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Every player in the Beat Hall of Fame has made a major impact on the chemistry and personality of The Beat. However, if you had to pick one player that had the most significant impact on the performance of the team on the field, that player would be John Palmer. John's career with The Beat began
in the spring prior to the team's fledgling season in 1987, when John was just 19. He earned his nickname "The Bomber" by slugging at such an amazing pace that his team records in doubles, home runs, RBIs, and slugging percentage will likely never be surpassed. He won more game balls than anyone could begin to count. And when the team played its best, John was at the forefront.
The Beat won its first championship in 1991 and John not only led the team in RBIs and slugging, he set team records for hits (35), runs (32), and doubles (12) in a season. This incredible performance earned him the 1991 Brass Beat award.
When The Beat finally worked its way back to a second championship in 1994, there was John leading the team in hits, runs, doubles, home runs, and setting a team record with 34 RBIs in a season.
John led the team in doubles and home runs again and tied for the RBI mark when the
Beat won its third championship in 1995.
John not only hit for power, he just plain hit. He led the team in career
average for over ten years between 1987 and Spring 2001, finishing with a career
.514 batting average. But you may have noticed one stat missing from this long list of slugging accomplishments: triples. Though he led the team in triples four times, John just never considered third a base. For John, third base was something you had to touch on your way home.
That's the way John played, all out, every game. Whether diving for a looping liner in left or drilling a sky-high fly over the right-field fence, John gave his all and sealed his place in the Beat Hall of Fame.
Kevin Austin, September 2001
Accomplishments
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1991 Brass Beat Winner Triple Crown: 1992 Team Career Leader: Doubles: 62; HRs: 45; RBIs: 222; Slugging Pct: 1.066 Most hits/season: 35, 1991 Most runs/season: 32, 1991 Most RBIs/season: 34, 1994 Most Doubles/season: 12, 1991 Most HRs/season: 8, 1988 |
Batting Titles: 1992 Hits Leader: 1987, 1991, 1992, 1993 (t), 1994 Runs Leader: 1987, 1988, 1991, 1993, 1994 Doubles Leader: 1988, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993 (t), 1994, 1995 Triples Leader: 1987, 1988, 1990 (t), 1992 Home Run Titles: 1987, 1988, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995 RBI Titles: 1987, 1988, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995(t) Slugging Titles: 1987, 1988, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1994, 1995 OBP Titles: 1988 |
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