nynasty
nynasty
In 1961, the year Roger Maris hit a record 61 home runs in 162 games, he wasn't intentionally walked, not even one time, because Mickey Mantle was on deck.
Mantle, on the other hand, was walked intentionally 9 times. He was the one that made pitchers nervous, as his WAR almost doubled Maris.
'78 Red Sox, on the other hand, had a declining Yaz behind Rice. Only put up 2 WAR that year. Just always seemed weird to me that he wasn't walked more. Fred Lynn actually led that team in IBB.