#7. Puckett goes 6-6
The man could have walked more but he wouldn't have been near as entertaining.
#10. Molitor Triples for 3,000th hit
A conspiracy theorist would say the defenders here purposely turned this into a triple, but still, pretty cool.
The Better Moment
- Puckett Goes 6-6 (89%, 16 Votes)
- Molitor's 3,000th Hit (11%, 2 Votes)
Total Voters: 18
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- Puckett Robs Gant (78%, 14 Votes)
- Kuby Smacks--Rivera Edition (22%, 4 Votes)
Total Voters: 18
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- Erickson's No-Hitter (60%, 12 Votes)
- Pagliarulo Pinch-Hit Homer in ALCS (40%, 8 Votes)
Total Voters: 20
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- Kubel Slam (53%, 10 Votes)
- Gladden Slam (47%, 9 Votes)
Total Voters: 19
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- Two Triple Plays in One Game (60%, 12 Votes)
- Erickson Wins 12 In a Row (40%, 8 Votes)
Total Voters: 20
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- Touch Em All Kirby (95%, 19 Votes)
- Go Buxton Go (5%, 1 Votes)
Total Voters: 20
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That’s a nice mix of Ueck & Gordo in that first highlight.
Kirby’s 6-for-6 game is pretty neat, but I think Clyde might be overselling it a bit. When he accomplished it, it was the 43rd time someone had gone 6-for-6 in a regular season game. In fact, it had last happened earlier that month: Kevin Seitzer did it against Boston, with a double, 2 homers, and 7 RBI. Three players (Kiki Cuyler, George Burns, & Dick Groat) had hit 3 doubles in a 6-for-6 day, Ty Cobb had hit the most homers (3), and Jim Bottomley had the most RBI (12). Not that they measured this at the time, but Kirby’s WPA (.562) was 5th; Bob Johnson paced the field at .758. All of those marks have since been surpassed, with the exception of Bottomley’s 12 RBI. If you can believe it, Bottomley is only credited with a .244 WPA in that game!
[digression] Only two players — César Gutiérrez (1970) & Rennie Stennett (1975) — have gone 7-for-7 in a regular season game. Neither homered. Stennett had a fairly long career and won a World Series with the Pirates, which I’m guessing was a career highlight. Though he was the primary second basemen during the regular season, Stennett only got one PA (he got a hit) in the Fall Classic, as Phil Garner started all seven games and had himself a pretty good Series (.500/.571/.667). Gutiérrez, on the other hand, got exactly 600 PA (55 OPS+) in his career, 451 of which came with the Tigers in 1970. His seven hit game was almost certainly the highlight of his career, and came along with a .488 WPA. [/ digression]
Normally I’d be inclined toward the lifelong Twin’s highlight, but even though he came home late in his career, Molitor’s “triple” is just about the coolest way to reach a 3000th hit.
Cool
- walk-off grand slam (unaccomplished)
- walk-off homer (unaccomplished)
- triple at home (unaccomplished)
- triple away (Molitor, Ichiro)
- grand slam (unaccomplished)
Uncool
- TOOTBLAN
Thanks for the collateral!
For me it wasn't just going 6-6, but the importance of the game and I think Puckett had like 40 hits that weekend against the Brewers
Definitely an important game! The win marked the last time they were tied or training for the division lead. Not so much the case in 1996...