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Originally Posted by Merkle923
This was my first "favorite new player" when the Yankees promoted him and stuck him into the line-up on September 17, 1967. The following weekend against the first place Minnesota Twins - though billed as a speed-and-defense guy - Shopay hit a three-run homer off Dave Boswell in his second major league at bat and kept Minnesota from expanding their lead from one half game to a game-and-a-half. Since Minnesota lost the pennant by one game, Shopay's homer was of unexpected importance.
He hit another one a week later and the Yankees thought they'd found their next left fielder. But he went into military service for 1968, and when he came back the Yankees decided he was at best a platoon outfielder (26 career plate appearances against LHP compared to 283 against righties) and such a non-prospect that they not only let him go in the 1969 Rule V draft, but when the Orioles didn't keep him on the 1970 major league roster, New York did not reclaim him.
Shopay went on to a surprisingly lengthy run (off-and-on for seven seasons) as a pinch-hit specialist for the O's, and was used four times (without success) in the 1971 World Series. Just to top it off, by pure chance I attended a Yankee game when I was 10 years old and found myself seated behind his wife. They were from a town deep in the wilds of Connecticut called Bristol, which I had never heard of till then but which came up again later in a very different context.
By the way, after his homers on September 23 and September 30, 1967, his next in the majors came on April 24, 1977, against Dave Roberts of the Tigers. If that isn't a record drought for a non-pitcher, it's close enough.
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Hey Merkle,
Thanks for the Shopay pic and just for trivia sake, his wife's name was Laurel. In 1970-71, the O's had oodles of outfield talent. Shopay did have a 257 BA in 1971. Here's another outfield prospect that bit the dust. Dave May was the same. He couldn't break into an outfield of Buford-Blair-FRobby. The Brewers picked him up and May became their starting centerfielder in 1970 into 1971. Rettenmund was also there and only because Blair got hit in the face by a pitch from Ken Tatum in 1970, that he started playing more regularly.
In summary, the guys gotta play to stay sharp!
BRobby05