Giants' Mel Ott Hits 500th Home Run

On August 1, 1945, Mel Ott is the first in National League player to hit 500 home runs, joins two American League players in New York Yankees great Babe Ruth and Philadelphia Athletics great Jimmy Foxx.

Since Ott joined the 500 home run club, the feat has been achieved by, in this order, Ted Williams, Willie Mays, Mickey Mantle, Eddie Matthews, Hank Aaron, Ernie Banks, Harmon Killebrew, Frank Robinson, Willie McCovey, Reggie Jackson, Mike Schmidt, Eddie Murray, Mark McGwire, Barry Bonds, Sammy Sosa, Rafael Palmeiro, Ken Griffey Jr., Frank Thomas, Alex Rodriguez, Jim Thome, Manny Ramirez and Gary Sheffield.

Ott has the third fewest home runs of any member in the 500 home run club just above Murray, 504 and Sheffield, 509. He is also one of four New York and San Francisco Giants on the list, with Mays McCovey and Bonds joining him in that order.

In his 22-year career Ott played for the New York Giants and was a 12-time All-Star, with 12 consecutive appearances from 1934-1945. He was part of the 1933 New York Giants World Series Championship team. Ott never won an MVP award but was in the MVP discussion 13 times during his career, and in the top five in voting three times.

During his career Ott set quite a few Major League Baseball records including being a six-time National League Home Run champion, including three consecutive seasons from 1936-1938. He became the youngest player to hit 100 home runs, as well the first National League player to hit 500 home runs. He also holds a major league record by leading his team 18 consecutive years in home runs from 1928–1945.

Ott also passed Rogers Hornsby to become the all-time NL home run leader in 1937 and held that title until Willie Mays passed him in 1966.

Ott also held several other records outside of hitting the long ball. He was a very patient batter, as he led the National League in walks six times, including three consecutive years from 1931–33. He also shares an MLB record by drawing a walk in seven consecutive plate appearances from June 16 through 18, 1943.

Other offense records that Ott holds are twice scored six runs in a game, on August 4, 1934 and April 30, 1944. He was also the first National League player to post eight consecutive 100-RBI seasons, only Willie Mays, Sammy Sosa, Chipper Jones, and Albert Pujols have joined him.

His defensive skills were also above par, as he twice led all National League outfielders in double plays in 1929 and 1935.

Ott finished his career with a .304 batting average, 2,876 hits with 488 doubles, 72 triples, 511 home runs, 1,708 walks with 1,860 RBIs, 1,859 runs scored and 89 steals. He struck out 896 times.

Twice Ott led the league in runs scored, 1938 and 1942, although his highest single season total of 138 came 1929. He led the league in home runs six times, although his highest single season total of home runs, 42, came in 1929 when he did not lead the league. He led the league in RBIs once, 1934, although his highest single season total of 151 came in 1929 when he did not lead the league. He led the league in walks six times, although his highest single season total of 118 came in 1938, when he did not lead the league in walks.

Near the end of Ott’s playing career he coached the New York Giants from 1942 until his retirement in 1947 and one season after retirement in 1948. The Giants best finish during that time was in third place in 1942. Ott also set a record for managers, as he was the first manager to be ejected from both games of a doubleheader, when the Giants lost both games to the Pittsburgh Pirates on June 9, 1946.

Willie McCovey Makes Major League Debut

On July 30, 1959, in his major league debut, San Francisco Giants first baseman Willie McCovey goes 4-for-4 against Hall of Famer Robin Roberts.

McCovey nicknamed "Mac", "Big Mac", and "Stretch", is a former Major League Baseball first baseman. He played nineteen seasons for the San Francisco Giants, and three more for the San Diego Padres and Oakland Athletics, between 1959 and 1980.

McCovey finished his career with a .270 batting average with 2,211 hits, which included 353 doubles, 46 triples, and 521 home runs. He also had 1,345 walks, 1,555 RBIs, 1,229 runs scored and 26 steals while striking out 1,550 times.

Three times McCovey led the league in home runs, where he won the National League Home Run Champion award, including back-to-back years in 1968-1969.

He also won the National League RBI Champion award in back-to-back years in 1968-1969.

McCovey was the 1969 National League MVP when he hit for his highest single season total of home runs, 45; his highest single season RBI total, 126; and hit for a .320 batting average, his highest single season total with more than 52 games played. McCovey was in the top 10 in MVP voting four times during his career, including three consecutive years from 1968-1970.

McCovey was a six-time All-Star, including four consecutive appearances from 1968-1971. In 1969 McCovey was also the MLB All-Star Game MVP.

In 1977 McCovey won the National League Comeback Player of the Year award in his first year back with the San Francisco Giants after three years with the San Diego Padres and Oakland Athletics.

He was also awarded the Hutch Award, which is given annually to an active Major League Baseball (MLB) player who "best exemplifies the fighting spirit and competitive desire" of Fred Hutchinson, by persevering through adversity. The award was created in 1965 in honor of Hutchinson, the former MLB pitcher and manager, who died of lung cancer the previous year.

The Hutch Award was created by Hutch's longtime friends Bob Prince, a broadcaster for the Pittsburgh Pirates and KDKA; Jim Enright, a Chicago sportswriter; and Ritter Collett, the sports editor of the Dayton Journal Herald.^[3] They also created a scholarship fund for medical students engaged in cancer research to honor Hutchinson's memory.

McCovey is just one of 11 Hall of Fame members to be awarded the Hutch Award.

The San Francisco Giants have retired McCovey’s no. 44 jersey and present the Willie Mac Award annually to the player that best exemplifies the spirit and leadership shown by Willie McCovey throughout his career.

In 1986 McCovey was elected into Cooperstown MLB Hall of Fame with 81.4 percent of the vote on the first ballot in which he was on.

In September 2003, McCovey and a business partner opened McCovey's Restaurant, a baseball-themed sports bar and restaurant, located in Walnut Creek, California.

San Francisco Giants' Willie McCovey Hits 500th Home Run

On June 30, 1978, San Francisco Giants slugger and Hall of Fame first baseman Willie McCovey hits his 500th career home run off Atlanta Braves' reliever James Easterly.

McCovey hitting his 500th career home run.

McCovey became just the 12th player in history to reach the 500-home run mark, which was considered tantamount to an automatic Hall of Fame induction.

Barry Bonds (center) with Willie McCovey (left) and god father Willie Mays (right) after he hit his 500th home run.

McCovey finished his career with 521 longballs, tying him with Ted Williams on the all-time list.



McCovey Cove and AT&T Park in San Francisco, Calif.

McCovey held the record for most intentional walks in a season (45) for over thirty years, until fellow Giants great Barry Bonds shattered it with 68 intentional walks in 2002.

Bonds earned the pitchers' respect partly by knocking pitches into the ocean, just beyond the shallow right field wall at Pac Bell Park, now AT&T Park.

That area of the water was honored after one Willie McCovey, and was called "McCovey Cove." See how it all came together?