As Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and any other pitcher who has been active in the post-strike era knows, chicks dig the long ball.
But the long ball love isn't limited to the ladies. For the past 12 seasons, baseball, its fans, sports highlight shows and most importantly, deep-pocketed owners have shown that they also dig the long ball. A lot. Which just goes to show why we have seen such an astounding amount of offense since 1996.
And while a lot of this offense comes from familiar faces, it occasionally comes from an unexpected source. And sometimes when it comes from a familiar face, the mashing comes at such a furious pace that it just doesn't jive with what you've come to expect from that player.
So for curiosity's sake, I scoured through the stats of the post-strike era to make a list of the offensive seasons that stand out most. I looked for things like players doubling their home run total, having far more hits than usual, or posting career highs at an age when they should have been on the golf course.
Disclaimer: Please note that in no way am I implying that any these 40 players used nefarious means to post these numbers. I'm merely saying that for a short time, they played baseball at a level that nobody saw coming. How they did it is between them and God. And in a few cases, a jock-sniffing gym rat.
So let's get things started. We'll begin down at the end of the bench with ...
The part-time power lovers
40. Rex Hudler, 1996 Angels: From 1984-95, the Wonder Dog never hit .300, never had more than eight homers, and never topped 27 RBI. Then in 1996, the 35-year-old hit .311 with 16 homers and 40 RBI in just 302 at-bats. Hudler followed this outburst with 32 hits over the next two years before retiring to the broadcast booth.
39. Eric Valent, 2004 Mets: Here are Valent's career year-by-year RBI totals: 1, 0, 1, 34, 1. One of these things is not like the other.
38. John Vander Wal, 2000 Pirates: In just 384 at-bats, this 34-year-old pinch-hit specialist hit .299 with 24 homers and 94 RBI. In 13 other seasons, Vander Wal never hit more than 14 home runs and he only topped 45 RBI just once.
37. Mark Bellhorn, 2002 Cubs: Bellhorn celebrated being 27 years old by mashing 27 home runs for the Cubbies. Excluding a solid 2004 in Boston, Bellhorn never had more than eight homers in any other season.
The catchers in the "Oh My"
36. Eddie Taubensee, 1999 Reds: Taubensee had a couple of solid years with the bat, but he never quite partied like he did in 1999 -- the only time he hit over .300, had more than 12 homers (21), or 72 RBI (87).
35. Jeff Reed, 1997 Rockies: Over his 17-year career, Reed had a .361 slugging percentage and hit more than six homers just three times. One of these was 1997, when he went deep 17 times in a mere 256 at-bats and slugged a whopping .535.
34. Benito Santiago, 1996 Phillies: Santiago debuted in 1986, retired in 2005, and hit 30 homers just once. His next highest total? Eighteen as a rookie.
33. Paul Lo Duca, 2001 Dodgers: In 2001, Lo Duca and his Dodger Stadium stationary hit .320 with 25 homers and 90 RBI. His homer totals since then: 10, 7, 13, 6, 5, and 9.
The one-hit wonders
32. Ernie Young, 1996 A's: In '96 -- his only full season -- Young had 19 homers and 64 RBI. In parts of seven other seasons, he had a total of eight home runs and 26 RBI.
31. Warren Morris, 1999 Pirates: Best known for hitting the home run that ended the 1996 College World Series, Morris started his MLB career in fine fashion, posting a .288/15/73 line for the 1999 Pirates. He never topped six homers or 43 RBI again.
30. Jared Sandberg, 2002 Devil Rays: The Billy Ripken of nephews, the 24-year-old Sandberg didn't quite have the staying power of Uncle Ryne. In 2002, he mashed 18 homers in just 358 at-bats. He hit six the next year and was never heard from again.
29. Angel Berroa, 2003 Royals: In his only productive season, Rookie of the Year Berroa hit .287 with 17 homers, 73 RBI and 21 stolen bases. Aside from batting average, those are better numbers than Derek Jeter had in his ROY campaign. Advantage, Derek.
28. Mike Simms, 1998 Rangers: How good was Simms in '98? In 186 at-bats, the guy hit .296 with 16 homers, 46 RBI, and a .994 OPS -- the same number that Joe DiMaggio had the year he put up the second-best power totals of his career (.320/39/155). Simms followed up this remarkable run with not one, but two more big league at-bats.
The infielders of dreams
27. Bill Hall, 2006 Brewers: Hall has a decent chance to hit himself off this list, but sandwiching a 35-homer year between 14- and 17- homer campaigns isn't the way to do it.
26. Kevin Elster, 1996 Rangers: In 1996, the light-hitting Elster woke from a career-long slumber to hit .252 with 24 homers and 99 RBI. Excluding this triumphant season in Texas, Elster hit .222 with just 64 home runs in over 2,300 at-bats.
25. Rich Aurilia, 2001 Giants: Through 13 seasons thus far, Aurilia has averaged a respectable .276/19/77 line. Those numbers would be considerably lower had Aurilia not once hit .324 with 37 homers and 97 RBI.
24. Jay Bell, 1999 Diamondbacks: Always a solid player, Bell had a remarkable 38 homers and 112 RBI for the '99 Diamondbacks. In his 18-year career, Bell hit a total of 195 home runs. Somehow, nearly 20 percent of them came in one season.
The heroes-as-superheroes
23. Tino Martinez, 1997 Yankees: In '97, Tino had 44 homers, 141 RBI and finished second in the MVP voting. In 14 other seasons as a regular, he hit over 30 homers just twice, and never again had a top 10 MVP vote.
22. Darin Erstad, 2000 Angels: Let's take a look at Erstad's 2000 stats compared to his best numbers from any other year: .355 avg. (.299), .409 OBP (.360), .541 SLG (.486), 25 HR (19), 100 RBI (82), 121 runs (99), and best of all, 240 hits -- or 63 more than his next best total.
21. Shawn Green, 2001 Dodgers: In fairness, Green had four spectacular seasons. Still, 49-homer years don't grow on trees. Nor do players who go from hitting 49 home runs to 19 home runs in the span of two seasons.
20. Ken Caminiti, 1996 Padres: In 1996, Caminiti won the NL MVP, hitting .326 with 40 homers and 130 RBI. In 11 other seasons of 350 or more at-bats, he hit over .300 just once and never had 30 homers, 100 RBI or a single vote for MVP.
The 1996 Mets
19. Bernard Gilkey: Gilkey's cameo in Men in Black wasn't the only extra-terrestrial phenomenon he was attached to in the mid-'90s. In '96, Gilkey hit .317 with 30 homers and 117 RBI. It was the only time he had more than 18 homers or 78 RBI in a season.
18. Lance Johnson: Much like Erstad, Johnson was a serviceable leadoff hitter who had one stupendous year. 1996 was the only time he reached any of the following plateaus: 200 hits, 100 runs, 20 doubles, 20 triples, 60 RBI or 50 steals. His .333 average and .479 slugging percentage were also significant career highs.
17. Todd Hundley: In 1996, Hundley had a whopping 41 homers and 112 RBI. Only one other time (1997) did he top 24 homers or 70 RBI.
The Jesus Christ! superstars
16. Ivan Rodriguez, 1999 Rangers: Pudge likely would have surpassed his '99 numbers in 2000 if not for an injury. Still, it was the only time the future Hall of Famer had over 27 homers (35), 86 RBI (113), or 10 steals (25). Pudge also barely missed his lone 200-hit season (199) and scored 100 runs for the second -- and last -- time.
15. Cal Ripken Jr., 1999 Orioles:
14. Tony Gwynn, 1997 Padres:
People always say how it's "obvious" that Roger Clemens and Barry Bonds took steroids because they got better as they got older. Well if that's the case, then what about these two Hall of Fame good guys?
Did you know that when Ripken was 39, he set career highs in average (.341), slugging percentage (.584), and smacked 18 homers in just 86 games? For a guy who didn't miss a start for nearly two decades, and hit more than 28 homers just once, that's a bit bizarre, no?
As for Gwynn, the year he turned 37 he set career highs in hits, doubles, homers, RBI (by 47!), and total bases. So either we have to rethink the "age" argument, or start pointing fingers at the good guys too.
13. Mark McGwire, 1998 Cardinals: Big Mac did have four consecutive seasons of 50 or more homers, but 1998 stands out for more than 70 obvious reasons. In addition to the long balls, Mac set career highs in runs, hits, walks, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, and awkward man-hugs with Sammy Sosa.
12. Barry Bonds, 2001 Giants: Babe Ruth's two best single-season home run totals: 60, 59. Hank Aaron's two best single-season home run totals: 47, 45. Barry Bonds' two best single-season home run totals: 73, 49.
The next big things. Or not.
11. Fernando Tatis, 1999 Cardinals: Tatis was enormous in '99, hitting .298 with 34 homers and 107 RBI. The next year saw his numbers shrink almost by half, and that was pretty much all she wrote.
10. Jorge Cantu, 2005 Devil Rays: Cantu was 23 when he exploded on the scene, hitting .286 with 28 homers and 117 RBI. Three years after his breakout, he's fighting for a job with the basement-bound Marlins.
9. Richard Hidalgo, 2000 Astros: In 2000, Hidalgo bashed 44 homers and 122 RBI. The next year he had 25 fewer home runs, 42 fewer RBI and was last seen with the Long Island Ducks.
The SPICY (Suspect Performance in a Contract Year) specialties
8. Mike Bordick, 2000 Orioles/Mets: In 2000, this defensive whiz hit 20 home runs. That's twice as many as he hit in all but one of 13 other seasons.
7. Terry Steinbach, 1996 A's: In 1996, free agent-to-be Steinbach smacked 35 homers and drove in 100 runs. It was the only time in his 14-year career he topped 16 home runs or 67 RBI. After the season he signed with the Twins, and had a total of 30 homers in three years.
6. Javy Lopez, 2003 Braves: In 2001 and 2002, Lopez played in a combined 238 games and hit .252 with 28 homers and 118 RBI. Then in 2003 he played in 129 games, hitting a career-best .328 with 43 homers and 109 RBI. The Orioles bit, giving him a 3-year, $22.5 million deal -- or, just under $500,000 for each of the 46 homers he would hit during his tenure in Baltimore.
5. Bret Boone, 2001 Mariners: In 2001, Boone hit .331 with 37 homers and 141 RBI. Excluding a similarly powerful 2003, from 1995-2005, Boone hit over .266 just once and never topped 24 homers.
4. Adrian Beltre, 2004 Dodgers: Not counting 2004, Beltre has played eight full seasons. In each one he has hit between 13 and 26 home runs, had between 60 and 99 RBI, and only once hit above .276. Which is why it makes perfect sense that the only time he was playing for a paycheck he hit .334 with 48 homers and 121 RBI.
The 50 home run Mickey Mouse Club
3. Greg Vaughn, 1998 Padres: Even though Vaughn was a solid power hitter for most of the '90s, he only topped 30 homers three times. One of these was in 1998, when he smacked 50 while hitting .272 -- the best mark the career .242 hitter ever reached.
2. Luis Gonzalez, 2001 Diamondbacks: In 2000, Gonzalez hit 31 homers, topping 30 for the first time. The next year he improved ever so slightly, hitting 57 long balls. Only eight players in major league history have hit more. Gonzo never surpassed 28 homers ever again.
1. Brady Anderson, 1996 Orioles: The year before Brady Anderson hit 50 home runs, he hit 16. The year after, he hit 18. Aside from Gonzalez, Anderson is the only member of the 50 homer club to not hit at least 39 in any other season. His second-best total? 24. Or, less than half of the homers he hit in 1996, without a doubt the most offensive aberration of the post-strike era.
