Homer History: Dave Kingman nearly hits one out of Chicago

In our Homer History series, writers re-tell the stories of memorable home runs from their perspective. In this installment, Yahoo Fantasy Sports writer Andy Behrens describes Dave Kingman’s monstrous home run on a wild afternoon at Wrigley Field.

Dave Kingman was, without question, a one-tool player throughout his 16-year major league career. Kong didn’t hit for average, he didn’t run, he didn’t competently field any position, and his on-base skills were poor. But when his violent right-handed uppercut swing connected with a baseball … well, that baseball usually died.

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(Dave Kingman nearly hit one out of Chicago.) Kingman, for all his faults, possessed terrifying, weapons-grade power. Just look at this bomb, the third and final home run hit by Kingman in a loss to the Phillies on May 17, 1979 — an absurd game that produced 50 hits, 45 runs and 10 long balls. (Naturally, the Cubs dropped a game in which they scored 22 runs. Of course they did.)

Was the homer wind-aided? Well, sure. No doubt. But you’ll note that Kong’s shot didn’t merely clear the fence, or the bleachers, or Waveland Ave. Somehow that thing traveled 70-something feet down Kenmore, a street that runs perpendicular to Waveland. So it landed 100-plus feet (120? More?) beyond Wrigley’s outer wall, an almost unthinkable distance. Balls don’t land there in BP, and certainly never in live games.

A photo from the approximate spot that homer landed, looking back toward Wrigley. (Andy Behrens)

Kingman hit a league-leading 48 home runs in ’79, and none of them can be considered consequential, exactly. The team finished 80-82, buried in fifth place in the division, 18 games behind the Pirates. It was your standard-issue ’70s Cubs squad, basically — except for Kong, who made it awesome. The twelfth homer of Kingman’s season is probably most unforgettable moment in my baseball memory, despite the relative meaninglessness of the event. I will never understand the physics of that thing. I’ve watched the clip maybe 30 times while writing these few paragraphs, and I still don’t get it.

When Kingman exited baseball, the man had 442 career home runs to his credit and no reasonable case for inclusion in the Hall of Fame. I will make no effort to argue that he was anything more than a one-dimensional player, a liability in almost every way. But that single dimension was pretty [profane] spectacular.

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