Rodney McCray (baseball)
Encyclopedia
Rodney Duncan McCray is a former American
professional baseball
player who is best known for crashing through an outfield
fence attempting to make a catch. He also had a brief career in Major League Baseball
with the Chicago White Sox
and New York Mets
from 1990 to 1992.
Born in Detroit, Rodney's family moved west while he was child. He enrolled at University High in Los Angeles
, then attended West Los Angeles Junior College and Santa Monica Junior College. The speedy outfielder was drafted in the first round by the Chicago White Sox
in 1982 and then by the Los Angeles Dodgers
in 1983, but opted to stay in school. Finally, he signed with the San Diego Padres
in 1984.
After four years in the Padres chain, the White Sox claimed him in the 1987 minor league draft. Never much of a hitter (his career minor league batting average
was just .226), McCray proved effective by drawing walks (enough to pump his career on-base percentage up to .362), stealing bases (as many as 81 in one season, with Charleston in 1986) and by playing solid outfield defense; in fact, defense was how Rodney won his fame.
After finally making the majors with the White Sox in 1990, McCray was sent back down to the AAA Vancouver Canadians
of the Pacific Coast League
the following year. On May 27, 1991, at Civic Stadium (now PGE Park
) in Portland, Oregon
, McCray chased after a fly ball hit by Portland's Chip Hale
; unable to make the catch, he ran right through a plywood fence in right field, just to the right of the 369-foot marker.
The incident was somewhat like a real-life version of a serio-comic incident in The Natural
, in which outfielder "Bump Bailey" of the "New York Knights" crashes through a wall. McCray was not seriously hurt (in contrast to the fictional Bailey, who died from his injuries), but became an instant celebrity as the play was shown repeatedly on newscasts across the country; a video clip of the play is now part of a blooper reel looped at the Baseball Hall of Fame.
McCray made it back up to the White Sox later that year, but was used almost exclusively as a pinch runner
and backup outfielder.
After signing with the New York Mets
in 1992, McCray was again relegated to pinch running until May 8 against the Dodgers in Shea Stadium
, when he pinch-ran for Eddie Murray
, stayed in the game as the right fielder and then batted in the ninth with two men on and the score tied at 3-3. Off reliever Tim Crews
, McCray delivered a game-winning single in what was to be his only major league at bat of 1992. After appearing in two more games as a pinch runner, the Mets released McCray on June 8; after batting .242 in 61 games for the independent Thunder Bay Whiskey Jacks of the Northern League in 1993, he retired as a player.
McCray played in 67 major league games but logged just fourteen at-bats (with three hits), while stealing nine bases in ten attempts. Rodney later served as a coach for the minor-league Lansing Lugnuts
in 1998, and is currently a minor league base running and outfield instructor in the Los Angeles Dodgers
organization.
On August 12, 2006, McCray was honored in Portland with the "Rodney McCray Bobblehead Night", honoring his memorable crash through the wall. McCray threw out the first pitch, and right-center field of PGE Park was renamed "McCray Alley" in his honor. "I just wish I had run through something like a Coca-Cola
sign so I could have gotten endorsements," McCray said. "Instead, I ran through a local sign, `Flav-R-Pac meats.'"
ESPN
, in its series Who's Number 1?, ranked the fence incident as the seventh-favourite sports blooper
of all time. The Best Damn Sports Show Period
ranked the incident number one in their countdown of the Top 50 Devastating Hits in sports history.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
professional baseball
Professional baseball
Baseball is a team sport which is played by several professional leagues throughout the world. In these leagues, and associated farm teams, players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system....
player who is best known for crashing through an outfield
Outfield
The outfield is a sporting term used in cricket and baseball to refer to the area of the field of play further from the batsman or batter than the infield...
fence attempting to make a catch. He also had a brief career in Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
with the Chicago White Sox
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are a Major League Baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois.The White Sox play in the American League's Central Division. Since , the White Sox have played in U.S. Cellular Field, which was originally called New Comiskey Park and nicknamed The Cell by local fans...
and New York Mets
New York Mets
The New York Mets are a professional baseball team based in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York. They belong to Major League Baseball's National League East Division. One of baseball's first expansion teams, the Mets were founded in 1962 to replace New York's departed National League...
from 1990 to 1992.
Born in Detroit, Rodney's family moved west while he was child. He enrolled at University High in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, then attended West Los Angeles Junior College and Santa Monica Junior College. The speedy outfielder was drafted in the first round by the Chicago White Sox
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are a Major League Baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois.The White Sox play in the American League's Central Division. Since , the White Sox have played in U.S. Cellular Field, which was originally called New Comiskey Park and nicknamed The Cell by local fans...
in 1982 and then by the Los Angeles Dodgers
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are a professional baseball team based in Los Angeles, California. The Dodgers are members of Major League Baseball's National League West Division. Established in 1883, the team originated in Brooklyn, New York, where it was known by a number of nicknames before becoming...
in 1983, but opted to stay in school. Finally, he signed with the San Diego Padres
San Diego Padres
The San Diego Padres are a Major League Baseball team based in San Diego, California. They play in the National League Western Division. Founded in 1969, the Padres have won the National League Pennant twice, in 1984 and 1998, losing in the World Series both times...
in 1984.
After four years in the Padres chain, the White Sox claimed him in the 1987 minor league draft. Never much of a hitter (his career minor league batting average
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
was just .226), McCray proved effective by drawing walks (enough to pump his career on-base percentage up to .362), stealing bases (as many as 81 in one season, with Charleston in 1986) and by playing solid outfield defense; in fact, defense was how Rodney won his fame.
After finally making the majors with the White Sox in 1990, McCray was sent back down to the AAA Vancouver Canadians
Vancouver Canadians
The Vancouver Canadians are a minor league baseball team located in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Canadians are the Northwest League affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays. The C's have previously affiliated with the Oakland Athletics between 2000-2010. They are the only Canadian team in the...
of the Pacific Coast League
Pacific Coast League
The Pacific Coast League is a minor-league baseball league operating in the Western, Midwestern and Southeastern United States. Along with the International League and the Mexican League, it is one of three leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one step below Major League Baseball.The...
the following year. On May 27, 1991, at Civic Stadium (now PGE Park
PGE Park
Jeld-Wen Field is an outdoor sports stadium located in Portland, Oregon, United States that is used primarily for soccer and American football...
) in Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
, McCray chased after a fly ball hit by Portland's Chip Hale
Chip Hale
Walter William "Chip" Hale is an American former Major League Baseball second baseman and third baseman and current coach for the Oakland Athletics...
; unable to make the catch, he ran right through a plywood fence in right field, just to the right of the 369-foot marker.
The incident was somewhat like a real-life version of a serio-comic incident in The Natural
The Natural
The Natural is a 1952 novel about baseball written by Bernard Malamud. The book follows Roy Hobbs, a baseball prodigy whose career is sidetracked when he is shot by a woman who seeks to kill arrogant athletes to "better the world"...
, in which outfielder "Bump Bailey" of the "New York Knights" crashes through a wall. McCray was not seriously hurt (in contrast to the fictional Bailey, who died from his injuries), but became an instant celebrity as the play was shown repeatedly on newscasts across the country; a video clip of the play is now part of a blooper reel looped at the Baseball Hall of Fame.
McCray made it back up to the White Sox later that year, but was used almost exclusively as a pinch runner
Pinch runner
A pinch runner is a baseball player substituted for the specific purpose of replacing a player on base. In the typical case, the pinch runner is faster or otherwise more skilled at base-running than the player for whom the pinch runner has been substituted...
and backup outfielder.
After signing with the New York Mets
New York Mets
The New York Mets are a professional baseball team based in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York. They belong to Major League Baseball's National League East Division. One of baseball's first expansion teams, the Mets were founded in 1962 to replace New York's departed National League...
in 1992, McCray was again relegated to pinch running until May 8 against the Dodgers in Shea Stadium
Shea Stadium
William A. Shea Municipal Stadium, usually shortened to Shea Stadium or just Shea , was a stadium in the New York City borough of Queens, in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park. It was the home baseball park of Major League Baseball's New York Mets from 1964 to 2008...
, when he pinch-ran for Eddie Murray
Eddie Murray
Eddie Clarence Murray , nicknamed "Steady Eddie", is a former Major League Baseball first baseman and designated hitter. He was known as one of the most reliable and productive hitters of his era. Murray is regarded as one of the best switch hitters ever to play the game...
, stayed in the game as the right fielder and then batted in the ninth with two men on and the score tied at 3-3. Off reliever Tim Crews
Tim Crews
Stanley Timothy Crews was a Major League Baseball pitcher who pitched six seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers -- to . He was granted free agency after the 1992 season and signed with the Cleveland Indians on January 22, 1993....
, McCray delivered a game-winning single in what was to be his only major league at bat of 1992. After appearing in two more games as a pinch runner, the Mets released McCray on June 8; after batting .242 in 61 games for the independent Thunder Bay Whiskey Jacks of the Northern League in 1993, he retired as a player.
McCray played in 67 major league games but logged just fourteen at-bats (with three hits), while stealing nine bases in ten attempts. Rodney later served as a coach for the minor-league Lansing Lugnuts
Lansing Lugnuts
The Lansing Lugnuts are a Class A minor league baseball team, affiliated with the Toronto Blue Jays, that plays in the Midwest League.The Midwest League came to Lansing, Michigan in 1996. The franchise began in Lafayette, Indiana, in 1955; after two seasons it moved to Waterloo, Iowa, where it...
in 1998, and is currently a minor league base running and outfield instructor in the Los Angeles Dodgers
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are a professional baseball team based in Los Angeles, California. The Dodgers are members of Major League Baseball's National League West Division. Established in 1883, the team originated in Brooklyn, New York, where it was known by a number of nicknames before becoming...
organization.
On August 12, 2006, McCray was honored in Portland with the "Rodney McCray Bobblehead Night", honoring his memorable crash through the wall. McCray threw out the first pitch, and right-center field of PGE Park was renamed "McCray Alley" in his honor. "I just wish I had run through something like a Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...
sign so I could have gotten endorsements," McCray said. "Instead, I ran through a local sign, `Flav-R-Pac meats.'"
ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
, in its series Who's Number 1?, ranked the fence incident as the seventh-favourite sports blooper
Blooper
A blooper, also known as an outtake or boner is a short sequence of a film or video production, usually a deleted scene, containing a mistake made by a member of the cast or crew. It also refers to an error made during a live radio or TV broadcast or news report, usually in terms of misspoken words...
of all time. The Best Damn Sports Show Period
The Best Damn Sports Show Period
The Best Damn Sports Show Period is an American sports television show on Fox Sports Net and Comcast SportsNet. The show regularly featured irreverent and opinionated interviews with top athletes, coaches, celebrities, and entertainers. It also aired Top 50 countdown shows and other sports...
ranked the incident number one in their countdown of the Top 50 Devastating Hits in sports history.