Kevin Youkilis and the 10 Best Red Sox-White Sox Connections of All Time

There should be no shortage of vagueness coming from people’s vocal cords when former Boston Red Sox third baseman Kevin Youkilis puts in his first appearance at Fenway Park as a visitor.

Not only will it likely require high tech machinery to distinguish cordial “Yoooouuuuk!” chants from booing, but also, just like his allies-turned-adversaries by the locals, his new team will be casually dubbed “the Sox” by the traveling broadcast crews of the Chicago White Sox, who acquired him in a June 24 trade.

Youkilis joins more than a handful of noteworthy Major Leaguers who have worn both colored Sox, converting either from Boston to Chicago or vice versa and either directly or circuitously.

Whether they split their radiant moments with both teams or made the bulk of their headlines with one before or after a fleeting gig with the other, the 10 best players to have come through the Red Sox and White Sox are presented here in chronological order.

Mike Andrews

Andrews, whose first full Major League season was the Impossible Dream year of 1967, was a sacrifice hits specialist for much of his four years in Boston and three seasons in Chicago.

And on more than one occasion, the infielder finished among the league’s top 10 in walks, on-base percentage and putouts from his post at second base.

Gary Peters

Over 11 years with the White Sox (1959-69), Peters twice led the A.L. in earned-run average and once in wins and thrice was among the top five in cumulative strikeouts. He went on to pitch three not-so-shabby seasons with the Red Sox before retiring in 1972.

Carlton Fisk

The Vermont native and University of New Hampshire product finished among the American League’s top 10 MVP candidates three times in his 10 years with his regional team. He finished third among MVP nominees in 1983 as a member of the White Sox, with whom he was also a three-time Silver Slugger.

In addition, Fisk put in 11 All-Star appearances over a 23-year career. He would be enshrined in the Hall of Fame by 2000.

Ellis Burks

Burks won his first of two Silver Sluggers, made his first of two career All-Star appearances and won his only Gold Glove while patrolling the Red Sox outfield in 1990.

He followed his six full seasons in Boston with one campaign at Comiskey in 1993, wherein he hovered around the middle or top echelon of every major batting category with the team.

Orlando Cabrera

Cabrera was with the Red Sox for only three months in 2004 and the White Sox one season in 2008, but he made every drop count in those cups of coffee.

Upon replacing Nomar Garciaparra as Boston’s shortstop at the trade deadline, he would trail only David Ortiz and Doug Mientkiewicz in batting average and on-base percentage during the epic seven-game bout with the Yankees. He then scored and drove in three runs as part of a curse-cracking World Series sweep of St. Louis.

During his one campaign in Chicago, Cabrera led the team with 161 games played, 19 stolen bases and nine sacrifice flies.

Manny Ramirez

Ramirez was an All-Star in each of eight seasons with the Red Sox, including a league-best .347 batting average in 2002 and two championship campaigns with a 2004 World Series MVP accolade.

And he wasn’t so shabby in a 24-game stint on the South Side in 2010. He batted .261 and drew 14 walks out of 88 plate appearances while wearing White Sox attire.

Keith Foulke

After a deadline deal his rookie year sent him from San Francisco to Chicago, Foulke spent five-plus years on the South Side gradually establishing himself as an elite closer. He had arguably his best year with the White Sox in 2001, when he saved 42 out of 69 finishes and incurred a 2.33 ERA.

After a brief return to the Bay Area and a radiant 2003 campaign in Oakland, he went to the other Sox and saved 32 games in the regular season, followed by one in each of three playoff rounds. He would field and execute the final out that cemented Boston’s historic sweep of St. Louis in the 2004 World Series.

Of the four times Foulke finished among the top five A.L. relievers in both finishes and saves, three occurred as either a member of the White Sox or Red Sox.

Bobby Jenks

One season after Foulke entered Boston and helped end that franchise’s 86-year title drought, Jenks broke into the majors as the White Sox’s closer and pitched in to end that franchise’s 88-year hex.

In each of the subsequent two seasons, he made the All-Star team and broke the 40-save plateau, placing second in the A.L. in that category both times. He would finish eighth in that category each of the next three years before changing the color of his Sox in 2011.

Scott Podsednik

One of the league’s top base-stealers over two separate stints in Chicago, Podsednik is now working his way back from an injury to contribute to the Old Towne Team.

Kevin Youkilis

Youkilis garnered a Gold Glove while helping the Red Sox to an American League East and World Series title in 2007. He followed that up with the 2008 Hank Aaron Award, three All-Star appearances in four years and two finishes among the top 10 A.L. MVP candidates.

So far with the White Sox, he has batted .295 with 10 walks, 15 runs batted in and 11 runs scored over 16 games played.