King Me

In Henry IV Part II, Shakespeare mused that “uneasy lies the head that wears a crown.” A crown is a symbol of power, a sign of prestige. It makes you a target. People notice when you enter the room. Crowns don’t just get put on anyone’s head. Well, unless you go to Burger King, and when you get a Crown there, you feel like the Burger King, bestowed with a profound sense of dignity, even if all you’re eating is a ******* Jr. with cheese and no tomatoes.  There is no mistaking it: crowns are pretty important things.

          The world of sports has several crowns of its own. Every May, horse racing emerges from obscurity, throwing the country into a tizzy over its Triple Crown of races, and making figures like D. Wayne Lucas, Bob Baffert (who looks incredibly similar to Ric Flair; I’ve tried writing to ESPN Page 2 about this but they never seem to respond so I’m just throwing it out there), and Smarty Jones household names. Of course, once the Belmont is over, horse racing disappears for 11 months as quickly as it arrived. Boxing has the figurative heavyweight crown, mainly because there are roughly 700 different belts out there that each claim to represent the true heavyweight champion. In fact, I was just awarded the NHD (Nintendo Heavyweight Division) belt because I beat Mike Tyson on Mike Tyson’s Punch Out last night using just my toes. Ok, I didn’t get the belt. Apparently, someone already holds it. And of course, Baseball has its own, the mythical Triple Crown.

Since statistics have been recorded, only 13 different men have accomplished the feat.  Only Joe DiMaggio’s 56-games hitting streak or batting .400 for an entire season matches its prestige because it just doesn’t happen often. Like a good Keanu Reeves’ movie. In the NL, no one has won it since 1937, when Joe Medwick batted .374, hit 31 home runs and drove in 154 RBIs for the St. Louis Cardinals. And the last AL player to do it was Carl Yastrzmeski in 1967. That’s like the span between Point Break and the first Matrix movie. Or the time between Bill and Ted’s (either works) and Speed. And while it seems like every year, one or two guys take a run at history, they usually run out of steam by August (The Matrix Reloaded and Revolutions). It is truly a tough thing to do because not only does it take tremendous power, it also takes  patience and discipline. 

However, there have been some close calls. Since 1967, 22 men have won two-thirds of the Triple Crown. But the truly revealing statistic about these 22 is that none of them won the batting title as part of their run at baseball immortality. Zero. All won their league’s Home Run and RBI races, yet none could win the batting crown. And that is what makes Derrek Lee’s performance thus far that much more impressive.

As of today, Lee sits atop the NL leader board in all three categories. And while his power numbers have always been there (he has now hit 30+ home runs in four straight seasons), it is his eye at the plate this season that makes him a legitimate threat. His .372 batting average is nearly 30 points higher than his nearest rival. If the Cubs keep playing as they have lately, he should get plenty of RBI chances and we already know Wrigley’s reputation when the wind is blowing out. But does he have a chance to do the improbable, to depose Yaz from his throw of nearly 40 years? Or will he fall short, like so many before him on this same quest?

Here is a look at how those other 22 men fared in their pursuit that ultimately came up short. In fact, I somewhat pared down the list of 22 because some of those players didn’t come close to winning the Batting title. This list includes Frank Howard, Harmon Killebrew, Johnny Bench, Reggie Jackson, George Scott, Tony Armas, Andre Dawson, Cecil Fielder, and Mark McGwire. But you won’t find Alex Rodriguez, Barry Bonds, Manny Ramirez, Larry Walker, or Sammy Sosa anywhere near here. Sorta like Johnny Mnemonic.

• Willie McCovey: In both 1968 and 1969, McCovey led the NL in both home runs and RBIs. 1969 was his closest season to the milestone, when he swatted 45 home runs, drove in 126 RBIs, and batted .320, good enough for 5^th in the league, 28 points behind Pete Rose.

• **** Allen: His 1972 quest (37 HRs, 114 RBIs) was nearly successful, as he hit .308, which was good enough for 3^rd in the AL, only 10 points behind Rod Carew.

• Willie Stargell: In between renditions of “We are Family”, Pops came close in 1973, mashing 44 home runs and 119 RBIs. However, he hit .299 that season which was good for 10^th in the NL, but 39 points behind Rose.

• George Foster: Towards the end of the Big Red Machine, Foster’s 1977 and 1978 seasons were close. Especially 1977, when his .320 batting average finished 4^th in the National League, 18 points behind Dave “Cobra” Parker.

• Jim Rice: Like Foster, Rice enjoyed two seasons where Batting Average kept him from the Triple Crown, 1978 and 1983. 1978 was his best shot; his .315 average was 3^rd in the AL, 18 points behind Carew. A Triple Crown would have ensured his enshrinement.

• Michael Jack Schmidt: No player ever came closer to the Triple Crown as many times as Schmidt. In 1980, 1981, 1984, & 1986 he led the NL in HRs and RBIs. His closest shot was in 1981, when he hit .316, good enough for 4^th in the NL, 25 points behind Bill Madlock.

• Jose Canseco: He did well in 1988 (.307, 42, 124). He was also on Steroids.  Although this photo was taken years later.

• Kevin Mitchell: Better remembered for his Game 6 heroics in the 1986 World Series and catching a fly ball with his bare hand, Mitchell’s 1989 season was impressive (47 HRs, 125 RBIs) and his average (.291) was good enough for 9^th in the NL.

• Albert Belle: Well, with the whole ‘send Jason Grimsley through the crawl space to get my bat out of the Umpire’s locker’ fiasco, I’m not going to say much. Belle’s 1994 season was good (.317, 50, 126) but fell short.

• Dante Bichette: Coors Field Coors Field Coors Field Coors Field Coors Field. Bichette’s 1995 totals: .340, 40, 128. Away from Coors Field: .300, 9, 45. Enough said.

• Andres Galarraga: The Big Cat put together an impressive career, especially battling all the way back from Cancer (so He gets spared the Coors Field Rant), and in 1996, he too used that advantage (.304, 40, 150) to claim two thirds of the title.

• Ken Griffey Jr.: This is Pre-Cincinnati Griffey at his best (though really, will anyone want to remember the Cincinnati years?). In 1997, the Kid mashed 56 HRs and 147 RBIs. And although his .304 average is impressive, it fell 43 points behind Frank Thomas.

So there they are, all the bridesmaids to Yaz’s 40-year wedding reception. Somehow, Belle and Bichette still fit in their dresses. But no one has seen Canseco since he ran off to the restroom. I think Derrek Lee has a very good chance to do it. It would be the perfect story for baseball, which is still reeling and recovering from the steroid fiasco. Oh there you are Mr. Canseco. Lee is a tremendous ambassador for the game and quite possibly the perfect choice to make history.

But that doesn’t mean it will happen or that he’s even thinking about it at this point. When asked about the milestone, Yaz once said, “If I have my choice between a pennant and Triple Crown, I’ll take the pennant every time.” And although the achievement would be great, something tells me Derrek Lee would probably agree. That would be a crown Lee would easily like to bear.