Is this post sponsored by Vaseline and 3M Sandpaper?
A lot of pitchers are not home run hitters. As a former Dodger fan, I had the pleasure of having great hitting pitchers on my teams: Don Drysdale, Rick Rhoden, Rick Sutcliffe, Terry Forster, and more.
Gaylord Perry was a pitcher. By itself, a pitcher hitting a home run was unusual, back in the day. Before designated hitters were around.
Great story! Thanks.
I recall seeing Mr. Perry and family leaving after a game from the player’s parking lot at Candlestick. Chevy StationWagon for him.
We’d try to ask players for autographs, some did, most were trying to beat the traffic out of there.
Did Bolin, 80, have something to say? I read the article twice and must have missed it.
Grok summary:
On July 20, 1969 — the same day Apollo 11 landed on the moon — San Francisco Giants pitcher **Gaylord Perry** hit his first career home run in a 7-3 win over the Dodgers at Candlestick Park.
Giants manager Alvin Dark had famously joked years earlier, “There’ll be a man on the moon before Gaylord Perry hits a home run,” because Perry was such a weak hitter (he batted just .131 for his career). The quip became legendary when Perry’s homer coincided almost exactly with the lunar landing.
While relievers in the bullpen were sneaking peeks at the black-and-white TV showing the moon landing, the crowd erupted — not for Neil Armstrong, but because Perry had just gone deep off Claude Osteen.
Perry ended up hitting 6 homers in his career. The story remains one of the great coincidences in baseball history, especially with the 50+ year anniversary of the moon landing.
Gaylord Perry did not just throw spitballs, he openly admitted to doctoring baseballs with various foreign substances throughout his 22-year Major League career. While popularly known for the spitball, his arsenal of illegal pitches—often called “greaseballs”—primarily relied on substances like Vaseline, K-Y Jelly, and petroleum jelly. I think he used Vagisil too, and he hit a dinger.
Reading duplicate paragraphs in posted articles are a pain in the ass.........
My cousin played D2 baseball in the late 80’s and his team went on the road to play Limestone College, where Perry was the head coach at the time.
He said Perry couldn’t have been nicer, talked to the guys on his team after the game, signed autographs, and just seemed like a good down to earth guy despite his fame and accomplishments.
ping
Not a fan anymore since they kneeled.
