I remember being excited in 2000 when the Sox signed Jurassic Carl. This was a guy with speed and power who could be an instant upgrade for a lineup that had lost Mo Vaughn. Everett broke into the league in the mid-90s at the height of the steroid era, with sluggers like A-Rod and Manny and Chipper and Giambi. He wasn’t in their league, but then nobody was really in his league, either.
Everett proved a dynamic player at the plate for the Sox in 2000, batting .300 with 34 homers and 108 RBI and making the All-Star team. The next season wasn’t as good, though I have a fond-ish memory of being at Fenway with a buddy in September of 2001 when Mussina came within an out of a no-hitter and Everett broke it up with a soft single.
His production was secondary to his mercurial temperament that always found him embroiled in controversy. He head-butted umpires. He grabbed his crotch. He denigrated homosexuality. He had off-field issues, from child custody problems to domestic violence to assault. Turns out that Jurassic Carl was no walk in the park. Not a good dude.
That nickname, by the way, stemmed from his disbelief in things like the moon landing and the existence of dinosaurs. Some of that came from Everett’s personal brand of biblical literalism. Some was just because he was a nut.
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