R.I.P. CLAUDELL
Washington, who had stints with both Yankees and Mets, dies at age 65
Claudell Washington, the former Yankee who hit the 10,000th home run in franchise history, died Tuesday night. He was 65.
Washington ied of complications from prostate cancer at a hospital in San Francisco, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
Washington, the two-time All-Star outfielder and World Series winner with the Oakland A’s as a rookie in 1974, played for the Yankees for four of his 17 big-league seasons. He joined the Bombers via a trade during the 1986 season, then spent the next two and a half seasons in the Bronx before leaving as a free agent. He then capped his career with the Yankees in 1990.
The milestone homer came in an April 1988 victory over the Twins. His ninth-inning blast at the Metrodome gave the Yankees a 6-5 lead in a game they would win in 10 innings.
Washington said after the game that he was keeping the ball (tossed back by a fan) and bat from the historic swing.
“There’ll be no negotiating (with the Hall of Fame),” Washington said. “These are mine.”
The Yankees acquired Washington in a trade with the Braves. The Bombers brought over the versatile outfielder along with Paul Zuvella in exchange for Ken Griffey and Andre Robertson.
Washington was also briefly a Met. In early June of 1980, the Mets acquired Washington from the White
Sox. On June 22, 1980, Washington hit three home runs for the Mets in a 9-6 victory over the Dodgers.
In all, he played in more than 1,900 games with the Braves, White Sox, A’s, Rangers, Angels, Yankees and Mets. He finished with a .278 career batting average with 164 home runs, 824 RBI and 312 stolen bases.
“The A’s are saddened by the loss of World Series Champion Claudell Washington,” the team wrote on Twitter. “Our thoughts are with his friends and family at this time.”
Washington’s major-league career also included a 60-game ban after he was caught up in baseball’s cocaine scandal in the mid-’80s. Washington admitted to federal agents that he bought cocaine and pot from a pair of dealers who later stood trial in Pittsburgh as part of a massive cocaine possession and distribution ring. He was still able to play, though, after a deal with MLB in which he donated 5% of his 1986 base salary to drug prevention programs and completed community service.
In all, 11 players were caught up in the scandal. Keith Hernandez and Dale Berra were among those initially banned for a full season, but were able to play in exchange for donating 10% of their salaries in ’86 to drug-prevention programs.
Washington also had a place in pop culture history when his foul ball was “caught” by Ferris Bueller in the 1986 movie. The film used footage from a 1985 game between Washington’s Braves and the Cubs at Wrigley Field.