Home run in first major league at bat
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[edit] Trivia & Facts
- Twenty-four of these rookies hit their home run on the first major league pitch they ever saw. Six of these players were pitchers.
- Nineteen never hit another major league home run.
- Only three men hit their home runs with the bases loaded: Bill Duggleby in April 1898, Jeremy Hermida 107 years later in August 2005, and Kevin Kouzmanoff on September 2, 2006.
- Bob Nieman, who accomplished the feat on September 14, 1951, and Keith McDonald, who accomplished the feat on July 4, 2000, are the only players in major league history to hit another home run during their second consecutive at-bat — Nieman did it during the same game and McDonald did it during his next game played on July 6, 2000.
- Hoyt Wilhelm, a future Hall of Fame pitcher, hit a home run during his first at-bat then had a twenty-one year career without hitting another long ball.
- Marcus Thames not only hit a home run in his first career at bat, he hit it on the first pitch from Randy Johnson.
- Esteban Yan hit a home run in his first at bat during an interleague game which he started in 2000 for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. He has only had one plate appearance since. Yan has been used primarily as a relief pitcher for his entire career (and relief pitchers are rarely asked to bat).
- Both Ernie Koy and Heinie Mueller hit their home runs in the same game - and it just happened to be on Opening Day.
- Will Clark homered in his first at bat off Hall of Fame pitcher Nolan Ryan in the Astrodome, a stadium known as being notoriously favorable to pitchers.
- Kevin Kouzmanoff is the only person in history to hit a grand slam on the very first pitch in his MLB career, which he did on September 2, 2006.
- The home run by Charlton Jimerson broke up Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Cole Hamels' perfect game bid in the 6th inning.
- Kaz Matsui not only hit a home run in his first major league at-bat, he hit home runs in the first plate appearances of each of his first three big-league seasons.
- Paul Gillespie is the only player in MLB history to hit home runs in his first and last big league at bats.
Mike Napoli Hit homerun vs the Detriot tigers in the 2006 season first major league at bat.
[edit] See also
[edit] Home run in first at-bat
Legend: * = still active, x = first pitch
| Player | Team | Date | Career HR |
|---|---|---|---|
| Joe Harrington | Boston (N) | 09-10-1895 | 3 |
| Bill Duggleby | Philadelphia (N) | 04-21-1898 | 6 (Grand Slam) |
| Johnny Bates | Boston (N) | 04-12-1906 | 25 |
| Luke Stuart | St. Louis | 08-08-1921 | 1 |
| Walter Mueller | Pittsburgh | 05-07-1922 | 2 x |
| Earl Averill | Cleveland | 04-16-1929 | 238 |
| Clise Dudley | Brooklyn | 04-27-1929 | 3 x |
| Gordon Slade | Brooklyn | 05-24-1930 | 8 |
| Eddie Morgan | St. Louis | 04-14-1936 | 1 x |
| Ace Parker | Philadelphia (N) | 04-30-1937 | 2 |
| Gene Hasson | Philadelphia (A) | 09-09-1937 | 4 |
| Ernie Koy | Brooklyn | 04-19-1938 | 36 |
| Heinie Mueller | Philadelphia (N) | 04-19-1938 | 17 |
| Bill LeFebvre | Boston (A) | 06-10-1938 | 1 x |
| Clyde Vollmer | Cincinnati | 05-31-1942 | 69 x |
| Paul Gillespie | Chicago (N) | 09-11-1942 | 6 |
| Buddy Kerr | New York (N) | 09-08-1943 | 31 |
| Hack Miller | Detroit | 04-23-1944 | 1 |
| Whitey Lockman | New York (N) | 07-05-1945 | 114 |
| Eddie Pellagrini | Boston (A) | 04-22-1946 | 20 |
| Dan Bankhead | Brooklyn | 08-26-1947 | 1 |
| George Vico | Detroit | 04-20-1948 | 12 x |
| Les Layton | New York (N) | 05-21-1948 | 2 |
| Ed Sanicki | Philadelphia (N) | 09-14-1949 | 3 |
| Ted Tappe | Cincinnati | 09-14-1950 | 5 |
| Bob Nieman | St. Louis (A) | 09-14-1951 | 125 |
| Hoyt Wilhelm | New York (N) | 04-23-1952 | 1 |
| Wally Moon | St. Louis | 04-13-1954 | 142 |
| Chuck Tanner | Milwaukee | 04-12-1955 | 21 x |
| Bill White | New York (N) | 05-07-1956 | 202 |
| Frank Ernaga | Chicago (N) | 05-24-1957 | 2 |
| Don Leppert | Pittsburgh | 06-18-1961 | 15 |
| Cuno Barragan | Chicago (N) | 09-01-1961 | 1 |
| Bob Tillman | Boston (A) | 05-19-1962 | 79 |
| John Kennedy | Washington | 09-05-1962 | 32 |
| Buster Narum | Baltimore | 05-05-1963 | 3 |
| Gates Brown | Detroit | 06-19-1963 | 84 |
| Bert Campaneris | Kansas City | 07-23-1964 | 79 x |
| Bill Roman | Detroit | 09-30-1964 | 1 |
| Brant Alyea | Washington | 09-12-1965 | 38 x |
| John Miller | New York (A) | 09-11-1966 | 2 |
| Rick Renick | Minnesota | 07-11-1968 | 20 |
| Joe Keough | Oakland | 08-07-1968 | 9 |
| Gene Lamont | Detroit | 09-02-1970 | 4 |
| Don Rose | California | 05-24-1972 | 1 x |
| Benny Ayala | New York (N) | 08-27-1974 | 38 |
| Reggie Sanders | Detroit | 09-01-1974 | 3 |
| John Montefusco | San Francisco | 09-03-1974 | 4 |
| Jose Sosa | Houston | 07-30-1975 | 1 |
| Dave McKay | Minnesota | 08-22-1975 | 21 |
| Al Woods | Toronto | 04-07-1977 | 35 x |
| Dave Machemer | California | 06-21-1978 | 1 |
| Johnnie LeMaster | San Francisco | 09-02-1975 | 22 |
| Tim Wallach | Montreal | 09-06-1980 | 260 |
| Gary Gaetti | Minnesota | 09-20-1981 | 360 |
| Carmelo Martínez | Chicago (N) | 08-22-1983 | 108 |
| Mike Fitzgerald | New York (N) | 09-13-1983 | 48 |
| Andre David | Minnesota | 06-29-1984 | 1 |
| Will Clark | San Francisco | 04-08-1986 | 284 |
| Terry Steinbach | Oakland | 09-12-1986 | 162 |
| Jay Bell | Cleveland | 09-29-1986 | 195 x |
| Ricky Jordan | Philadelphia (N) | 07-17-1988 | 55 |
| Junior Félix | Toronto | 05-04-1989 | 55 x |
| José Offerman | Los Angeles | 08-19-1990 | 57 |
| Dave Eiland | San Diego | 04-10-1992 | 1 |
| Jim Bullinger | Chicago (N) | 06-08-1992 | 4 x |
| Jay Gainer | Colorado | 05-14-1993 | 3 x |
| Mitch Lyden | Florida | 06-16-1993 | 1 |
| Rusty Greer | Texas | 05-16-1994 | 119 |
| Garey Ingram | Los Angeles | 05-19-1994 | 3 |
| Jon Nunnally | Kansas City | 04-29-1995 | 42 |
| Jermaine Dye | Atlanta | 05-17-1996 | 234* |
| Dustin Hermanson | Montreal | 04-16-1997 | 2* |
| Brad Fullmer | Montreal | 09-02-1997 | 114 |
| Marlon Anderson | Philadelphia (N) | 09-08-1998 | 54* |
| Carlos Lee | Chicago (A) | 05-07-1999 | 218* |
| Guillermo Mota | Montreal | 06-09-1999 | 2* |
| Esteban Yan | Tampa Bay | 06-04-2000 | 1* x |
| Alex Cabrera | Arizona | 06-26-2000 | 5 |
| Keith McDonald | St. Louis | 07-04-2000 | 3 |
| Chris Richard | St. Louis | 07-17-2000 | 34 x |
| Gene Stechschulte | St. Louis | 04-17-2001 | 1 x |
| Marcus Thames | New York (A) | 06-10-2002 | 45* x |
| Miguel Olivo | Chicago (A) | 09-15-2002 | 44* |
| Dave Matranga | Houston | 06-27-2003 | 1 |
| Kaz Matsui | New York (N) | 04-06-2004 | 12* x |
| Hector Luna | St. Louis | 04-08-2004 | 9* |
| Greg Dobbs | Seattle | 09-08-2004 | 2* |
| Andy Phillips | New York (A) | 09-26-2004 | 9* x |
| Mike Jacobs | New York (N) | 08-21-2005 | 30* |
| Jeremy Hermida | Florida | 08-31-2005 | 9* (Grand Slam) |
| Mike Napoli | Los Angeles (A) | 05-04-2006 | 15* |
| Adam Wainwright | St. Louis | 05-24-2006 | 1* x |
| Ryan Roberts | Toronto | 08-03-2006 | 1* |
| Kevin Kouzmanoff | Cleveland | 09-02-2006 | 3* x (Grand Slam) |
| Charlton Jimerson | Houston | 09-04-2006 | 1* |
| Josh Fields | Chicago (A) | 09-18-2006 | 1* |
