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Rickey Henderson
Simply put, the best baseball player I have ever seen play at his prime, in over 35 years of being a baseball fan. This list would include Pete Rose, Albert Pujols, Frank Thomas, Junior Griffey, Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter and countless other great players. Rickey Henderson could win a baseball game in several ways with his speed and occasional, but clutch, power hitting.
It’s also possible that Thurman Munson was the best player I ever saw play at his peak.
And of course, he was full of personality. In terms of it being a hall of “fame,” Rickey Henderson, speaking in the third person about his hammy, was one of the most colorful ever.
A few of my personal highlights:
After years of seeing him on the losing mid 80s Yankees, Rickey dominates the ’89 playoffs in Toronto with two homers in the final game to win MVP.
When asked for his approval on the trade that returned him to Oakland, he spoke to his mother about it and told her, “the team wants me.” She reportedly said, “Son, why don’t you just come on home?”
While running on the warning track with Jose Canseco at the A’s spring training facility, I asked Rickey if he had the new Rakim single (“Know the Ledge (Juice).” When he turned and shook his head, I returned to the office and sent him one in care of the team.
His peak continued through his time with Toronto and Jheri curls, most of it spent wearing mirrored glasses, and then transitioning into the Grace Jones/Carl Lewis “fade.” Like an Olympic athlete too, he was like a rock. Late in his career, some young players asked him what he ate as a snack when he scoffed at their seeds. His reply? “A bottle of water.”
I’m not surprised he played so long! I also saw some history when Rickey was just a few feet away from my buddy Jeremy and I as the Newark Bears warmed up in the summer of 2004. We knew it was like seeing the Babe on his way out. He was just standing there warming up, with dignity, on a minor league team, when a tennis ball by the wall caught his attention. He quietly picked it up and put it in his pocket.
Complete Major League Stats
Rickey Henderson Facts/Anecdotes from The Me In Team
He will be 50 on Christmas.
.279 lifetime ba, .401 on base pct., 1st in SB, R and 2nd in BB.
10 All Star Games, 1 MVP (1990 with Oakland)
25 years with Oakland A’s, New York Yankees, Toronto Blue Jays, Seattle Mariners, Los Angeles Dodgers, Anaheim Angels, Boston Red Sox, San Diego Padres, Newark Bears, New York Mets
