Like father, like son. Cecil and Prince Fielder each hit exactly 319 home runs. Each had one season of hitting 50 home runs. Cecil hit 51 in 1990, and years later, in 2007, his son hit exactly 50.
The comparisons are interesting. Prince, though proved to be a better hitter. Cecil struggled for years before making it. Prince seemed to make it and stay with it.
Cecil was someone the Toronto Blue Jays were certainly looking at with great expectations. Fielder had been the property of the Baltimore Orioles and Kansas City Royals previously. He played a bit in 1985 and 1986, with mixed results. However, Fielder was unable to find a regular spot in Toronto in the coming years, despite the Jays keeping him around. And by 1987, despite showing all the signs of being a fine slugger, Toronto had found their new first basemen in Fred McGriff. Fielder would have to confine himself to pinch-hitting and the designated hitter. Cecil hit .269 with 14 home runs in 1987. McGriff hit over 20. But Fielder only made it into 82 games. Although he hit another nine home runs in 1988 in only 74 games, he'd played his last game as a Jay at the end of that season. The Hanshin Tigers purchased him from Toronto and he flourished in his one season in Japan.
And when he returned to the bigs in 1990, he took off. Only now, he was with Toronto's great rival, Detroit. There were the home runs (51, to lead the league). There were the RBIs (132 to lead the league). There was also a memorable blast off Dave Stewart of the A's that year.
Fielder proved to be no fluke as he hit 44 home runs the next season and 35 the next. Although his production slowly dwindled in the coming years, he was on the New York Yankees in 1996, hitting a combined 39 home runs and driving in over 100 runs again. There was also his first World Series ring, as New York beat Atlanta that year in the Fall Classic.
Winning the World Series was really the last hurrah for him, however. He played just one more season in the Bronx. Anaheim signed him for 1998, but released him in August. Cleveland then signed him, hoping he'd help them back to the World Series for the third time in the decade. But it didn't work out. Cecil played just 14 games for the Indians before being released in September of that season. That marked the end of his major league career.
The young Prince found himself in the bigs in 2005. And it was with a team Cecil had faced many times, the Milwaukee Brewers. But the Brewers of '05 were in the National League, somewhere Cecil had never been. And the next year, Prince was a regular with 28 long balls. And then, came 2007, where Prince was right there with his father with 50 home runs! It's in the genes, says I!
And just like his father, Fielder had just one other season over 40 dingers, hitting 46 in 2009. Prince, however, was the ironman. He missed just one game from that season through 2013. He missed just three games in 2008, for good measure. But 2009 proved to be the only season Prince lead the league in RBIs. Well, one Fielder leads the Senior Circuit in RBIs, and the other leads the Junior Circuit in runs batted in. Fine! It should be noted, Cecil lead the league three years in a row from 1990-1992.
Prince continued to hit the ball well. By 2015, he'd dropped to just 28 home runs and 98 RBIs. By his standards, that wasn't good. But wait, he'd hit .300 again. And Prince's on-base percentage was .378. He still had it.
All that came to an end in the last few weeks. Prince was down to just a .212 batting average, 8 home runs and 44 RBIs in 89 games for the Texas Rangers. After undergoing neck surgery in the last days of August this year, it was determined by the doctors that to continue with the great sport of baseball would be hazardous to his health. Although tied with his father in home runs hit, Prince hit .283 and his on-base percentage .382, well above his father's.
The comparisons are interesting. Prince, though proved to be a better hitter. Cecil struggled for years before making it. Prince seemed to make it and stay with it.
Cecil was someone the Toronto Blue Jays were certainly looking at with great expectations. Fielder had been the property of the Baltimore Orioles and Kansas City Royals previously. He played a bit in 1985 and 1986, with mixed results. However, Fielder was unable to find a regular spot in Toronto in the coming years, despite the Jays keeping him around. And by 1987, despite showing all the signs of being a fine slugger, Toronto had found their new first basemen in Fred McGriff. Fielder would have to confine himself to pinch-hitting and the designated hitter. Cecil hit .269 with 14 home runs in 1987. McGriff hit over 20. But Fielder only made it into 82 games. Although he hit another nine home runs in 1988 in only 74 games, he'd played his last game as a Jay at the end of that season. The Hanshin Tigers purchased him from Toronto and he flourished in his one season in Japan.
And when he returned to the bigs in 1990, he took off. Only now, he was with Toronto's great rival, Detroit. There were the home runs (51, to lead the league). There were the RBIs (132 to lead the league). There was also a memorable blast off Dave Stewart of the A's that year.
Fielder proved to be no fluke as he hit 44 home runs the next season and 35 the next. Although his production slowly dwindled in the coming years, he was on the New York Yankees in 1996, hitting a combined 39 home runs and driving in over 100 runs again. There was also his first World Series ring, as New York beat Atlanta that year in the Fall Classic.
Winning the World Series was really the last hurrah for him, however. He played just one more season in the Bronx. Anaheim signed him for 1998, but released him in August. Cleveland then signed him, hoping he'd help them back to the World Series for the third time in the decade. But it didn't work out. Cecil played just 14 games for the Indians before being released in September of that season. That marked the end of his major league career.
The young Prince found himself in the bigs in 2005. And it was with a team Cecil had faced many times, the Milwaukee Brewers. But the Brewers of '05 were in the National League, somewhere Cecil had never been. And the next year, Prince was a regular with 28 long balls. And then, came 2007, where Prince was right there with his father with 50 home runs! It's in the genes, says I!
And just like his father, Fielder had just one other season over 40 dingers, hitting 46 in 2009. Prince, however, was the ironman. He missed just one game from that season through 2013. He missed just three games in 2008, for good measure. But 2009 proved to be the only season Prince lead the league in RBIs. Well, one Fielder leads the Senior Circuit in RBIs, and the other leads the Junior Circuit in runs batted in. Fine! It should be noted, Cecil lead the league three years in a row from 1990-1992.
Prince continued to hit the ball well. By 2015, he'd dropped to just 28 home runs and 98 RBIs. By his standards, that wasn't good. But wait, he'd hit .300 again. And Prince's on-base percentage was .378. He still had it.
All that came to an end in the last few weeks. Prince was down to just a .212 batting average, 8 home runs and 44 RBIs in 89 games for the Texas Rangers. After undergoing neck surgery in the last days of August this year, it was determined by the doctors that to continue with the great sport of baseball would be hazardous to his health. Although tied with his father in home runs hit, Prince hit .283 and his on-base percentage .382, well above his father's.
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