Front Office
FRONT OFFICE The A’s added Jason Giambi (left) and Matt Holliday (right) to bolster their offense for the 2009 season. COOPERSTOWN AWAITS ‘BASEBALL’S GREATEST LEADOFF HITTER’ FRONT OFFICE HENDERSON TO BECOME 15TH ATHLETIC INDUCTED INTO HALL OF FAME JULY 26 The greatest leadoff hitter in baseball history has a date with Cooperstown this year. On Sunday, July 26, Rickey Henderson—the pride of Oakland, Calif. and his hometown team, the Oakland Athletics—will stride to the podium in upstate New York and join the game’s immortals. And while fans and media are sure to join in the discussion, there should be no debate: Rickey was, indeed, the greatest leadoff man the sport has ever known. Better than Cobb. Better than Rose. Better than Brock. Better 2009 ATHLETICS than Wills. Henderson, who was born in the shadow of the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum and graduated from Oakland Tech High School, played 25 Major League seasons, including four stints with the A’s that spanned 14 years (1979-84, 1989-93, 1994-95, 1998). And during that quarter century of baseball, the mercurial outfielder posted unprecedented offensive numbers. He set Major League career records for runs scored (2,295), stolen bases (1,406) and walks (2,190, later eclipsed by Barry Bonds), and banged out 3,055 hits, 297 home runs and 1,115 RBI, with a .401 on-base percentage. He REVIEW also hit 81 home runs leading off a game, still a Major League mark. Some of his most shining moments came in an Oakland uniform. In 1982, he shattered the single-season record by stealing 130 bases.
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