Funny, just the other day I received a copy of Dingers: The 101 Most Memorable Home Runs in Baseball History
Those of you who have been reading this blog or the Baseball Bookshelf know I hate hyperbole. The use of word’s like “greatest” or “Best” or phrases like “changed the game forever” drive me nuts.
But in this case, I would agree.
In case you’re unfamiliar with him, Bartolo Colon, a 43-year-old pitcher for the NY Mets, is the kind of guy who makes every fan say, “Look at him. I can do what he does.” Colon — who is listed at 5’11” and 285 pounds — looks like Jabba the Hut in baseball clothes.
But here’s no denying his talents on the mound. You don’t get to pitch this long without skilzzzz. Colon recently passed Pedro Martinez on the list for career wins by a pitcher from the Dominican Republic. He is a three-time All Star and won the A.L. Cy Young Award in 2005. And he’s amazingly agile “for a big guy.”
One thing Colon is not is a hitter. He sports a lifetime batting average of .092 (21-228) but it’s not for lack of trying. He takes some of the most entertaining swings in the game. As Ron Darling says in the video below, there aren’t many guys who get cheers for hitting a foul ball.
But then there was this on Saturday:
Is there anyone who isn’t smiling about this? I love Gary Cohen losing his damned mind on the radio call. And he’s right: This was one of the greatest moments in the history of the game. I’m just waiting for Weird Al Yankovic to come out with “The Legend of Bartolo.”
Understandably, there has been a lot written about this once-in-a-lifetime occurrence:
- Mother of all HRs? Bartolo’s belt epic: At 42, Mets pitcher oldest player in MLB history to hit first home run. (Compare his Statcast numbers in the video above with Joc Pederson’s)
- Instant oral history: Colon’s unforgettable HR: deGrom: ‘That was the greatest thing I’ve ever seen’
- You have to listen to the Spanish radio call of Bartolo Colon’s home run
is available on Amazon.com,
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