It was nearly 20 years ago that Rickey Henderson took that first step towards second.
In a Sunday afternoon game against the Texas Rangers, the Athletics left fielder started his career off with a double. But two innings later, Henderson would do one of the many things he became known for -- a single followed up by a stolen base.
Today Henderson was voted to the Baseball Hall of Fame as a member of the Class of 2009, grabbing an impressive 94.8 percent of the votes (511 of the 539 eligible voters).
Henderson is the best lead off hitter to have ever played the game. Certainly the 1,406 stolen bases he grabbed in his 24-year career factor into the equation, but the man offered every team he played for more than turning singles into doubles, doubles into triples and singles into triples.
Henderson was one of the most powerful leadoff hitters to ever play the game. The Chicago born sensation had 297 long balls, 81 of them were leadoff shots -- the most by any leadoff batter. The stolen base king also had a way of frustrating pitchers not just on the base pads but also at the plate. He finished his career with 2,190 walks, second behind Barry Bonds (2,558) who was intentionally walked 607 more times than Henderson.
I could continue to dribble on for days about Henderson’s impressive career statistics. What truly made Henderson the man everyone remembers was his personality.
The first unforgettable moment was when Henderson stole third base against the Yankees on May 1, 1991 to become the All-Time stolen base leader. In the first inning, Henderson would walk and then be caught by Yankees catcher Matt Knokes as he attempted to break the record. In the fourth, the left fielder would reach on an error and advance to second on a single by Dave Henderson. Then, with Jose Canseco at the plate, Henderson would break for third and the moment he was called safe he immediately lifted the base out of the ground and raised it above his head.
And how can you forget the speech he made afterwards.
“Lou Brock was the symbol of great base stealing,” said Henderson with Brock standing right next to him. “But today, I’m the greatest of All-Time.”
Another great Henderson moment was when he broke Ty Cobb’s All-Time Runs Scored record. Henderson wasn’t exactly having a great season in his 22nd year in the majors. The 42-year old outfielder was hitting .227, had 83 hits and only 25 stolen bases. But both Cobb’s record and 3,000 hits were within reach.
In an early October game normally reserved for playoffs theatrics, Henderson made some fireworks of his own. In the third inning, the veteran took a fastball from Luke Prokopec and knocked it off the top of the left field wall. After celebrating around the bases, Henderson would slide into home plate to accentuate breaking the record that had stood for 73 years. Teammate Tony Gwynn would present him with a gold replica of home plate and in true Henderson fashion, much like he did with third base a decade prior, he lifted it over his head for everyone at the Murph to see (the stadium was known as Jack Murphy Field at Qualcomm Stadium, but true San Diegans call it the Murph).
Then, in the final game of the season, Henderson would reach another milestone. In the first inning, as I watched on a little old TV at my Tipton residence in San Diego, Henderson hit a Texas leaguer over the infield and into short right field. Henderson would hustle and turn it into a double. He would later score and when the second inning started, the newest member of the 3,000 hit club was taken out of the game.
Henderson, who was so into himself he often referred to himself in the third person, didn’t want to play in that final game because he didn’t want his 3,000th hit to overshadow Gwynn’s final game. But manager Bruce Bochy put him in, and despite getting that landmark hit he didn’t take anything away from Gwynn’s day. If anything, Henderson added to it.
But despite all of his accomplishments, 1990 was the year to remember. It was the year in which Henderson led the Oakland Athletics to their third straight World Series appearance. It was also the year he won MVP. That Athletics team won 103 games, won the West by nine, swept the Boston Red Sox before running into the 90’s version of the Big Red Machine. Henderson batted .325, had 28 home runs, 119 runs scored and 65 stolen bases. That year he beat out Cecil Fielder and his 51 home runs (back when that was still considered an impressive number) and Roger Clemens’ 21 wins, 209 strikeouts and 1.93 ERA
The accolades go on and on. Henderson was the 1989 ALCS MVP (the year Oakland won the World Series), a 10-time All-Star, a Gold Glover, and a 3-time Silver Slugger. He finished his career with nearly 50 percent more stolen bases than Brock.
Despite playing for nine teams that range from the New York Yankees to the Los Angeles Dodgers, and a forgettable stint with the San Diego Surf Dawgs, Henderson will forever be remembered for his tremendous years with the Oakland Athletics.
Henderson was an amazing player to watch. He may have been a little cocky this is true. But before there was Manny being Manny, there as Rickey being Rickey.
