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⚾Bobby Bonds in Grand in his debut
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June 25, 1968: Bobby Bonds in Grand in his debut
June 25, 1968, At Candlestick Park - San Francisco Giant, Bobby Bonds, a 22-year old outfielder just called up by the San Francisco Giants, announced his arrival in grand fashion, clearing the bases in the sixth inning with a homer off Los Angeles Dodgers reliever Jack Purdin. The hit came in Bonds' third career at-bat and made him the first player in 70 years to hit a grand slam in his first major league game.
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The only other player to hit a grand slam in his first major league game at the time was Bill Duggleby of the Philadelphia Phillies, who achieved the feat in 1898.
Bonds arrived in San Francisco hotter than a pistol, leading the Pacific Coast League with a .367 batting average before his call-up from Triple-A Phoenix. In his debut, he joined a powerful Giants lineup that included Willie McCovey, Willie Mays, and Jim Ray Hart. McCovey had just been voted the starting first baseman for the NL All-Stars by his fellow players on account of his .307 average (eighth best) and league-leading 18 HR and 48 RBI. Mays finished nine votes behind Hank Aaron and his .236 BA in the voting for outfielders despite having 12 homers; Hart also stood among the leaders, tied for second with 14 round-trippers.
The Dodgers-Giants rivalry wasn't much to speak of in 1968. On this night, fans saw a face-off between two pitchers who would share the league lead at season's end with 18 losses apiece: Ray Sadecki and Claude Osteen. Sadecki emerged victorious, racking up 10 strikeouts and allowing just two hits in the Giants' 9-0 victory.
Osteen did not fare as well, allowing six hits, three walks, and hitting Bonds with a pitch before giving way to Purdin in the sixth. Purdin was in the midst of the best season of his four-year career, finishing the year with a 3.05 ERA. But Purdin wasn't so reliable this time, and Bonds made him pay with a grand slam into the Candlestick Park seats.
BONDS' HOMER SIGNALED THE ARRIVAL of a legitimate offensive threat. Never one to wait for a home run, Bonds would set a major-league record (broken by Rickey Henderson in 1988) with 30 career leadoff homers. He would achieve 30 homers and 30 steals in a season, a record five times (matched by his son Barry in 1997), but consistently struck out at an alarming pace. At his best, he smacked 39 homers and swiped 43 bases in 1973; at his worst, he whiffed an unprecedented 189 times in 1970.
Did you know?
June 25, 1953, future Hall of Famer Al Kaline makes his major league debut for the Detroit Tigers. The 18-year-old outfielder comes in for defense, replacing Jim Delsing in center field. Kaline will fly to center field in his first at-bat in the 9th inning off Harry Bryd. Kaline will remain in the major leagues through the end of the 1974 season and be elected into the Hall of Fame in 1980.
TRIVIA:
Who hit the only walk-off grand slam in World Series history?
Hint: #1 His first major league home run was off a pitcher who is now in the Hall of Fame.
Hint: #2 He signed a letter of intent to play for the local college team. He knew they had won the national championship when he was fifteen years old, just a few years prior.
June 25, 1934, Lou Gehrig hits for the cycle as the New York Yankees pound the Chicago White Sox, 11-2. Pitcher John Broaca ties a major league record by striking out five consecutive times at the plate, but still picks up the win for New York. Broaca will hit .091 over his five-year career…
June 25, 1937, Augie Galan of the Chicago Cubs becomes the first player in National League history to switch-hit home runs in the same game. The switch-hitter’s pair of round-trippers, a homer from the left side off Freddie Fitzsimmons in the fourth frame and from the right side in the eighth against Ralph Birkofer, helps the Cubs beat Brooklyn at Wrigley Field, 11-2. James “Tex” Carleton pitches a five-hitter for Chicago
June 25, 1971, actor Kurt Russell makes his professional baseball debut by collecting a double, single, and two stolen bases for the Bend Rainbows of the Northwest League California Angels minor league affiliate. Russell was a switch-hitting a second baseman and shortstop, he will move up to the Walla Walla Islanders (1972) in the short-season Class A-Short Season Northwest League, then moved up to Class AA in 1973 with the El Paso Sun Kings of the Texas League.
While in the field turning the pivot of a double play early in the 1973 season, the incoming runner at second base collided with him and tore the rotator cuff in Russell’s right (throwing) shoulder. He did not return to El Paso, but was a designated hitter for the independent Portland Mavericks back in the Northwest League late in their short season. The team was owned by his father, Bing Russell (A former baseball player) and he had been doing promotional work for them in the interim. The injury forced his retirement from baseball in 1973 and led to his return to acting. His sister, Jill, is the mother of baseball player Matt Franco
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June 25, 1971 – Willie Stargell hits the longest home run in the history of Veterans Stadium in the second inning off starter Jim Bunning during a 14-4 Pirates rout of Philadelphia. The spot in Section 601 where the ball landed will be eventually commemorated with a black “S” inscribed within a yellow star inside a white circle, later to be painted black when the Hall of Famer dies in 2001. The star remained in place until the stadium’s 2004 demolition.
Remarkably, the longest home run ever hit at Veterans Stadium came just 3 months into its 33 year history. Others came close (Thome missed it by a few feet), but no-one ever went further at the Vet than Willie Stargell did on June 25th, 1971.
Said Bunning, who served up the meatball:
“The Stargell Star was a high slider that I used to get Stargell out on, only I didn’t throw it hard enough and didn’t get it in. It got over the fat part of the plate. He couldn’t hit it any further.”
Bunning probably would agree with Don Sutton, who once said of “Pops”, “He doesn’t just hit pitchers. He takes away their dignity.”
Said Larry Bowa:
“That ball was still going up. As an infielder, when a guy hits one that you know is a home run, you give it a casual look. When he swung, you didn’t take your eyes off it because you wanted to see where it was going. It was majestic.
“I couldn’t believe how far that ball went. It would take me three swings to get one up there — from second base.”
June 25, 1976 At Arlington Stadium Ranger Toby Harrah becomes the only shortstop in major league history to go through an entire doubleheader without a fielding chance. At the plate, Harrah makes up for the inactivity, collecting six hits, including a grand slam in the opener and another round-tripper in game 2. The Rangers beat the White Sox in the first game 8 – 4, but lose the nightcap, 14 – 9.
June 25, 1984 Dodger infielder Bill Russell plays his 1,953rd game to become the team’s leader in games played. The shortstop, who will extend the mark to 2181 during his 18-year tenure with the club, is hitless in three trips to the plate but will walk twice in LA’s 9-4 loss to San Diego at Chavez Ravine.
June 25, 2000, After starting in the bottom of the first with leadoff home run, Darin Erstad ends the game in the bottom of the 11th inning with a walk-off home run, giving the Angels a 7-6 victory over Minnesota at Edison Field. Erstad homers off Mark Redman in the first and Eddie Guardado in the 11th.
The Anaheim leadoff DH joins Billy Hamilton (1893 Phillies) and Vic Power (1957 A’s) as only the third major leaguer to have hit both a leadoff and walk-off home run in the same game.
More Games over at Classic Baseball Broadcasts:
1988 Twins vs Oakland
1988 Yankees vs Indians
1987 Braves vs Dodgers
1980 Reds vs Braves
Quote of the day:
"They said I was supposed to be the next Willie Mays... I probably had more success than anyone they ever put that label on." - Bobby Bonds, talking about the pressure to reach maximum potential
Milestones
Birthdays:Highlights: Dick Drago | Debuts:Notable: Al Kaline |
Final Games:Highlights: Bill Lee | Passings:Notable: Jim Hickman |
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