If Your Birthday is June 10th...

 ...you share it with Al Alburquerque, the (nearly) geographically named reliever best known for his five seasons with the Tigers.     

Pokey Reese, the infielder whose eight big league seasons were split between the Reds, Pirates and Red Sox -- where he finished his career in 2004 as a backup on the club that ended "the curse."

Rick Camp pitched nine years for the Braves, but is most remembered for one game: on July 4th, 1985, the weak-hitting hurler had to hit in the 11th inning because the Braves had no position players left -- and stunned the crowd (and a nationwide TV audience on TBS) with a home run off Mets reliever Tom Gorman to re-tie the game at 11–11. The Mets grabbed a 16-11 lead (off him) in the top of the 18th and Ron Darling retired him for the final out of a game that, due to an early rain delay, last until 3:55 in the morning -- and was followed by previously scheduled fireworks!

"The other" Randy Johnson, a light hitting backup infielder with the 1980s Braves.

Johnny Edwards was born in Columbus, Ohio and caught for 14 years in the majors. He broke in with his home state's Cincinnati Reds, beginning with their 1961 pennant-winners, a run that ended when the Reds promoted his successor, the future Hall of Famer Johnny Bench. Edwards made it back to the Fall Classic in 1968, as Tim McCarver's backup with the Cardinals.

Ken Singleton, the New York native who broke in with his hometown Mets, but began to thrive in Montreal, after being part of the Rusty Staub trade just before the 1972 season. Three years later, he moved onto Baltimore, where over the next decade, he was a big part of pennant winning teams in 1979 and '83. Following a 15-season playing career, he spent 37 years calling games for the Blue Jays, Expos, and from 1997-2021, the Yankees. 

Of the 54 players who've appeared in the majors that were born June 10th,  Singleton, a lifetime .282 hitter with 246 homers, is clearly the best of the bunch.

Saturday's cake and cards go to another player whose big league career began at Shea Stadium

Jose Reyes' trademark was his speed -- the four-time NL leader in triples stole 517 bases during 16 MLB seasons. One has to wonder how his career might have gone had he not left as a free agent after becoming the only Met ever to win a batting title in 2011. Signing with the Marlins, he was later flipped to the Blue Jays and Rockies -- who released him following a 2016 domestic violence incident and subsequent suspension. He soon returned to the Mets organization, helping spark the offense en route to earning an NL Wild Card that October.

And we'll head to the Bronx for Sunday's birthday star:

Hideki Matsui came to the Yankees with rock star credentials -- and lived up to them. The most prolific slugger in Japanese baseball signed with the Yankees in 2003, where he finished second for Rookie of the Year -- and frankly, went on to a far more prolific career than the winner, Angel Berroa.

Quickly becoming a fan favorite, Matsui crushed a grand slam in the first game he ever played at Yankee Stadium, and went onto drive in more than 100 runs four times. He capped his Yankee career by earning MVP honors in the 2009 World Series.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Rare Remnant of a Lost Ballpark

Will He Wear Zero in the Bronx?

Spring Training Flashbacks: Subway Series, Florida Style - 2016