Rickey Henderson, who died Saturday at age 65, was the greatest leadoff hitter in baseball history.
Rickey Henderson, the greatest leadoff hitter in baseball history, an irrepressible character whose on-field style and undeniable cool defined his Hall of Fame career as much as his MLB-record 1,406 stolen bases, died Friday, according to a statement from his family. He was 65.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) December 21, 2024
We know this superlative statement to be true for several reasons, not least of which is that Rickey himself told us so on more than one occasion. But beyond that, Rickey superbly did things that leadoff hitters are expected to do superbly.
He had a .401 career on base average. Among players we generally identify as leadoff hitters, only Roy Thomas, a circa 1900 Phillies star, had a higher career on base average, and Thomas’ batting average, slugging and steal numbers were all vastly inferior to Henderson.
Rickey led his league in steals a dozen times, seven of them in succession between 1980 and 1986. And it wasn’t like Rickey ran recklessly; he was safe on 80 percent of his career stolen base attempts. Combine that with an .820 OPS that would do justice to a lot of cleanup hitters, and Henderson’s leadoff credentials are unparalleled.
Here’s a chronological look at what we think are the ten of the greatest games in the career of Rickey Henderson.
April 8, 1982, California Angels 8, Oakland A’s 6 (16 innings)
Henderson reached base seven times — five walks, a single and a double — and stole two bases. One of the walks set up a three-run third inning.
In the bottom of the 14th, his one-out walk and steal of second put the winning run in scoring position with one out. But Dwayne Murphy and Cliff Johnson both struck out. After the Angels scored four times in the top of the 16th, Henderson’s single scored Mickey Klutts, but Luis Sanchez picked him off first base. Henderson broke for second and went all the way to third when Sanchez threw wildly. He scored on Murphy’s single.
May 10, 1982. Oakland A’s 7, Baltimore Orioles 6, 10 innings
The A’s trailed 5-3 when Mike Heath opened the bottom of the seventh with a bunt single. One out later, Henderson singled. Before the inning was over, both runners had scored, tying the game.
It was still tied, now at 6-6, when Henderson came up with two out and runners at first and third in the bottom of the 10th. Facing Ross Grimsley, he lined a solid single back up the middle that sent Wayne Gross across with the winning run.
July 2, 1984, Oakland A’s 9, Boston Red Sox 6, 11 innings
Henderson reached on a game-opening error, stole second, and went to third on a throwing error. But the A’s could not push him home and trailed 1-0 when Henderson came up again with one out and Tony Phillips at second; he singled Phillips home, took second on the play at the plate, stole third and scored on Joe Morgan’s hit.
The game was tied 6-6 until Phillips singled home Mike Heath in the top of the 11th. Henderson walked, worked a double steal with Phillips, and scored on Dwayne Murphy’s hit. For the game he had three hits, a walk, an RBI, and four stolen bases — perhaps the most quintessential stat line one could imagine for the "Man of Steal".
July 6, 1984, Oakland A’s 7, Milwaukee Brewers 6
Oakland trailed 3-1 when Henderson walked in the fourth and scored on Dwayne Murphy’s double. Two innings later, his double drove in Tony Phillips to tie the game at 5-5.
The A’s trailed 6-5 when Henderson came to bat with two out and Phillips at second in the top of the eighth. Pete Ladd threw a mistake and Henderson launched it for a two-run homer that gave Oakland a lead it would not relinquish.
April 24, 1987, Cleveland Indians 6, New York Yankees 5
Henderson began the game with a walk and steal of second, eventually scoring on Don Mattingly’s double. But the Yankees did not score again until Henderson came up in the top of the eighth, his team trailing 4-1. He homered off Phil Niekro.
Henderson’s second home run, with two out and Wayne Tolleson on base in the ninth, erased a 5-4 Indians lead, though Cleveland rallied for two runs of its own in the bottom half of the inning. He finished with eight total bases, three RBIs and a steal.
April 11, 1988, Toronto Blue Jays 17, New York Yankees 9
The Blue Jays romped, but they had no answer for Henderson. In defeat he went five-for-five, scoring four times with two doubles and four stolen bases.
He singled in the first, stole second and third and scored. His fifth hit, an eighth inning double, drove in a run and led him to crossing the plate for a fourth time.
July 29, 1989, Seattle Mariners 14, Oakland A’s 6
Rickey had this odd penchant for saving some of his best personal efforts for games in which his team got pounded. This game was even more remarkable because Rickey went hitless and still starred.
The game itself was over virtually before it started, as the Mariners scored eight times in the top of the first. Rickey led off the bottom of the first with a base on balls, stole second, stole third, and scored on Mariners pitcher Randy Johnson’s throwing error. Henderson drew a second walk in the third, stole second and scored, then he opened the fifth with his third walk, stealing a fourth base and scoring on another Mariners error.
Henderson walked again in the sixth inning a, stole another base, and scored. His amazing total for the day: no official at-bats, four walks, four runs scored, five stolen bases.
Sept. 20, 1989, Oakland A’s 8, Cleveland Indians 6
With Oakland nursing a two-and-a-half game lead in the AL West, Rickey’s leadoff home run gave the visitors a quick lead. In the sixth, his team trailing 3-2. Henderson walked, stole second, stole third and scored the tying run on Jose Canseco’s sacrifice fly.
The A’s led 7-3 when Rickey led off the seventh by drawing a walk and stealing two more base, and he would score on another Canseco sacrifice fly. For the game he had two hits, two walks, and four steals.
Oct. 5, 1991, Oakland A’s 12, Texas Rangers 5
This may have been Henderson’s best individual game. He was four-for-four with three runs scored, three RBIs, two walks, and four steals.
In the fifth inning, Henderson produced perhaps the key moment. With Oakland trailing 3-1, he lined an infield single to short, stole second, took third on a throwing error, and scored on Lance Blankenship’s ground single. That touched off a three-run A’s rally. In the ninth, his three-run home run sealed the outcome.
May 9, 1995. Oakland A’s 7, Seattle Mariners 5
Henderson did not start, but that only meant he was available for the critical moment. The A’s trailed 5-3 entering the bottom of the ninth, but Brent Gates’s base hit cut the margin to one. With two out and the tying and winning runs on base, Rickey came up as a pinch hitter, worked the count to 31 off Ron Villone, then sent a fly ball into the left field seats for a three-run walk-off home run.