Red Sox Legend Johnny Pesky Passes Away at 92

The baseball world and the Red Sox family lost a truly great player and person on Monday, as Johnny Pesky passed away at the age of 92.

The news comes from Red Sox beat writer Pete Abraham:

"

#RedSox legend Johnny Pesky has passed away at the age of 92.

— Pete Abraham (@PeteAbe) August 13, 2012"

Pesky, of course, was most known for being the guy whom Pesky's Pole (the foul pole in right field of Fenway Park) was named after. 

The story behind why the foul pole earned that name isn't exactly clear, but Pesky himself said it came from Mel Parnell, who coined the name after Pesky's game-winning home run—which went right down the line—won the game for Parnell.

The facts don't exactly back up that story, but it doesn't matter because Pesky was so much more than the origin of a famous name. 

Pesky, who played all over the infield, came into the league in 1942 and dominated right away, racking up 205 hits en route to a third-place finish in the MVP voting (via Baseball-Reference.com).

After a three-year hiatus from 1943-1945 due to World War II service, Pesky picked up right where he left off.

He notched 208 hits and finished fourth in the MVP voting in 1946. A year later, he recorded 207 base knocks. He then had 150 hits or more the next four seasons and a .300 batting average or better in three of those. 

When it was all said and done, Pesky left the majors with a career .307 batting average and—coincidentally enough for someone who was the reason a foul pole acquired a name—hit just 17 home runs. 

After his retirement, Pesky dabbled in both coaching and commentating, doing each just as well as he played. As he grew older, he could still be found, more often than not, around the Red Sox dugout or Fenway in general. 

Pesky was truly one of the faces of Boston's franchise for the past 70 years, and he will be missed by everyone involved in the sport.

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