Players who have hit a home-run on their first at-bat - Part 6
It has always been an honour to enter in the list of players who have accomplished something different. Baseball is the type of game that provides the spectators a new wonder almost every day. Sometimes players achieve some extraordinary mark which not only
makes Major League Baseball prominent all over the World but also amazes those familiar with the game.
Baseball is more known for batters than pitchers. Batters hit large, fast, gigantic hits to elevate their clubs into leading position. However, one batter can always be distinguished from others. His abilities, his overall performance force fans to stay
in more than a three hour game. Records always have prominence and when the batter has smashed the ball out of the park on his very first at-bat in front of a packed stadium, it achieves international recognition.
The following is a list of players who have launched a home-run on their first at-bat:
Heinie Mueller
Very often players have come in the MLB, who played short but left their mark for a long period. Emmett Jerome “Heinie” Mueller was one of those. He entered the scene with his ballistic hit on April 19, 1938 playing for the Philadelphia Phillies. Exhibiting
brilliancy with the bat, Mueller also became the first player in the history of the game to launch a lead-off homer on his first at-bat. The player, who was born on October 3, 1912, then lasted only four seasons in the MLB.
Before being able to launch his first home-run, Mueller had shown his skills in the St. Louis Cardinals, but the club sold him to the Phillies at the end of the 1937 season, without providing him a chance at the big league. A transaction bore fruit for the
Mueller, who was playing with Springfield in the Western Association, before making his entry in the MLB.
Mueller was regarded as the starting second baseman for the Phillies, but he also entered in a few games as pinch hitter, third baseman, outfielder shortstop and first baseman. Mueller player 441 games and he served as second baseman in 225. Mueller tagged
324 hits, earned 144 runs and knocked 127 runs, with the help of 17 home-runs over his four years career. Despite having a short career, Mueller made his mark with a .253 batting average and .337 base percentages.
A minor period with the army, after the incident of Pearl Harbor was also something different for any baseball player. A comeback from war was seen in 1946, when Mueller joined the Phillies in the spring season, but he could not keep up his previous form
and the Phillies released him on April 22, 1946. Mueller retired from the scene in 1949, as a manager.
Bill Lefebvre
Things seem strange when a pitcher fulfills his responsibility as a batter. Wilfred Henry “Lefty” Lefebvre, a left-handed pitcher for the Boston Red Sox, registered him as pitcher in MLB record books, but made his first entry in the column, completely associated
with the batters. Making his debut on June 10, 1938 Lefebvre amazed his entire team-mates, launching a huge home-run on his first pitch he faced in Major League Baseball.
This shot, however, could not extend his career from one season and he went out of the scene in 1939. Emerging back in 1943, the player made his entry with the Washington Senators, but again lasted only for one season. He had a 5-5 record with a 5.03 ERA
and also got 36 strike-outs.
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Continued in Part 7
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