Boston Red Sox fans are mourning the loss of a contributor to one of the franchise’s memorable late-1990s teams, as former slugger Butch Huskey has died at age 54.
The Mets, for whom he spent most of his career, announced the news. Huskey passed away in his hometown of Lawton, Oklahoma, after a blood clot in his lung. He is survived by his wife, Kristy, son Bryce, and daughters Kennedy and Kyrbi.
Huskey’s time in a Red Sox uniform was brief but meaningful.
Acquired from the Seattle Mariners on July 26, 1999, in exchange for minor-league pitcher Robert Ramsay, the right-handed power hitter arrived as Boston sought extra punch following Mo Vaughn’s departure.
In 45 regular-season games with the club, he hit .266 with seven home runs and 28 RBIs in just 124 at-bats, providing a useful complement to left-handed hitters like Brian Daubach.
That production helped a 94-win Red Sox team secure the American League wild-card berth. Huskey appeared in all six of Boston’s postseason games that October, going 2-for-10 with a double.
The Sox knocked off the Cleveland Indians in a five-game ALDS before falling to the New York Yankees in the ALCS—the first postseason meeting between the rivals. In Game 4 of the ALCS at Fenway, Huskey doubled and later scored in a brief rally.
For Red Sox supporters who remember the 1999 season fondly—Pedro Martínez’s Cy Young campaign, Nomar Garciaparra’s brilliance, and a team that came within a few wins of a World Series berth—Huskey represented the kind of midseason addition that can steady a lineup during a stretch run.
He wore No. 44 in Boston after having proudly worn Jackie Robinson’s No. 42 earlier in his career with the Mets under a grandfather clause following the league-wide retirement of the number.
A seventh-round pick out of Oklahoma in 1989, Huskey finished his seven-year big-league career with a .267 average, 86 home runs, and 336 RBIs across stops with the Mets, Mariners, Red Sox, Twins, and Rockies.
His Boston chapter, though short, remains part of the story of a competitive late-’90s Red Sox club that kept the faithful believing the long wait for a championship might finally be ending.
The organization and its fans extend condolences to Huskey’s family and friends.
