2007 MLB Baseball Season Wrap-Up
The 2007 Major League Season Surely Was One to Remember
What a season. What a season! The 2007 year in Major League Baseball was among the best in the game's history. So many great players reached major milestones. So many playoff chases came down to the final week of the season, and the National League wild card race wasn't decided until the bottom of the 13th inning of the 163rd game of the year. The Mets suffered an historic collapse.
And perhaps most important of all, the biggest record in the game was finally broken, albeit with some major controversy.
Here's a quick recap.
Jim Thome, Frank Thomas, A-Rod and Sammy Sosa Hit Milestone Homers
- Jim Thome and Frank Thomas – two future members of the Hall of Fame – both surpassed the 500 home run mark this year. Thome did it in particularly memorable fashion, smashing a walk-off homer against the Los Angeles Angels on September 16, 2007.
- Alex Rodriguez bounced back from a sub-par 2006 season to lead the Major Leagues in home runs (54), RBI (156), Runs scored (143), slugging percentage (.645), and OPS (1.065). His most impressive achievement, however, came on August 4th, when he became the youngest player in history to join the 500 Home Run club.
- Sammy Sosa returned from his self-imposed exile to club his 600th career blast, and to put together a season in which he managed to hit 21 home runs and collect 92 RBI, all at the ripe old age of 38.
Craig Biggio Completes a Hall of Fame Season
Craig Biggio, that classic workingman’s hero, joined the 3,000 Hit Club on June 28, 2007, becoming just the 27th member of the group. Biggio also picked up 31 doubles this year, and ended his playing days with 668 two-base hits in his career, which is the fifth most in history. All tolled, Biggio finished his Hall of Fame career ranking 20th in hits (3,060), fifth in doubles, 13th in runs scored (1,844), and 16th in times on base. He is surely another man bound for Cooperstown.
Roger Clemens and Tom Glavine Reach Rare Pitching Marks
Then there was the pitching. Roger Clemens returned for what should be his last season, and in the process, became just the seventh pitcher in baseball to win 350 games. Clemens finished the year, and perhaps his baseball career, with 354 victories.
Tom Glavine, so long overshadowed by the likes of Clemens, Randy Johnson and Greg Maddux, won his 300th career game on August 5th, becoming just the 23rd member of that club.
San Diego's Jake Peavy won the National League pitching Triple Crown by winning 19 games, posting a 2.36 ERA, and striking out 234 hitters.
Great Pennant Races and One Huge Collapse by the Mets
- The New York Mets were seven games in front of the Philadelphia Phillies in the National League East on September 12th, with just 17 games left in the season. But they closed out the year with a 5-12 mark as the Phillies streaked to a 13-4 record, and won the first NL East title for the City of Brotherly Love on the very last day of the season. The Mets' collapse was among the biggest chokes in baseball history.
- Speaking of playoff races, the NL Wild Card was a thing of absolute beauty. The San Diego Padres and the Colorado Rockies, who won 14 of their last 15 games, ended up in a dead tie after 162 games and had to play a one-game playoff on Monday, October 1st. The Rockies won the game and the playoff berth, by a score of 9-8, by scoring three runs in the bottom of the 13th inning.
- The New York Yankees came back from 14 games behind in July to almost catch the Boston Red Sox. Alas, it was not meant to be, as the Sox topped the Yankees by two games. The Yankees did, however, win the American League wild card on the strength of a 73-39 record in the final 112 games of the season.
- The Chicago Cubs turned their entire season around on June 1st, after ace pitcher Carlos Zambrano brawled in the dugout with catcher Michael Barrett. At the time, the Cubs looked a mess. But they traded away Barrett, righted the ship, and went on to win the National League Central by two games. Now they have a shot to erase almost a century-long World Series drought.
But perhaps the most pivotal moment of the 2007 season came on August 7, 2007, when Barry Bonds hit a fastball into the center field stands of San Francisco's AT& T Park off Mike Bacsik of the Washington Nationals. It was the 756th dinger of Barry’s career. Unless you are from Pluto, you know that is the most ever hit by a single player.
It is worth mentioning that neither MLB Commissioner Bud Selig nor former home run champ Hank Aaron were in the stadium at the time in what seemed to be a not-so-subtle protest against Bonds's much-rumored chemical assistance in reaching the all-time mark.
All in all, it was a great, great baseball season. At this point, there is only question. Can the playoffs and World Series possibly be as spectacular as the regular season?
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