Wow Wee

On August 1st the Oakland A's have announced that they will retire Rickey Henderson's #24 jersey in a pregame ceremony called "Rickey Henderson Day". The game's all-time greatest lead off hitter ended his career as the career leader in runs scored and stolen bases. He will also be inducted into the Hall of Fame a week before that on July 26th. He will enter the Hall as an A, where he played the majority of his career.


Rickey was and probably always will be the greatest lead off hitter of all time. On top of that he was also the brightest lead off hitter of all time. Time in and time out he has proved his intelligence throughout his career. Growing up you always knew something exciting was going to happen when Rickey Henderson was on the field. I can only imagine how many people that he touched off the field through his guidance and advice. I had no idea he was such a philosopher until after his playing days were over. I will leave you with just a few quotes from Rickey "Shakespeare" Henderson himself:

In 1996, Henderson’s first season with San Diego, he boarded the team bus and was looking for a seat. Steve Finley said, “You have tenure, sit wherever you want.” Henderson looked at Finley and said, “Ten years? Ricky’s been playing at least 16, 17 years.”

A reporter asked Henderson if Ken Caminiti’s estimate that 50 percent of Major League players were taking steroids was accurate. His response was, “Well, Rickey’s not one of them, so that’s 49 percent right there.This one happened in Seattle. Rickey struck out and as the next batter was walking past him, he heard Henderson say, “Don’t worry, Rickey, you’re still the best.”
In the late 1980s, the Yankees sent Henderson a six-figure bonus check. After a few months passed, an internal audit revealed the check had not been cashed. Current Yankees GM Brian Cashman – then a low-level nobody with the organization – called Rickey and asked if there was a problem with the check. Henderson said, “I’m just waiting for the money market rates to go up.”