Fearsome Hitters
If I were on the mound pitching, these would be the top 10 guys who would scare the bejeezus out of me as they strolled to the plate. To keep the suspense going, I'm going to start with the No. 10 guy and work my way up the ladder to the most fearsome-looking hitter on the planet that the game of baseball has ever seen. BOO!
9. JIMMIE FOXX: Pitchers in the 1930s didn't just call Foxx "Double X" for nothing. He had a poisonous bat for sure. Like Mantle, Foxx also had muscles before muscles were cool, as the old Barbara Mandrell song goes. Foxx slammed 534 homers in his career and twice clouted 50 or more in a single year - with 58 in 1932 for the Philadelphia A's and 50 in 1938 for the Boston Red Sox. Foxx was hitting tape-measure homers long before fans decided to get out their measuring tapes. By all accounts, Foxx hit plenty of long-distance shots in his day.
8. HARMON KILLEBREW: Killebrew was nicknamed "Killer" for good reason. He clouted 573 career homers and, on eight occasions, he hit 40 or more in a single season. He was stout and his stick had clout. In 1961, Killebrew hit 46 homers and one of them was a 520-foot blast over the centerfield fence in Minnesota's Metropolitan Stadium. In 1967, Killebrew hit 44 homers as another one of his cosmic blasts went 520 feet to the top of the leftfield stands at his home park. Long-distance shots were certainly Killebrew's calling card.
7. TED KLUSZEWSKI: "The Big Klu" loved to show off his biceps by wearing no sleeves. Believe me, he had plenty of muscle to show; just look at his 1957 Topps baseball card if you get a chance. At 6-foot-2 and 240 pounds, Kluszewski was an imposing figure at the plate. He hit 279 career homers and reached the 40-or-more mark three consecutive seasons. In 1953 for the Cincinnati Reds, Big Klu hit 40 homers, knocked in 108 runs, and hit .316. In 1954, he slammed 49 homers with 141 RBI and a .326 batting average. In 1955, he had 47 homers, 113 RBI, and a .314 batting average. Kluszewski led Senior Circuit first basemen five straight years in fielding percentage (1951-55). But, his bat was his strong point.
6. BOOG POWELL: His real name was John Wesley Powell. But, at 6-foot-4 and 246 pounds, everyone called him "Boog." Powell had 339 career home runs and won the American League MVP award in 1970 when he hit .297 with 35 homers and 114 RBI. On three occasions (in 1963, '64, and '66), Boog hit three home runs in one game. In 1975 toward the end of his career, Powell hit a ball 450 feet at Kansas City.
5. JOSE CANSECO: Jose can you see... that ball leaving the park? Toronto fans sure did when Canseco crunched a defenseless baseball into the upper deck of the Sky Dome during the fourth game of the 1989 American League Championship Series between the Blue Jays and Oakland A's. I've seen Canseco play in person on two occasions. The first time was at the old Arlington Stadium when Canseco played for the Texas Rangers. After the Rangers moved into The Ballpark in Arlington, I saw Canseco in 1995 as a member of the Boston Red Sox. At 6-foot-4 and 240 pounds, I can honestly say that Canseco swings the bat harder and faster than anyone else I have ever seen play baseball. He is awesome. In 1988, he won the MVP award with Oakland after becoming the first player in the "40-40" club - 42 homers and 40 stolen bases. As of the end of the 2000 season, Canseco had 446 career homers. I think he'll hit 500 before his career is finished and, by then, he'll have earned a spot in the Hall of Fame.
4. DAVE KINGMAN: Kingman's nickname was "Kong." Hmmm, I wonder why? Maybe it was because he was 6-foot-6 and 210 pounds. Maybe it was because he also hit 442 homers in his career. He holds the dubious distinction of playing for four teams in one year (1977 with the Mets, Padres, Angels, and Yankees). Kingman was only a .237 lifetime hitter and struck out a whopping 1,816 times. I still wouldn't want to face the guy, though.
3. BABE RUTH: This is a no brainer. Towards the end of his career, Ruth looked like a giant hard-boiled egg on toothpicks. But, in his leaner years (if he had 'em), he was an imposing physical specimen. He hit 714 homers in his career and 60 in 1927... numbers that are burned into your baseball noggin by now probably. In 1926 at Detroit's Navin Field, Ruth hit a ball that was projected to have gone 626 feet. In sqaure footage, that would be a nice one-bedroom apartment in some areas.
2. MARK McGWIRE: Did you think I would pick McGwire numero uno on this list? If you did, maybe he should be. After all, the man absolutely crushes baseballs. He's 6-foot-5, weighs 225 pounds and could bench press one of those new Volkswagen Beetles if given a chance. When he hit 70 homers in 1998, his shortest homer was his 62nd - the one that broke Roger Maris' single-season record. The ball "only" went 341 feet to left field. The average flight of each of his home runs in '98? An astonishing 423 feet! I love to watch McGwire swing - as a fan. As a pitcher, I would be absolutely terrified. Can you imagine what a McGwire line drive at a pitcher would do if he hit one with an aluminum bat? Can you actually believe McGwire used to use one when he was at USC in the early 1980s? That's a scary thought!
1. FRANK HOWARD: This man from what I've read and heard murdered baseballs. It's a wonder they didn't disintegrate when they came in contact with his bat. "Hondo" stood 6-foot-7 and weighed 255 pounds. He played mostly for the Washington Senators and was also known as "The Capital Punisher." He hit 382 homers in his career. In 1970, he led the AL with 44 homers and 126 RBI. Howard once hit a ball 506 feet at Anaheim Stadium. In 1968, he established a record by hitting the most homers (10) in six consecutive games. That's more than some guys hit in a whole year - or, if you're a Fred Patek, two years.
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