Tim Naehring

Timothy James Naehring (born February 1, 1967) is an American former professional baseball infielder with the Boston Red Sox. He was Boston's starting third baseman for 2-1/2 seasons before he was forced into retirement at age 30 because of injury.

Playing career

Naehring graduated from La Salle High School and later was drafted by the Red Sox in the 8th round of the 1988 amateur draft out of Miami University. He made his major league debut on July 15, 1990 against the Kansas City Royals.

In his years as a starter, Naehring was a fine-fielding third baseman and solid all-around offensive player. He hit .307 with 10 HR and 57 RBI for the AL East Champion Red Sox in 1995. The following season, he hit .288 and set career highs with 17 HR and 65 RBI. In his final campaign in 1997, Naehring was on his way to having his finest season, as he batted .286 with 9 HR and 40 RBI through just 70 games, but a shoulder injury forced him to miss more than half the games that year. He played his final game on June 23, 1997 against the Toronto Blue Jays. Naehring homered in his second to last at bat.