Bruce Boisclair
{{short description|American baseball player (born 1952)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}}
{{Infobox baseball biography
|name=Bruce Boisclair
|image=Bruce Boisclair.jpg
|position=Outfielder
|bats=Left
|throws=Left
|birth_date={{Birth date and age|1952|12|9}}
|birth_place=Putnam, Connecticut, U.S.
|debutteam=New York Mets
|debutleague = MLB
|debutdate=September 11
|debutyear=1974
|finalleague = MLB
|finaldate=September 30
|finalyear=1979
|finalteam=New York Mets
|statleague = MLB
|stat1label=Batting average
|stat1value=.263
|stat2label=Home runs
|stat2value=10
|stat3label=Runs batted in
|stat3value=77
|stat2league = NPB
|stat21label=Batting average
|stat21value=.249
|stat22label=Home runs
|stat22value=8
|stat23label=Runs batted in
|stat23value=26
|teams=
- New York Mets ({{mlby|1974}}–{{mlby|1979}})
- Hanshin Tigers ({{npby|1980}})
}}
Bruce Armand Boisclair (born December 9, 1952) is an American former Major League Baseball outfielder, who spent his entire major league career with the New York Mets from {{by|1974}} to {{by|1979}}. He also played for the Hanshin Tigers of Nippon Professional Baseball in {{by|1980}}.
Killingly High School
Boisclair attended Killingly High School in Killingly, Connecticut, where he starred in football, basketball & baseball. Before being drafted by the New York Mets in the 20th round of the 1970 Major League Baseball Draft, the tight end was expected to attend Boston College on a football scholarship.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7WSNCQAAQBAJ&pg=PT46|last1=Harrison|first1=Don|date=2008|title=Connecticut Baseball: The Best of the Nutmeg State|publisher=Arcadia Publishing|isbn=9781625843944}}
New York Mets
After five seasons in their farm system, where he batted .277 with twelve home runs and 150 runs batted in, Boisclair received a September call-up from the Mets in 1974. In a 25 inning marathon with the St. Louis Cardinals at Shea Stadium, Boisclar made his major league debut in the 23rd inning, pinch running for Duffy Dyer.{{cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NYN/NYN197409110.shtml|title=St. Louis Cardinals 4, New York Mets 3|website=Baseball-Reference.com|location=Shea Stadium|date=September 11, 1974}} He batted .250 with one RBI (against the Philadelphia Phillies){{cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/PHI/PHI197409252.shtml|title=Philadelphia Phillies 6, New York Mets 3|website=Baseball-Reference.com|location=Veterans Stadium|date=September 25, 1974}} over the remainder of the season.
He failed to make the big league club out of Spring training {{by|1975}}, and was assigned to the triple A Tidewater Tides, where he spent the entire season. He fared better in the spring of {{by|1976}}, and won the fourth outfielder/left-handed bat off the bench job. He performed admirably in that role, batting .287 with two home runs & thirteen RBIs. He had a stellar .571 batting average & one home run as a pinch hitter.
He remained in that role for {{by|1977}}, and batted .293 with four home runs, 44 RBIs and 21 doubles, all career bests. This played a part in the Mets' giving up on the Mike Vail experiment in the spring of {{by|1978}}. {{cite web|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1314&dat=19780327&id=zdkvAAAAIBAJ&pg=2336,4989063|title=Mets Sell Mike Vail|newspaper=The Spokesman-Review|date=March 27, 1978}} He began the season platooning with right-handed free agent acquisition Elliott Maddox in right field, and hit a two run home run in his first start of the season.{{cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NYN/NYN197804091.shtml|title=New York Mets 6, Montreal Expos 5|website=Baseball-Reference.com|location=Shea Stadium|date=April 9, 1978}} However, he batted just .222 in April, and soon found himself back in his familiar reserve role.
Hanshin Tigers
He missed half of the 1979 season due to a wrist injury, and batted just .163 upon his return. He was released during spring training of 1980,{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_GhQAAAAIBAJ&dq=bruce+boisclair&pg=PA29&article_id=5977,774827|title=Rain Halts Games; Mets Cut Boisclair|newspaper=St. Petersburg Times|date=April 2, 1980|page=7C}} and signed with the Hanshin Tigers for the 1980 season. He batted .246 with eight home runs and 26 RBIs, and enjoyed the only two home run game of his career in his only season in Japan.{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HTZOAAAAIBAJ&dq=bruce+boisclair+Hanshin+Tigers&pg=PA10&article_id=1607,2374367|title=Ex-Met Scores For Tigers|newspaper=The Virgin Islands Daily Newsdate=October 18, 1980}}
He attempted to come back to Major League Baseball with the Toronto Blue Jays in {{by|1981}},{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EHRkAAAAIBAJ&dq=bruce+boisclair+toronto+blue+jays&pg=PA87&article_id=2228,2346433|title=Transactions|newspaper=Calgary Herald|date=February 5, 1981|page=D14}} but failed to make the club out of spring training.{{cite web|url=http://www.centerfieldmaz.com/2017/12/mid-to-late-seventies-mets-outfielder.html|title=Mid to Late Seventies Mets Outfielder: Bruce Boisclair (1974-1979)|publisher=Centerfield Maz|date=December 8, 2017}}
Career stats
Personal life
Bosclair & his wife, Delores, have two daughters, Erin & Britt. Erin became a nationally ranked tennis pro{{cite web|url=https://gohuskies.com/sports/2013/4/18/208217556|title=Player Bio: Erin Boisclair|website=University of Washington Official Athletic Site}} who won the Southern California Junior Championship when she was 13 years old (1993).{{cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-08-27-sp-28443-story.html|last=Haddad|first=Dana|date=August 27, 1993|title=Fair Play From a Pretty Fair Player: Agoura Hills' Boisclair is as Good a Sport as She is a Sportswoman|newspaper=Los Angeles Times}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
{{Baseballstats|mlb=111160|espn=19330|br=b/boiscbr01|fangraphs=1001131|brm=boiscl001bru}}, or [https://ultimatemets.com/profile.php?PlayerCode=0225 The Ultimate Mets Database]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boisclair, Bruce}}
Category:Major League Baseball outfielders
Category:Baseball players from Windham County, Connecticut
Category:New York Mets players
Category:Hanshin Tigers players
Category:Memphis Blues players
Category:Tidewater Tides players
Category:Pompano Beach Mets players
Category:American expatriate baseball players in Japan