From Maris to McCutchen: Notable players in Indianapolis Indians history
The Indianapolis Indians have a rich baseball history that dates back to 1902. And as you can imagine, a lot of great ballplayers have come through the Circle City on their way to memorable major league careers (and in the case of one player on this list, baseball fame in other ways). Here's a look at some of the more notable players in Tribe history:
Roger Maris
Before Mark McGwire hit 70 home runs in 1998, the record holder for most home runs in a single season was Roger Maris, who hit 61 to pass Babe Ruth's mark in 1961. In all, Maris would hit 275 homers in his 12-year Hall of Fame career. But before all of that, Maris played 131 games for the Indianapolis Indians in 1956, when the Tribe was an affiliate of the Cleveland Indians. Maris posted a .293/.356/.494 slash line with 17 home runs and 75 RBIs that year in Indianapolis.
Harmon Killebrew
Killebrew spent part of the 1958 season with the Indians, and went on to become a Hall of Famer who hit 573 career home runs, good for 11th on the all-time list. Before his great big league career, which he spent mostly with the Minnesota Twins, Killebrew passed through the old Victory Field (which was later renamed Bush Stadium before the new Victory Field was constructed).
Bob Uecker
You may remember him from the movie "Major League," as the announcer for the Cleveland Indians who always had a bottle of whiskey nearby and made colorful remarks during play-by-play, such as the famous "Juuuuuuuust a bit outside" line to describe a wayward fastball.
But did you know that Bob Uecker was a minor league ballplayer himself? He played for the Indianapolis Indians for a brief period in 1960, batting just .147 (you can see why he never quite cut it in the majors).
George Foster
Foster was a member of the famous "Big Red Machine" dynasty of the Cincinnati Reds in the 1970s, a team that won back-to-back World Series championships in 1975 and '76. Foster's name isn't as well-known as some of his teammates' on that team, such as Johnny Bench, Pete Rose and Joe Morgan, but he was a very good ballplayer in his own right.
Foster hit .274 for his career with 348 home runs, 92 of which came within a two-year span from 1977-78. Foster was named the National League MVP in 1977, when he posted a .320/.382/.631 slash line with 52 homers and 149 RBIs. Foster was also a five-time National League All-Star.
Ken Griffey
Yes, his son is Ken Griffey, Jr. But the elder Griffey was another key cog in the Big Red Machine. A three-time All-Star with the Reds, Griffey batted .336 and drove in 74 runs for the 1976 championship club.
Late in his career, Griffey and his son both homered in the same inning, becoming the first and only father-son duo to do so in a major league game. The feat was accomplished against the Angels in Anaheim on Sept. 14, 1990. Griffey was hitting second, and Griffey, Jr. was batting third. They hit back-to-back homers to nearly the same spot in left-center field.
The younger Griffey, of course, went on to become one of the best major league players of all time, hitting 630 home runs in a career that was shortened somewhat due to multiple injuries over the years. He is sixth on the all-time home run list.
Andres Galarraga
Also known as "The Big Cat," Galarraga is best remembered for his time with the Colorado Rockies, of which he was a member of the expansion edition in 1993. Galarraga posted a .944 OPS with 172 homers in his five seasons with Colorado. He began his career with the Montreal Expos organization during a period in which the Indianapolis Indians were the Triple-A affiliate of the club.
Galarraga, who would become a five-time All-Star and fall just one home run shy of the 400-home run club, played in 121 games for the Indians in 1985, batting .269 with 25 home runs and 87 RBIs for the Tribe.
Randy Johnson
Before he was scaring the daylight out of John Kruk at the 1993 All-Star Game in Baltimore, Randy Johnson was intimidating minor league hitters in Indianapolis.
Johnson, who became known as "The Big Unit" and dominated hitters over a 22-year Hall of Fame career, pitched for the Indians in 1988 and '89 before becoming a regular starter in the majors beginning later that year after he was traded to the Seattle Mariners. While with the Tribe, the 6-10 left-handed flamethrower went 9-8 with a 3.08 ERA. He averaged nearly a strikeout an inning in that time, but also walked 81 over that span.
Johnson would go on to win 303 games, post a career ERA of 3.29, and strike out 4,875 batters, placing him second (behind Nolan Ryan, who fanned 5,714), on the all-time strikeout list.
Larry Walker
He was the 1997 National League Most Valuable Player, a five-time All-Star, and a career .313 hitter who belted 383 career home runs. And before all of that, he was a member of the Indianapolis Indians.
Larry Walker played for the Tribe in 1989, batting .270 with 12 home runs, 59 RBIs and 36 stolen bases in 114 games.
And since both came up through the Expos organization together, why not have a great moment together that we'll all remember:
Razor Shines
One of the most popular Indianapolis Indians ever, Shines played nine seasons for the Tribe. His best seasons for the Indians came in 1985 and '89, during each of which he posted an identical .860 OPS. He was a mainstay in Indy, and his consistency led to his adoration by the hometown fans.
"I loved Indianapolis, and they loved me," he told a writer for the SABR Biography Project.
Andrew McCutchen
Fans that got a chance to watch Andrew McCutchen patrol the outfield at Victory Field a few years ago saw a glimpse of greatness; McCutchen was named the National League MVP in 2013 and is one of the best all-around players in the game for the Pittsburgh Pirates.
With the Tribe from 2007-09, McCutchen showed his all-around ability, stealing 34 bases in 2008 and posting an .853 OPS in '09 before being called up by the Bucs.
There will surely be more awards on the horizon for "Cutch," who in six big league seasons has already made four All-Star appearances.