April 24, 1985. The Astrodome in Houston. Nolan Ryan has just pitched eight strong innings for the Astros against the Cincinnati Reds, and his night is done. With the Astros trailing 3-1, Houston manager Bob Lillis tells Ty Gainey to grab a bat. He’ll make his major-league debut pinch-hitting for Ryan in the bottom of the eighth.
“When I got the word I was going up to the major leagues, it was a relief from all the hard work I had put in, all the extra batting practice, all the trials and tribulations in the minor leagues,” Gainey said. “To get there and finally have the dream you’ve had since you were a young kid come true … it’s really something else.” Over three years with the Astros, he played in a total of 57 games, getting 124 plate appearances, batting .216 with a single home run and 7 RBIs.
After his time with the Astros, he played in the Indians’ and Pirates’ organizations, and reached superstar status with the Mexico City Reds of the Mexican League and the Orix Blue Wave in Japan (in the same outfield as Ichiro for two years). In 1995, Gainey became the first player since 1956 to win the triple crown in the Mexican League with a .411 average, 27 homers and 115 RBI.
“Everywhere I would go, I hit,” Gainey said. “There were times when it didn’t seem like I was ever going to make an out. People would say things like, ‘Hey, do you know you have a 12-game hitting streak?’ To me, that wasn’t anything. I was just playing a game, having fun.” - scnow.com
The CUF facegen had an old suffix of ty- so that's where the before comes from. Redid the facegen and dressed him as a Diablo where he had his best years on the diamond. That's fg #1,000 moved to the done pile. Taking the rest of the night off. Maybe I'll actually play the game instead of making fgs this evening
