Al Lopez---1962
On this Date in Baseball
History...... September 12, 1930
While we know that Al Lopez was the
iron man Hall of Fame catcher, who
once held the major league record
for most games caught (1,918) until
Carlton Fisk and Bob Boone came
along. And that he owned a sparkling
.584 winning percentage as a
manager for the Indians and White
Sox, twice interrupting the New York
Yankees string of AL pennants
during the 1950s.
What we didn’t know, was that on
September 12, 1930, that Lopez, as
a catcher for the Brooklyn Dodgers
was the last man in the major
leagues to hit a “bounce home run.”
His drive over the head of Cincinnati
left fielder Bob Meusel bounced into
the bleachers at Ebbets Field for a
“bounce home run” as Major League
Baseball Rule 6.09 stipulated that
balls that entered the stands on the
bounce that were over 250 feet from
the plate were ruled a home run.
The rule was first changed by the
American League after the 1929
season, while the National League
followed suit following the 1930
season. In 1931, Rule 6.09 said, "A
fair ball that bounces through or over
a fence or into the stands is
considered a ground-rule double
instead of a home run."
And we also understand that Babe
Ruth never hit a bounce home run.
(9/12/08)
History...... September 12, 1930
While we know that Al Lopez was the
iron man Hall of Fame catcher, who
once held the major league record
for most games caught (1,918) until
Carlton Fisk and Bob Boone came
along. And that he owned a sparkling
.584 winning percentage as a
manager for the Indians and White
Sox, twice interrupting the New York
Yankees string of AL pennants
during the 1950s.
What we didn’t know, was that on
September 12, 1930, that Lopez, as
a catcher for the Brooklyn Dodgers
was the last man in the major
leagues to hit a “bounce home run.”
His drive over the head of Cincinnati
left fielder Bob Meusel bounced into
the bleachers at Ebbets Field for a
“bounce home run” as Major League
Baseball Rule 6.09 stipulated that
balls that entered the stands on the
bounce that were over 250 feet from
the plate were ruled a home run.
The rule was first changed by the
American League after the 1929
season, while the National League
followed suit following the 1930
season. In 1931, Rule 6.09 said, "A
fair ball that bounces through or over
a fence or into the stands is
considered a ground-rule double
instead of a home run."
And we also understand that Babe
Ruth never hit a bounce home run.
(9/12/08)
