Rickey Henderson, who died Friday at 65, was a one-of-a-kind MLB superstar who never will be duplicated. Monte Poole honors the Athletics legend who wasted no…
Undisputed singular superlatives are rare in sports because debate is natural and constant turnover always delivers a counterpoint. The physical evolution of humanity declares that today’s greatest of all time can expect to be surpassed.was among the rare exceptions. He rose from the youth baseball diamonds of Oakland to become the undisputed greatest leadoff batter in the history of baseball.Friday, confirmed by NBC Sports California, hit like a sledgehammer to the gut. He’s so fit. So vivid.
Spectators collectively leaned forward while scooting toward the seat’s edge. The show was about to begin. The pitcher and catcher were on high alert. The following batter was irrelevant. It was all about Rickey. What would he do? Everybody knew. He would steal a base. He did it anyway. He was a peacock in uniform, with hubris and bravado at the center of his identity.Who on God’s green earth sets a career record – any career record – in the exact middle of a career? It’s unfathomable.
The problem with pitching to Rickey was that he had the tools to punish the ball with a vengeance. He’s the all-time leader in leadoff home runs with 81, indicating no one was better at putting his team on the scoreboard in the first inning. He finished his career with 297 home runs, exceeding the totals of such sluggers as Will Clark, Pat Burrell and Roger Maris.
If one were to build the ultimate baseball lineup, only one spot avoids debate. Leadoff. That belongs to Rickey, the all-time leader in runs, leadoff homers and steals.
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