The Hall of Very Good has posted an interview with Chris Hoiles that serves as a nice reminder of better days in Birdland.Hoiles reflects on Ripken's streak, Harold Baines Hall of Fame candidacy, homering off Randy Johnson, hitting two grand slams in one game, and hitting a grand slam while down three with two outs and two strikes.
There's also some steroids talk in there, but I'm trying to keep things positive this week.
An excerpt follows. Follow the link to the full article for an interesting read.
HOVG: And if that wasn’t big enough…you kinda became known for some big ones while with Baltimore. In 1998, you became only the ninth player to hit two grand slams in one game. Walk me through that. It has to be a thrill.
HOILES: Well, the two grand slam game was special to me, because I went from playing every day to part-time with Lenny Webster. I hadn't played in a few days, and that was my first start in a while. Plus it was in Cleveland, where I have a lot of friends and family come to because of where I grew up. The first one was a 2-0 count split finger from Charles Nagy and the second was a 3-2 fastball from Ron Villone. Very special night, especially after it was all over and I found out that I was only the ninth person to do it. Three of the nine were Orioles and I was the first catcher to do it.
HOVG: Two year prior (May 17, 1996), you ended a pretty crazy game with what some call the “ultimest” grand slam. Full count, two outs, base loaded…down three. What was that like?
HOILES: It was an awesome feeling, knowing that the game was on the line when I came to bat. Nothing like it.
Image: Here.
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