All right, all right. So you know him already, the guy who hit the four homers against the Chicago White Sox the other night. You probably also know that he’s only the 13th player in major league history to accomplish the feat.
“It’s in the pantheon of baseball feats,” home run researcher David Vincent told the Seattle Times. “There have been more perfect games, and way more things like cycles and no-hitters. About the only thing I can think of is unassisted triple plays. There’s only been 10 of those.”
But that’s just the beginning. Cameron, whose Mariners are back at No. 1 in the Power Rankings (thanks to a weekend sweep of the Yankees in New York), hit three homers in the first three innings -- only the second player ever to do that.
Cameron was only the third player ever to hit two homers in the first inning -- the second was teammate Brett Boone, just moments earlier. And nobody had ever hit back-to-back homers twice in the same inning, as Boone and Cameron did.
Just an amazing night all around -- even more so when you factor in Ken Griffey Jr. That’s right. Up until last Thursday, Cameron -- despite a very solid, steadily improving career -- was known primarily as the guy the Cincinnati Reds traded to get Junior before the 2000 season.
Funny thing is, the Mariners really didn’t want Cameron. At least, as much as they wanted middle infielder Pokey Reese. But the Reds refused to give him up, so Seattle settled for Cameron.
Last season, while injuries limited Griffey to 24 homers, 65 RBIs and a .286 average, Cameron hit went .267, 25 and 110 with 34 stolen bases as the Mariners tied a record with 116 regular-season victories.
This season? Well, you know about Cameron. Reese, meanwhile, was traded twice in a matter of days this past winter, then released before signing with the Pittsburgh Pirates. He went 0-for-3 on Sunday -- just his 13th game of the season and his first since a bad right hamstring put him on the 15-day disabled list. He’s hitting .295, but with no homers, seven RBIs and one stolen base.
Sometimes it’s not just a weird game.
If you’re the Mariners and you think of what could have been, it’s kind of scary, too.
CNNSI.com's Power Rankings
Rank
LW
Team
1
3
Seattle Mariners OK, what’s sillier? The M’s decreeing “Yankees Suck” T-shirts distasteful and ordering fans at Safeco to take them off? Or one fan running off to the American Civil Liberties Union, whining that his rights had been violated? We’ll call it a push.
2
1
Boston Red Sox Who says no-hitters are rare? Not Rickey Henderson. Derek Lowe's no-no was the seventh Henderson has played in. The record is nine, held by Bert "Campy" Campaneris.
3
14
Minnesota Twins The big secret to their success so far? A stellar bullpen (7-2, 2.83 ERA) anchored by closer Eddie Guardado (0-0, 1.20, 11-for-11 in save chances). All for a total annual salary of $7.4 million. Starter Brad Radke (3-2, 6.25), by the way, makes $8.75 million.
4
9
Chicago White Sox Two guys were definitely bummed by Mike Cameron’s feat. Jon Rauch, who gave up the first dinger, and Jim Parque, who served up the last three, were shipped out to Class AAA Charlotte minutes after the game.
5
7
Arizona Diamondbacks It’s early, but Rick Helling’s personal record of 41 homers, set in 1999, appears to be in danger. He’s given up 10 so far this season.
6
10
New York Mets A little bit of history for Al Leiter: By defeating the D'backs last week, he became the first pitcher in major league history to beat all 30 teams. Kevin Brown and Randy Johnson are stuck at 29.
7
4
Los Angeles Dodgers Kazuhisa Ishii’s 6-0 start could be a good sign in more ways than one. The last time an L.A. pitcher did it -- Orel Hershiser in 1988 -- the Dodgers went on to beat the A’s in the World Series. They haven’t been back since.
8
21
San Francisco Giants Proof that there’s no end to Barry Bonds home run stats: He hit 127 between Rey Sanchez’s 12th career homer in 2000 and his 13th last week. Sanchez, however, still leads in teams played for during that span, 3-1.
9
2
Cincinnati Reds They’re talking to Jeff Shaw about returning to baseball as a setup man. Of course, Shaw has 203 career saves. Which makes talk of trading closer Danny Graves for a starter suddenly not quite so implausible.
10
12
San Diego Padres One closer who’s not going anywhere is Trevor Hoffman. Last week, he posted his 321st career save with the Padres. That’s the most for a closer with one team, surpassing the 320 Dennis Eckersley recorded with the A's.
11
8
New York Yankees Lest Yankee-haters start feeling too good about the Bombers’ so-so start, the Boss is already drooling over slugger Cliff Floyd, who’s expected to go on the trading block as soon as the Marlins fall out of the NL East race.
12
11
Montreal Expos Frank Robinson & Co. must be doing something right. The Expos’ on-base percentage of .319 from 1997-2001 was the worst in the National League. This year? It’s .349, which ranks No. 1.
13
13
Baltimore Orioles The good news for Josh Towers, who’s surrendered 11 home runs this year, is that he didn’t give up one against the Red Sox the other day. The bad news is that Boston still scored 10 runs against him in five innings. And, yes, like Rauch and Parque, Towers is now dealing with the vagaries of life in the minors.
14
18
Anaheim Angels Did you know that David Eckstein is the first player in major league history to hit the first two grand slam home runs of his career in consecutive games? Well, that’s why we’re here.
Florida Marlins You’re the Marlins. You’re paying Charles Johnson $30 million over the next four seasons. He’s hitting .220 with three home runs and 22 RBIs since last year’s All-Star break. You’re worried.
17
6
Pittsburgh Pirates Talk about trying to steal bases in the worst way. The Bucs have swiped 16 so far this season and been thrown out 17 times. That’s 48.5 percent -- down from their major league-low 56 percent in 2001.
18
22
Texas Rangers They were 3-9 when Ivan Rodriguez went down with the back injury. They’re 10-8 since, mostly because of a pitching staff that’s responded dramatically to backup catcher Bill Haselman. Another sign that Pudge’s days in Arlington are numbered.
19
15
Atlanta Braves Gary Sheffield is 5-for-12 since snapping an 0-for-29 stretch. And not a moment too soon. The Bravos’ 12-15 mark in April was their worst opening month since 1991.
20
17
St. Louis Cardinals They’ve now used 18 pitchers since Opening Day. It’s so bad that they signed 31-year-old lefty Jason Jacome, who last pitched in the majors in 1998, to a minor league deal.
21
24
Colorado Rockies If anybody can figure out the high-altitude weirdness of Coors Field, it may be Clint Hurdle, who had been the hitting coach since 1997. "He has seen more games in Coors Field than anybody in the organization," said GM Dan O'Dowd. "He understands the ups and downs of playing here.”
22
19
Houston Astros Who would have thought Dave Mlicki would be a steal? Since being traded to the Astros last season, he’s 10-6 with a 4.57 ERA. Jose Lima, the guy he was traded for? Now 6-12 with a 5.50 ERA and pitching out of the bullpen.
23
20
Cleveland Indians After an 11-1 start, they’ve won just four of their last 19. Twice they’ve established new lows for crowds at eight-year-old Jacobs Field. And suddenly, Charlie Manuel is on the hot seat.
24
23
Detroit Tigers Nine years ago, Luis Pujols and John Mizerock were backup catchers for the Astros. In the last two weeks, both became major league managers -- Pujols with the Tigers and Mizerock (interim) with the Royals. Congratulations are in order. We think.
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Philadelphia Phillies Larry Bowa says he hasn’t blown up at his underachieving team so far this season because he’s afraid of damaging some players’ fragile psyches. Larry Bowa? When did the pod people invade Veterans Stadium?
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Chicago Cubs Is manager Don Baylor in trouble? Don’t bother asking GM Andy MacPhail. "That has become the baseball equivalent question to 'Have you stopped beating your wife?' " MacPhail told the Chicago Sun-Times. Well … have you?
27
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Toronto Blue Jays Here’s how bad the Blue Jays’ pitching staff is. They’re anxiously anticipating Esteban Loaiza's return from the DL. Yes, the same Loaiza whose 11-11 record and 5.02 ERA in 2001 almost got him released this spring.
28
26
Tampa Bay Devil Rays What happens when your bullpen has a six-plus ERA and you decide to go to a closer-by-committee? Three different guys get a chance to blow saves in three straight games.
29
27
Kansas City Royals Former Royals Jamie Quirk and Frank White have joined Bucky Dent as the main contenders to succeed Tony Muser. Whether they like it or not.
30
29
Milwaukee Brewers Jerry Royster says he thinks his team can win 20 games in May. Forget that the Brewers were 8-18 in April. And that in 32 years they’ve never won 20 games in May. Heck, it’s been 1992 since they’ve done it any month. What are they putting in the brats these days? And can we have some?
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