Carlton Ernest Fisk (born December 26, 1947), nicknamed "Pudge" and "the Commander", is an American former professional baseball catcher who played 24 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston Red Sox and the Chicago White Sox. In 1972, he was the first player to be unanimously voted American League (AL) Rookie of the Year. Fisk is best known for his game-winning home run in the 12th inning of Game 6 of the 1975 World Series, during which he memorably waved his arms hoping for the batted ball to remain fair.
At the time of his retirement, Fisk held the record for most home runs all-time by a catcher with 376 (since surpassed by Mike Piazza). He has held several age- or longevity-related records, including the record for most games played at the position of catcher with 2,226 (later surpassed by Iván Rodríguez, who also shared Fisk's nickname "Pudge"). Fisk still holds the AL record for most years served at the position (24). Fisk was voted to the All-Star team 11 times and won three Silver Slugger Awards which is awarded annually to the best offensive player at each position. In 2000, Fisk was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Early life
Fisk was born in Bellows Falls, Vermont, but according to Fisk, that was only because Bellows Falls had the nearest hospital to his hometown, Charlestown, New Hampshire. He was raised by his parents, Leona and Cecil, along with older brother Calvin, younger brothers Conrad and Cedric and younger sisters Janet and June. He grew up in Charlestown, across the Connecticut River from Bellows Falls. Fisk attended Charlestown High School, where he played baseball (under Coach Ralph Silva), soccer, and basketball. Because his family is from New Hampshire, he insisted that the organization remove from his plaque in the Red Sox Hall of Fame its characterization of him as a Vermont native.
He played on the Charlestown High baseball team, appearing at third base, catcher and pitcher for Coach Silva. Two of his teammates were his brothers Calvin and Conrad, who were drafted by the Baltimore Orioles and Montreal Expos, respectively, but never made it to the minors due to Calvin's being drafted and inducted into military service during the Vietnam War and Conrad hurting his arm. Since the high school baseball season was limited to 17 games annually due to the inclement New England weather, he also played in the American Legion baseball league in 1964, appearing with the team from Claremont, New Hampshire. In 1965, he played for the Legion Post 37 team in Bellows Falls that had won the 1964 Vermont State Championship. In his sophomore year, the Red Sox drafted him in the first round of the January 1967 amateur draft, and his athletic future was set. Fisk gave up his dreams of basketball glory. "I could never be a six-foot-two power forward and play for the Celtics," he said.
Professional career
Minor leagues
In 1967, Fisk played briefly for the Red Sox team in the Florida Instructional League, hitting .195 with 0 HR and 0 RBI in 47 at bats.
In 1968, Fisk played for the Waterloo Hawks, the Red Sox' Class A affiliate in the Midwest League. In 62 games, Fisk hit .338 with 12 HR and 34 RBI.
Fisk was once again called up from the minors at the end of 1971 and earned himself a place on Boston's 1972 spring training roster. As history would have it, Fisk broke into the major leagues (to stay) early in the 1972 season. Boston manager Darrell Johnson, whom Fisk credited for making him a major leaguer, taught Fisk how to be a leader and a field general for the team. Playing with abandon and all-out aggressiveness was one thing, channeling energy intelligently was another. "Johnson taught me to think about all the important facets of the catcher's role, the things that help pitchers in various ways and those that let your teammates know you want to win," he told an interviewer in 1973.
On September 12, 1971, Fisk hit his first career home run off of Detroit's Les Cain at Tiger Stadium. In , Fisk batted .293 with 22 home runs, and a .909 OPS. In addition, he led the American League with nine triples (tied with Oakland's Joe Rudi), and was the last catcher to lead the AL in this statistical category. His play earned him both the AL Gold Glove and AL Rookie of the Year awards. He was selected unanimously for the latter award, becoming the first unanimous AL Rookie of the Year. He also finished fourth in American League MVP voting.
In June 1974, Fisk suffered a devastating knee injury when Leron Lee of the Cleveland Indians collided with him at home plate, tearing several knee ligaments. After undergoing reconstructive knee surgery, Fisk was told he would never play again, yet the backstop returned just twelve months later.
In , Fisk re-injured himself in spring training and did not play until June. In only 79 game appearances, Fisk hit .331 along with 52 RBI. Boston won the AL East Division with a record of 95–65.
The image of him waving the ball fair changed the way baseball was televised. During this time, cameramen covering baseball were instructed to follow the flight of the ball. In a 1999 interview, NBC cameraman Lou Gerard said that he had been distracted by a nearby rat. Unable to follow the ball, he kept the camera on Fisk instead. This play was perhaps the most important catalyst in getting camera operators to focus most of their attention on the players themselves.
Last years in Boston
Fisk was among the top offensive catchers in the American League in his eight full seasons with the Boston Red Sox. His best year in Boston was in 1977, when he hit .315 with 26 home runs and 102 runs batted in.
Facing the rival New York Yankees in the 1978 AL East Playoff, Fisk went 1-for-3 with a single in Boston's 5–4 loss to the Yankees. Some fans attributed Boston's 1978 loss to a rib injury sustained by Fisk. The same injury left Fisk on the sidelines for several games during the 1979 season, a year in which his primary position was designated hitter. Although Kravec was traded just ten days later, Fisk retained the number 72 throughout his career with the White Sox. As the season got underway, Fisk was interviewed by the media concerning his switching teams, and joked that "after a decade with the Red Sox, it was time to change my sox!" On opening day 1981, Fisk started the season with the White Sox against his former team in Fenway Park. In the eighth inning, Fisk knocked a three-run homer to put his new team on top, 5–3.
After joining the White Sox, he helped the team win its first American League Western Division title in . His .289 batting average, 26 home runs, and 86 RBI, as well as his leadership on the young team, helped him to finish third in the MVP voting (behind Baltimore teammates Cal Ripken Jr. and Eddie Murray). Fisk also caught LaMarr Hoyt that season, the 1983 Cy Young Award winner. Fisk played poorly in Chicago's loss to the Baltimore Orioles in the 1983 ALCS, hitting .176 with zero runs batted in. Injuries once again befell Fisk in the 1984 season, limiting him to just 102 games and a .231 average. The experience led him to begin a new training regimen which he used for the rest of his career. In his Hall of Fame induction speech, Fisk credited White Sox strength and conditioning coach Phil Claussen for his turnaround. Claussen introduced Fisk to a more scientific approach to physical conditioning which included long sessions of weight training. Fisk often credited the training program with extending his career.
In 1985, following the advent of his new training program, Fisk had the most productive offensive year of his career. He hit 37 home runs and drove in 107 runs, both career-high numbers; the home run numbers tied Dick Allen's 13-year White Sox single-season record and was the AL single-season record for home runs hit by a primary catcher until it was broken by Salvador Perez in 2021. At the age of 37, Fisk tied his career high for stolen bases (17). He was voted to the All-Star team, won the Silver Slugger award and finished 13th in the A.L. MVP voting.
On August 4, 1985, Fisk caught all nine innings of Tom Seaver's complete game 300th career victory, which was played in Yankee Stadium. Fisk caught Bobby Thigpen as he set the then-record for most saves in a season (57) in 1990. In 2005, Jack McDowell credited Fisk as being instrumental in his development into a pitcher who won the Cy Young Award in 1993. The White Sox re-signed Fisk, who remained with the club until the end of his career. During spring training in 1986, the Yankees traded Baylor to the Boston Red Sox for designated hitter Mike Easler.
On August 17, 1990, in the second game of a two-night doubleheader in Arlington, Texas Fisk broke Johnny Bench's career home run record for catchers by hitting his 328th longball as a catcher off Charlie Hough in the top of the second inning. He went on to end his career as the all-time leader in home runs by a catcher with 351. On May 5, 2004 Mike Piazza surpassed Fisk's record by belting his 352nd as a backstop. Fisk still holds the American League record for homers by a catcher.
thumb|Fisk with the White Sox
A single in the 1991 All-Star Game made him the oldest player in MLB history to collect a hit in an All-Star game.
The 1993 season was Fisk's last. In February, Fisk and the Sox had a dispute over signing a one-year deal, where the former alleged it was only a minor league deal and the latter asserting it as a technicality to protect the 40-man roster. Owner Jerry Reinsdorf called him a "prima donna", but the two sides eventually reached a deal.
On June 22, 1993, Fisk broke Bob Boone's record for career games caught with his 2,226th game behind the plate. Fisk was passed on this list by Iván Rodríguez on June 17, 2009.
Six days after breaking Bob Boone's all-time games caught record, Fisk was abruptly released by the Chicago White Sox at age 45. Fisk was notified of his dismissal in his hotel room in Cleveland while on a road trip with the team. It is reported that he was ordered to turn in his equipment and immediately fly back to Chicago, alone. To add insult to injury, Fisk was thrown out of the White Sox clubhouse later that season when he stopped by to wish his teammates good luck in the playoffs. Fisk was one of two final active players in the 1990s who had played in the 1960s. The other was Nolan Ryan. He is one of only 29 players in baseball history to date to have appeared in MLB games in four decades.
In thirteen seasons with the White Sox, Fisk was selected to four All-Star games and batted .257 with 214 home runs and 762 RBI. Fisk had nearly as many RBIs as strikeouts with the White Sox, striking out 798 times in 5,500 plate appearances.
Notable feuds
Fisk was known for his longstanding feud with New York Yankees catcher Thurman Munson. One particular incident that typified their feud, and the Yankees – Red Sox rivalry in general, occurred on August 1, 1973, at Fenway Park. With the score 2–2 in the top of the ninth inning, Munson, attempting to score on Gene Michael's missed bunt attempt, barreled into Fisk, triggering a 10-minute bench-clearing brawl in which both catchers were ejected.
As John Curtis let his first pitch go, Munson broke for the plate. Michael tried to bunt, and missed. With Munson coming, the scrawny Yankees shortstop tried to step in Fisk's way, but Fisk elbowed him out of the way and braced for Munson, who crashed into him as hard as he could. Fisk held onto the ball, but Munson tried to lie on top of him to allow Felipe Alou to keep rounding the bases. Fisk kicked Munson off him and into the air, and swiped at him with his fist. Michael grabbed Fisk, and as Curtis grabbed Munson—his former Cape Cod League roommate—Fisk threw Michael down with his left arm and fell to the ground. "Fisk had his left arm right across Stick's throat and wouldn't let up", said Ralph Houk, the Yankees' manager at the time. "Michael couldn't breathe. I had to crawl underneath the pile to try to pry Fisk's arm off his throat to keep him from killing Stick. All the while he had Michael pinned down, he was punching Munson underneath the pile. I had no idea Fisk was that strong, but he was scary."
In another incident typifying the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry, Fisk was involved in an altercation with Lou Piniella during a May 20, 1976, game at Yankee Stadium. In the sixth inning of this game, Piniella barreled into Fisk trying to score on an Otto Vélez single. Fisk and Piniella shoved each other at home plate, triggering another bench-clearing brawl. After order appeared to be restored, Red Sox pitcher Bill Lee and Yankees third baseman Graig Nettles began exchanging words and punches, igniting the brawl anew. Lee suffered a separated left shoulder in the altercation and missed much of the season and was never quite the same again.
In an incident on May 22, 1990, Deion Sanders approached the plate with one out and a runner on third base, drew a dollar sign in the dirt before the pitch, and didn't run to first base since the popup he hit looked like it would be easily caught. Fisk yelled at Sanders "run the fucking ball out" and called Sanders a "piece of shit." Later in the game, Sanders told Fisk "the days of slavery are over." Fisk was furious. "He comes up and wants to make it a racial issue — there's no racial issue involved." He told Sanders during Sanders' next at-bat, "There is a right way and a wrong way to play this game. You're playing it the wrong way. And the rest of us don't like it. Someday, you're going to get this game shoved right down your throat."