Monday, September 22, 2014

#284 Henry Rodriguez

About the Front: Henry Rodriguez has his hands positioned oddly on the bat during this follow-through. It looks like he's only gripping the handle with two fingers of his bottom hand.

About the Back: He blew away the Texas League competition in 1990, hitting 28 home runs and driving in 109 to earn MVP honors. No one else topped 21 homers or 88 RBI.

Triple Play:

1. Henry got started with a bang, hitting his first two big league home runs off of Jose Rijo and Dwight Gooden in August of 1992.

2. He became a fan favorite in Montreal, where he had his lone All-Star season in 1996 while reaching career highs of 42 doubles, 36 home runs, and 103 RBI. Fans used to throw "Oh Henry!" candy bars onto the field after he went deep.

3. In 2005, three years after playing his last MLB game, Rodriguez led the Atlantic League with a .322 average for the Long Island Ducks. He also homered 27 times in 92 games.

11-Year-Old Kevin Says: I was surprised when he finally broke out in 1996. As a fan of an American League East team, I'd heard next to nothing about Rodriguez during his previously unimpressive years in Los Angeles.

Bill James Said: "He is only 26, but it is becoming increasingly apparent that he isn't going to get beyond the part-time outfielder status, at least unless somebody gets hurt."

On This Date in 1993: September 22. An Amtrak passenger train derailed on the Big Bayou Canot bridge in northeast Mobile, Alabama. 47 people were killed and another 103 injured, making it the deadliest crash in Amtrak history.

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