1406...and Counting?

After the Giants gave up 3 runs in the eighth to the Mets yesterday to go down 7-4, Connie and I left her seats in the deep left field hinterlands of the AAA club to head toward the right field line, closer to the parking lots. We were standing in about the same place where I jinxed Matt Cain on Monday night, behind section 107.

Connie just loves celebrities. I elbowed her and said “look to your left, there’s Ricky Henderson.” There was a short, well built, middle aged man at the top of the section, walking down the steps to a seat near the field in the lower reserved seats. “Yeah, right,” she replied.

In this morning’s paper, there was a mention at the end of the Giants’ Notes that Ricky was at the game. He was a special instructor for the Mets in spring training. You’d think the Mets could get him a better seat, but he just doesn’t get the respect anymore.

Last week I wrote about unbreakable records. Here’s another unbreakable record, one that will last beyond Joe D’s 56: Ricky Henderson’s 1,406 stolen bases. It’s ridiculous. Lou Brock is second with 938. Brock broke Ty Cobb’s record of 893 that had stood since he retired in 1928.

It is really an unbelievable number. It’s 70 per year for 20 years plus 6. It’s 50 per year for 28 years plus 6. Hell, it’s 100 per year for 14 years plus six. Unbreakable.

Here is what it took:

33, 100, 56, 130, 108, 66, 80, 87, 41, 93, 77, 65, 58

That’s Ricky’s first 13 years, which totals exactly 1,000. Three times over 100, 7 times over 75. Nobody steals like that anymore (or ever). And then, just for kicks, he’s added another 406 steals in the last 12 years of his career. The 406 steals would rank him 64th all time, including guys from the 1800’s!

Seeing the 47 year old Ricky in the stands suggests that Ricky’s not going to reach 1,407, or 300 homers (he’s stuck on 297). I guess he’s not playing anymore for the Toledo Mud Hens, or whatever pathetic semi-pro team he was with last season.

It’s ironic, because a guy exactly his age, Julio Franco, helped the Mets win the game with the key hit in the Mets' three run 8th (before Barry’s dramatic game tying 2 run homer with 2 out in the 9th). Franco drove in two with a bad pitch loop single up the middle. Then, probably because Old Man Henderson was in attendance, he stole second.

Now that’s a fine tribute.