Our Annual Tribute to Roberto Clemente! “HE’S GOT IT!!”

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Our Annual Tribute to Roberto Clemente!

“HE’S GOT IT!!”

“If it was humanly possible for a ball to be caught, Roberto Clemente was going to get it.” –Pirates’ manager, Danny Murtaugh

As I’m sure many of you are aware, today, December 31, is the anniversary of the tragic death of Roberto Clemente. He was killed in a plane crash 46 years ago today while en route to deliver aid to earthquake victims in Nicaragua. As has now become our custom, we like to honor the memory of this great ball player each year on the anniversary of his death.

In the great action shot below, we get a glimpse of what Danny Murtaugh meant in the above quote. The yell, “He’s got it!” was probably heard on this catch and so many,many others over his career. In this sequence, we see Clemente stretched out like an acrobat making a fantastic catch in right, his athleticism captured for all to see. Since it’s at Wrigley Field, chances are I saw this catch on WGN when I was a kid!

To honor the memory of one of the game’s all-time greats, here’s a few words edited from recent posts about his Hall-of-Fame career:

Whenever anyone from the “older generation” like me is asked who had the best arm they ever saw, they usually respond “Roberto Clemente” without hesitation, almost automatically. It’s a shame today’s younger fans didn’t get to see him play. He was something special. As a Cub fan, I saw him beat the Cubs many times. If it wasn’t with his bat, it was with a great catch in right or with his cannon of an arm. National League runners knew not to try to take an extra base on Roberto Clemente. He’s certainly one of the best – if not the best – to ever patrol right field.

Roberto Clemente played 18 seasons for the Pirates from 1955 through 1972. He was inducted posthumously to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1973, becoming the first Latin American player to be enshrined. His death established the precedent that as an alternate to the five year retirement period, a player deceased for at least six months is eligible for entry into the Hall of Fame.

Over his career, Clemente hit .317, with exactly 3000 hits, 1416 runs, 440 doubles, 166 triples, 240 home runs, 1305 RBIs, .359 on-base percentage, and .475 slugging. Clemente was a 15-time All-Star, a National League Most Valuable Player (1966), a World Series MVP (1971), a four-time National League batting champion (1961, ’64, ’65, and ’67), a two-time World Series champion (1960 and 1971), and a twelve-time Gold Glove winner. He led the National League in hits twice, triples once, put-outs as a right fielder three times, and outfield fielding average once.

In a record that may never be broken, Clemente is first all-time by a wide margin in career assists for a right fielder with 266. In second place is Hank Aaron with 186. Only 16 men in baseball history have as many as 100.

-Gary Livacari

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Photo Credits: Classic Baseball, the Photographs of Walter Ioos; and public domain

Information: Excerpts edited from the Roberto Clemente Wikipedia page. Statistics: From the Roberto Clemente page at Baseball-Reference.com.

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