Sunday, May 14, 2017

Mickey Mantle 500th home run 50th anniversary honored by Mets but not Yankees, who were consumed with Derek Jeter.

Mickey Mantle hit his 500th home run 50 years ago today.

Sunday, May 14, 1967
Attendance: 18,872
Venue: Yankee Stadium I
Game Duration: 2:38
Day Game, on grass
Yankees 6, Orioles 5

HR: Mickey Mantle (4, off Stu Miller, 7th inn, 0 on, 2 outs to RF).


Maybe the Yankee announcers mentioned it during the first game today against Houston. I dozed off, so it's possible. But during the little I watched the Mets at the same time I saw the film of Mantle's 500th played, so I turned on the sound and heard the play-by-play guy discuss it in some detail with former player Keith Hernandez. Hernandez said that Mantle was his boyhood hero and that he patterned his hitting style after Mantle. Hernandez said that during the off season following 1979 when he shared the MVP with Willie Stargell, he, Hernandez, was at a baseball function with Mantle and publicly acknowledged to Mantle his personal admiration.

The Met announcers noted Mantle's obvious difficulty circling the bases on his home run, as Mantle limped noticeably. They mentioned that in his early years Mantle was the fastest runner. They discussed the fact that New York City had both Mantle and Willie Mays as young star center fielders. Mantle hit number 500 playing first base. There was some fleeting comparison and then the obvious fact that Mantle had already broken down by the time that he hit number 500, while Mays continued to perform at a high level.

You can't live in the past and baseball does it too much. But there was the juxtaposition of the two sets of New York announcers, the fact that the Mets television broadcast included the actual film of Mantle hitting number 500 and the Yankee broadcast was concerned only with the more recent past, that of the career of Derek Jeter, who will have his uniform number retired before game two tonight. Part of the Jeter ceremony will take place near the solemn monuments behind the center field fence for former Yankee greats Lou Gehrig, Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle.

Will the Mantle anniversary be noted? Doubtful. After all, the film of his home run was in black and white. Only 18,872 people were in attendance. It was not a record, only a milestone, like Jeter's 3,000th hit, which will no doubt be noted tonight. Through the end of the 1967 season, only seven players had hit 500 home runs.

RkPlayerHRFromToAgeGPAABRH2B3BRBIBBIBBSOHBPSHSFGDPSBCSBAOBPSLGOPSPosTm
1Babe Ruth7141914193519-40250410623839921742873506136221420621330431132123117.342.474.6901.164971/H83BOS-NYY-BSN
2Willie Mays5641951196720-36229898138632167926684261241575107015810663177019928787.309.384.583.968*8/H96735NYG-SFG
3Jimmie Foxx5341925194517-37231796768134175126464581251922145213111371698773.325.428.6091.038*35H2/7916PHA-BOS-CHC-PHI
4Ted Williams5211939196020-4122929788770617982654525711839202186709395201972417.344.482.6341.116*79H/1BOS
5Mickey Mantle5181951196719-35225793607667161923123307114551627119161312134310414736.302.423.566.988*8937H/645NYY
6Mel Ott5111926194717-382730113489456185928764887218601708896641098289.304.414.533.947*95H8/74NYG
7Eddie Mathews5091952196720-35236010043848515052304354721445143910614752636581236839.272.377.510.887*53/H7BSN-MLN-ATL-HOU-DET

Jeter hit a home run for his 3,000th hit in 2011. Here are the 25 players with 3,000 hits through 2011. Jeter was number 17.

RkPlayerHFromToAgeGPAABR2B3BHRRBIBBIBBSOHBPSHSFGDPSBCSBAOBPSLGOPSPosTm
1Pete Rose42561963198622-453562158901405321657461351601314156616711431075679247198149.303.375.409.78437549H/8CIN-PHI-MON
2Ty Cobb41891905192818-413034130871143422447242951171944124968094291897212.366.433.512.945*89/H73145DET-PHA
3Hank Aaron37711954197620-4232981394112364217462498755229714022931383322112132824073.305.374.555.928*9783DH/45MLN-ATL-MIL
4Stan Musial36301941196320-42302612718109721949725177475195115991276965335532437831.331.417.559.9763798H/1STL
5Tris Speaker35141907192819-4027921199510195188279222211715311381393103309436157.345.428.500.928*8/H3971BOS-CLE-WSH-PHA
6Carl Yastrzemski34191961198321-43330813992119881816646594521844184519013934013105323168116.285.379.462.841*73D8/H59BOS
7Paul Molitor33191978199821-412683121671083517826051142341307109410012444775109209504131.306.369.448.817D543/68H79MIL-TOR-MIN
8Eddie Collins33151906193019-4328251204699491821438187471299149946777512741195.333.424.429.853*4/H69875CHW-PHA
9Willie Mays32831951197320-42299212496108812062523140660190314641921526441391251338103.302.384.557.941*8H/39675NYG-SFG-NYM
10Eddie Murray32551977199721-413026128171133616275603550419171333222151618212831511043.287.359.476.836*3D/H57BAL-LAD-NYM-CLE-ANA
11Cal Ripken31841981200120-403001128831155116476034443116951129107130566101273503639.276.340.447.788*65/DHBAL
12George Brett31541973199320-4027071162510349158366513731715961096229908332612023520197.305.369.487.857*5D3/H796KCR
13Paul Waner31521926194523-422550107669459162760519111313091091376381741271040.333.404.473.878*9H/378PIT-BSN-BRO-NYY
14Robin Yount31421974199318-37285612249110081632583126251140696695135048104123217271105.285.342.430.772*68D/7H3MIL
15Tony Gwynn31411982200122-4124401023292881383543851351138790203434244585259319125.338.388.459.847*98H/7DSDP
16Dave Winfield31101973199521-432973123581100316695408846518331216172168625199531922396.283.353.475.827*97D8H/35SDP-NYY-CAL-TOR-MIN-CLE
17Derek Jeter30881995201121-3724261115598681769492652401196994371653158835224533991.313.383.449.832*6/DHNYY
18Craig Biggio30601988200722-41285012504108761844668552911175116068175328510181150414124.281.363.433.796*4287/HD9HOU
19Rickey Henderson30551979200320-4430811334610961229551066297111521906116949830671721406335.279.401.419.820*78HD/9NYY-TOR-OAK-ANA-NYM-SEA-SDP-BOS-LAD
20Rod Carew30531967198521-3924691055093151424445112921015101814410282512864216353187.328.393.429.82234H/D657MIN-CAL
21Lou Brock30231961197922-402616112401033216104861411499007611241730494746114938307.293.343.410.753*79H8CHC-STL
22Rafael Palmeiro30201986200521-402831120461047216635853856918351353172134887151192329740.288.371.515.885*3D7/H98CHC-TEX-BAL
23Wade Boggs30101982199924-412440107409180151357861118101414121807452329962362435.328.415.443.858*5DH/317BOS-NYY-TBD
24Al Kaline30071953197418-3928341159610116162249875399158212771311020554510427113765.297.376.480.855*98HD3/75DET
25Roberto Clemente30001955197220-3724331021194541416440166240130562116712303536662758346.317.359.475.834*9/H8745PIT
RkPlayerHFromToAgeGPAABR2B3BHRRBIBBIBBSOHBPSHSFGDPSBCSBAOBPSLGOPSPos

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