzemski put the team on his back during a wild pennant race with a ridiculous .523/.604/.955 slash line, five homers, and 16 RBI the last dozen games of the season as he and his mates battled three other clubs for a spot in the World Series.
For the first time since 1946, mission accomplished. The Red Sox clinched their spot on the final day of the season, with Yaz going 4-for-4 with two RBI that afternoon.