Boston Red Sox Nixon was drafted by the Red Sox in the 1st round of the
1993 Major League Baseball draft, and was the seventh pick overall. He split the 1994-1998 seasons between several A, AA, and AAA minor league teams, with two brief stints with the Red Sox on the major league level in 1996 and 1998. Nixon's first full season in the majors was in 1999, when he played in 124 games and hit .270 with 15 home runs and 52 RBIs. He came in 9th place in Rookie of the Year voting with just a single vote point (
Carlos Beltrán of the
Kansas City Royals won the award by a landslide). Nixon quickly became a fan favorite for his scrappy, enthusiastic gameplay. He was considered the inspiration for the expression "Boston Dirt Dogs." The signature is that of a "scrapper," a player who hustles and usually gets his uniform dirty during games. After a decent 2000 season, Nixon produced career highs (at the time) during the 2001 season with a .280 batting average, 27 home runs, and 88 RBIs. The 2002 season was also a good one for Nixon: he posted career bests in doubles (36) and RBIs (94). On May 5, 2002, in response to several
hits by pitches, Nixon threw his bat in the direction of Tampa Bay Devil Rays pitcher Ryan Rupe, pretending that the bat slipped out of his hands while swinging. In response,
Bob Watson, the Major League Baseball vice president in charge of discipline, fined him $2,000 and suspended him four games. Nixon had the best year of his career in 2003, batting .306 with 28 home runs and 87 RBIs. On October 4, 2003, in Game 3 of the
American League Division Series, he had the most prominent moment of his career. Nixon was called from the bench as a
pinch hitter in the bottom of the 11th. With the Red Sox facing elimination, Nixon lined a two-run homer over the center field wall for a 3–1 Boston victory. The Red Sox went on to win the next two games, stunning the
Oakland Athletics with a 3-2 series win and advancing to the American League Championship Series against the
New York Yankees. The Red Sox lost the ALCS in seven games despite Nixon batting .333 (8 for 24) with 3 home runs and 5 RBIs in the series. During the 2004 season, Nixon was unavailable for several months due to a
herniated disc and a tight thigh muscle. Upon his return, he generally worked as the starting
right fielder during the regular and post-season. In the deciding game of the
2004 World Series, Nixon hit a two-out, two-run double off the right field wall at
Busch Stadium in
St. Louis in the top of the third inning to give Boston a 3–0 lead. Those were the last runs either team scored in that game as the Red Sox swept the Cardinals for the team's first World Series title in 86 years. For the series, Nixon batted .357 (5 for 14) with 3 doubles and 3 RBIs. Nixon also endeared himself to Sox fans by briefly wearing a
mohawk hairstyle, one of many unconventional and bizarre hairstyles the Sox sported over the course of the 2004 season. Loved by Boston's fans, Nixon is known for an extremely volatile temper and steadfast dedication to his teammates. In August 2005, while officially on the disabled list, Nixon remained in uniform and in the dugout with the rest of the team during the game. When teammate
Gabe Kapler (who often acted as Nixon's right field replacement) hit a long fly ball off of the
Green Monster, the umpires ruled it a double. Nixon leapt off the bench and argued with such passion that Kapler's hit had been a home run (television replays confirmed that the hit had landed above the home run line, and thus should have been ruled a two-run homer) that he was ejected from the game. On October 1, 2006, with two outs in the fifth inning of the final game of the season, manager
Terry Francona replaced Nixon in right field with rookie
David Murphy. Knowing Nixon might be playing his final game with the Sox, the fans gave him a grateful ovation as he ran off the field. Said Nixon, when asked if it was difficult playing what may have been his last game for the Red Sox: After the 2006 season, the Red Sox did not offer Nixon salary arbitration as the team pursued and eventually signed
free agent J. D. Drew and had a fourth outfielder,
Wily Mo Peña, on the roster.
Cleveland Indians In January 2007, Nixon signed a one-year, $3 million contract with the
Cleveland Indians. Instead of wearing number 7 as he had in Boston, Nixon chose number 33. The decision was made in part by his son Chase, based on the fact that Nixon turned 33 years old that April.
Arizona Diamondbacks In February 2008, he signed a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training with the
Arizona Diamondbacks and was subsequently sent to their
Triple-A affiliate the
Tucson Sidewinders.
New York Mets On June 13, 2008, Nixon was acquired by the
New York Mets from the Diamondbacks for cash considerations and a player to be named later. The Mets acquired him to replace injured outfielder
Moisés Alou. He was added to the Mets roster on June 15, replacing outfielder
Chris Aguila who was designated for assignment. The same day he was activated, Nixon started in right field against the
Texas Rangers. However, he finished the season on the disabled list.
Milwaukee Brewers On December 18, 2008, Nixon signed a minor league contract with the
Milwaukee Brewers. He was put onto the inactive roster. After his release from the Brewers in March 2009, Nixon retired from baseball.
Legacy In 1092 games over 12 seasons, Nixon posted a .274
batting average (995-for-3627) with 579
runs, 222
doubles, 28
triples, 137
home runs, 555
RBI, 30
stolen bases, 504
bases on balls, .364
on-base percentage and .464
slugging percentage. Defensively, he recorded a .983
fielding percentage primarily as a right fielder but also has played at center and left field. In 42 postseason games, he was productive, batting .283 (39-for-138) with 18 runs, 11 doubles, 6 home runs, 25 RBI and 14 walks. He was known for wearing a hat covered in dirt, as well as a dirty batting helmet. The area in
Connecticut between
Boston and
New York City, has been referred to as the "Munson–Nixon line", a play on the
Mason–Dixon line, after Nixon and former Yankee
Thurman Munson.
Steve Rushin, who coined the term in a 2003
Sports Illustrated article, has pinpointed the line as running north of
New Haven, south of
Hartford, and along the width of
central Connecticut. In 2010, Red Sox manager
Terry Francona compared rookie Red Sox outfielder
Ryan Kalish's intensity and aggressiveness to Nixon's. In October 2018, Nixon threw out the
ceremonial first pitch of the
American League Division Series to
Dustin Pedroia, and collected donations outside of
Fenway Park for
Hurricane Florence victims. In 2020, Nixon was inducted into the
North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame. He was inducted in the
Red Sox Hall of Fame in May 2024. ==Personal life==