John Miller (center) made his two MLB home runs historic.<\/p><\/div>\n

John Allen Miller played parts of two seasons in the major leagues (1966 and 1969, with the Yankees and Dodgers, respectively).\u00a0 An outfielder\/first baseman, Miller played in a total of just 32 major league games, getting 61 at bats and just ten hits (.164 career average), two home runs and three RBI.\u00a0 With that output, however, Miller earned a special place in the MLB record books.\u00a0 Miller\u2019s two round trippers came in his very first<\/em><\/strong> and very last<\/em><\/strong> MLB at bats \u2013 making him just one of two players in MLB history to homer in their first and final official appearances in a major league batter\u2019s box.<\/strong> The other is Paul Gillespie \u2013 whose MLB career spanned three seasons during World War II (1942, 1944, 1945), all with the Cubs. Gillespie, a catcher, appeared in 89 games \u2013 hitting .283, with six home runs and 31 RBI; and went zero-for-six in the 1945 World Series.<\/em><\/p>\n

Miller made his MLB debut with the Yankees on September 11, 1966. The 22-year-old was in his fifth professional season and had hit a promising .294, with 16 home runs and 59 RBI in 113 games at AA and AAA that season. Miller started that debut game (against the Red Sox at Fenway) in LF, batting seventh. In his very first big league at bat, he hit a two-out, two-run (Yankee starting CF Joe Pepitone was on base) home run off of Red Sox starter Lee Stange. \u00a0Despite the Yankees’ long heritage of home run hitters, Miller’s long ball made him the first Yankee to homer in his first MLB at bat.<\/strong>\u00a0(Little did Miller know he would not get another home run or RBI until the final at bat of his MLB career.)<\/em> Miller came to the plate four more times, notching a single and three strikeouts. Miller got in five more games in 1966, going zero-for-18.<\/p>\n

The following April, Miller was traded (along with pitcher Jack Cullen and $25,000) to the LA Dodgers for utility infielder John Kennedy. Miller spent 1967 and 1968 at Triple A Spokane \u2013 putting up respectable numbers.\u00a0 In 1969, he made it back to the big leagues, getting in 26 games (just 38 at bats) for the Dodgers. In the first 37 of those at bats, Miller collected seven hits (one double and six singles), scored twice, but did not collect an RBI.\u00a0\u00a0 Miller\u2019s last at bat of the season (and what turn out to be the last at bat of his MLB career) came as a pinch hitter (September 23) in the eighth inning of a game at Cincinnati.\u00a0 The Dodgers, trailing 6-2 sent Miller to the plate for pitcher Al McBean.\u00a0 In that final MLB at bat, Miller stroked a solo home run off Reds\u2019 starting pitcher Jim Merritt. \u00a0(Thus, not only did Miller homer in his first and final MLB at bats, all of his MLB RBI came in those two plate appearances as well.)<\/p>\n

What further makes Miller\u2019s case for the JPA is how close he came to not homering in his final at bat.\u00a0\u00a0 Miller almost came to the plate one more time \u2013 on September 27, as the Dodgers and Giants faced off at Dodger Stadium.\u00a0 That game was tied 1-1 in the bottom of the eleventh inning. Southpaw Ron Bryant was on the mound for the Giants and, after getting Dodger SS Maury Wills to pop out, he gave up singles to LF Manny Mota and CF Willie Davis. Dodgers\u2019 manager Walt Alston sent the right-handed hitting Miller up to hit for LA pitcher Jim Brewer. \u00a0Giants\u2019 skipper Clyde King \u2013playing the percentages \u2013 brought in veteran righty Don McMahon to pitch.\u00a0 Alston countered by calling Miller back and sending up left-handed swinging Len Gabrielson (who singled in the winning tally.)\u00a0 Without the switch, that final at bat home run could have become just an obscure next-to-last at bat dinger. Note: Miller did go on to play three seasons (1970-72) in Japan, hitting .249 with 72 home runs and 222 RBI in 382 games for the Chunichi Dragons.<\/em><\/p>\n

________________________________________________________<\/p>\n

PAST JOHN PACIOREK AWARD WINNERS:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

2014 \u2013 Brian Scott Dallimore<\/strong><\/span> \u2013 In his first start (not his first game) for the 2004 Giants, Dallimore had two singles, a Grand Slam (his first MLB hit and only MLB home run), a walk and a hit by pitch.\u00a0 For the full JPA take on Dallimore\u2019s 27- game MLB career, click here.<\/a><\/p>\n

2015 \u2013 Roy Gleason<\/strong> <\/span>\u2013 Gleason played in just eight MLB games, had a double in his only MLB at bat \u2013 but also earned a World Series ring (1963) and a Purple Heart. Ultimately, he was the only ballplayer with MLB experience to serve on the front lines in Vietnam. For the full JPA take on Gleason, click here.<\/a> Note: Gleason\u2019s life is detailed in the book \u201cLost in the Sun \u2013 Roy Gleason\u2019s Odyssey from the Outfield to the Battlefield.\u201d \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

INSPIRATION FOR THE JPA<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

John Paciorek –<\/strong> signed out of Saint Ladislaus High School in Hamtramck, Michigan (where he had starred in football, basketball and baseball) – appeared in his first major league game on the final day of the 1963 season (September 29) at the age of 18.\u00a0 The 6\u2019 1\u201d, 200-pound outfielder had spent the 1963 season with Class A Modesto Colts. The Colts\u2019 parent club, the Houston Colt .45s (that was the current Astros\u2019 franchise name back then), was suffering through a difficult season. The team was 65-96 going into that final game.\u00a0 Looking to the future, Houston had, in fact, fielded an all-rookie lineup (average age 19) on September 27. Youth was still being served two days later when John Paciorek started his first MLB game. The results were surprising \u2013 and worthy of recognition.<\/span><\/p>\n

Playing right field and batting seventh in a 13-4 win over the NY Mets, Paciorek ended up with three hits and two walks in five plate appearances, with four runs scored and three runs batted in.\u00a0 Perhaps equally surprising is that it was not only Paciorek\u2019s first major league appearance, it was to be his only<\/em> MLB appearance.\u00a0 Back pain the following spring, followed by surgery (he played 49 minor league games in 1964 and missed all of the 1965 season) put an end to his MLB playing days. (Paciorek did play in four more minor league seasons.)\u00a0 Still, you will find John Paciorek in the Baseball Encyclopedia<\/em> and his is arguably the greatest one-game MLB career ever.\u00a0 Among one-gamers, he holds the record for times on base and runs scored, and shares the record for batting average, on base percentage and RBIs.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Paciorek, by the way, went on to become a high school teacher and multi-sport coach and is the author of two books (Plato and Socrates \u2013 Baseball\u2019s Wisest Fans<\/em> and The Principles of Baseball: And All There Is To Know About Hitting.<\/em>) You also can enjoy Paciorek’s prose (and expertise) directly at his blog \u201cPaciorek\u2019s Principles of Perfect Practice\u201d by clicking here<\/a>. You can find out even more about Paciorek in Steven Wagner\u2019s 2015 book \u201cPerfect: The Rise and Fall of John Paciorek, Baseball\u2019s Greatest One-Game Wonder.<\/a>\u201d\u00a0<\/em> (BBRT will be reviewing \u201cPerfect\u201d in the near future.<\/span><\/p>\n

A final note. John Paciorek’s insight into the national pastime should come as no surprise. Paciorek comes from a true \u201cbaseball family.\u201d\u00a0 He was the first born of eight siblings and was followed to the big leagues by younger brothers Jim and Tom Paciorek.\u00a0 (Like John, Jim\u2019s MLB career was short \u2013 48 games for the Brewers in 1987. Brother Tom, however, achieved a .282 average over an 18-season MLB career.)<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

 <\/p>\n

I tweet baseball @DavidBaseballRT<\/h3>\n

Member: Society for American Baseball Research; The Baseball Reliquary; Baseball Bloggers Alliance.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In 2014, BRT launched its own baseball award \u2013 The John Paciorek Award (JPA). The JPA recognizes players who have had short, maybe very short, major league careers, but whose accomplishments, nonetheless, deserve recognition.\u00a0 Just as the emergence of these players on the MLB scene was often unexpected, the annual JPA is awarded on no […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5389,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[11,9],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\n\n\t\n