Thursday, August 06, 2009

Catching Up with the Heaviest Player in Major League History

The Edmonton Capitals of the Golden Baseball League are promoting "Lima Time" in the Great White North, calling Jose Lima "the biggest acquisition in franchise history."

Technically speaking, the biggest acquisition in franchise history is actually former Oriole Walter Young.

Young was the heaviest player in major league history when he took the field for the Orioles at 322 pounds in 2005. [He is listed as 295 pounds on the Capitals' roster.]

Young played 14 games for the Birds, batting .303 with one home run, and three RBIs. His lone clout came on Sept. 13, 2005, in a 4-3 road win against the Rangers.

The Edmonton Journal tells Young's story -- including the tale of his 500-foot home run in Calgary -- in the article "Capitals slugger has big following."

[Excerpts follow the jump.]



Size is an obvious factor in Young's popularity. He became the heaviest player in major-league history when he had a cup of coffee with the Baltimore Orioles in 2005, weighing in at 322 pounds.

But with that bulk comes bases-clearing power, and Young has displayed that throughout his career, from the 25 he blasted in A ball in 2002, to 33 in 2004 with AA Bowie, to 21 in 95 games with the Winnipeg Goldeyes in 2007.

"We all stop doing what we're doing when he comes up to hit. You never know how far he's going to hit it," Brinkley said.

"I guess I'm known for my power, so yeah, that has a lot to do with(the support)," Young said.

Image source: MLB.com article

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