Rickey Henderson was voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame on the first ballot today and I want to be the first to say congratulations to the man. Henderson was my favorite baseball player growing up and he is the reason I am still an Oakland A's fan to this day. I skipped school to see him break the all-time stolen base record. I travelled over 250 miles to see him play against the Detroit Tigers. I collected all of his cards I could get my hands on. Simply put, Rickey Henderson was the one and only baseball idol in my life. I wanted his speed but more than anything, I wanted his neon green Mizuno batting gloves (I eventually settled for an all black pair). I know he was cocky, I know he was an illeist but those things cannot take away from what he accomplished in his very long career.
Career Stats and Milestones
Career Stats:
Stolen bases: 1,406 (all-time leader by 468 bases)
Runs scored: 2,295
Hits: 3,055
Games led off with a home run: 81
Single Season Record Stats:
Stolen bases: 130 (1982)
Stolen bases in a single postseason series: 8 (1989 ALCS)
Highlights and Awards:
American League stolen bases leader: 12 times
Major league stolen base leader: 6 times
Major league runs scored leader: 5 times
American League walks leader: 4 times
World Series Champion: 2 times (1989 Oakland A's, 1993 Toronto Blue Jays)
American League MVP 1990
ALCS MVP 1989
All-Star 10 Times: 1980, 1982–88, 1990–91
Glove Glove Winner 1981
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