Where’s the Rickey Henderson Award?

It's not like Major League Baseball doesn’t award enough plaques and trophies in November, but one more couldn't hurt. The Rickey Henderson Award for Leadoff Excellence would be an easy and logical addition to the list.

It’s about time these table-setting catalysts got their just due, since they so rarely are recognized with the existing awards. A great idea would be to shape the trophies in the form of home plate, every leadoff man's desired destination.

The men at the top of the lineup jump-start the offense, setting a tone. They work counts. They bunt, run and steal. They do whatever it takes to generate offense and excitement. They are crucial to any team's scoring, but they generally find themselves overshadowed by the big men muscling their way to glory behind them.

Consider Henderson, universally recognized as the greatest leadoff hitter in the game's history. The Man of Steal is the all-time leader in runs scored with 2,295. He stole 1,406 bases -- 468 more than anyone else in history -- including a record 130 in 1982. That's two seasons worth for a steals king these days.

Opposing managers frequently called him the most impactful, intimidating player in the game, even when he played alongside Mark McGwire and Jose Canseco with the A's. Henderson was the American League's Most Valuable Player in 1990, one of just three seasons in which he was named a Silver Slugger Award winner for offensive excellence.
Those trophies usually go to bash brothers, guys who pound 30-plus homers and drive in 100 or more runs. A player who scores in triple digits gets overlooked even though logic suggests it's much harder to score 100 than drive in 100. RBIs can come in bunches. But you score one run at a time.

That's something Rickey liked to point out whenever he was asked to talk about Rickey.
"Scoring runs is the most important part of the game, right?" Henderson told a reporter during his time with the Yankees in the 1980s, during which he crossed home plate 146 and 130 times in consecutive seasons. "Who scores more than Rickey?"

The answer is unchanged all these years later. Nobody.

"I always said that Rickey's the greatest player I ever played with," said Dodgers manager and former Yankees superstar Don Mattingly. "He influenced a game in so many ways. Rickey was a force, one of the all-time greats."

"Rickey was my favorite player growing up," said Oakland-born Jimmy Rollins, the 2007 National League MVP as the Phillies' leadoff generator. "He's the guy I wanted to be like, play like. I loved the way he attacked the game."

A trophy honoring his abilities, accomplishments and dedication to the game would soon be one of the most coveted awards in baseball.  Think about it, commish.

Jim Palmer: Auctioning Trophies to Make a Difference

Jim Palmer said he no longer needs trophies as mementos of his Hall of Fame career, so the former Baltimore Orioles ace has put his three Cy Young Awards and two of his four Gold Gloves up for auction.

Palmer, currently a TV analyst for the Orioles, did not say he was financially hurting. He's just looking to make some money by selling some of the hardware he received during his 19-year run in the major leagues.

"At this juncture of my life, I would rather concern myself with the education of my grandchildren," Palmer said. "I also have a stepson, (15-year-old) Spencer, who is autistic and will need special care for the rest of his life. My priorities have changed."

A portion of the profits will also be given to the autism project of Palm Beach County.
Hunt Auctions is taking bids online and over the phone through July 8 for the Cy Young Awards that Palmer won in 1973, 1975 and 1976, as well as the Gold Gloves he earned in 1976 and 1979. The live auction will take place on July 10.

Each of the Cy Young Award trophies, given to the best pitcher in each league by vote, is expected to garner between $60,000 and $80,000. The Gold Gloves are expected to receive bids up to $15,000.

"Certainly, when you talk about Cy Young Awards and Gold Gloves, these are the elite level of personal awards," said David Hunt, president of Hunt Auctions.

Palmer is the latest in a long line of Hall of Fame stars to put items up for auction, and his reasoning is not necessarily unique.

"Joe DiMaggio did it. So did Ted Williams," Hunt said. "They lived the moments, and their accomplishments are really the reward. It's not all about dollars and cents, either. They want to make sure the items go to homes where people enjoy them. With Jim, we got together and he just decided it was the right time."

Palmer realized his trophies and popularity could be used for charitable gain several years ago when in was Colorado at a fund raiser for cystic fibrosis.

"I donated a Gold Glove, a Cy Young, a round of golf at Caves Country Club and four seats to an Oriole game. And this was back when the Orioles were good — or better than they are now," he said. "There was a gentleman who had a daughter with cystic fibrosis who paid $39,000 for that and never ever took it. It was for the cause."

Until recently, Palmer kept the three Cy Young Awards on a wall in his Florida home. The Gold Gloves were in storage, mainly because his wife, Susan, didn't want them in their home. "Gold doesn't go with my wife's design," Palmer said. "She has a design shop for women's wear in Palm Beach, and she doesn't do gold."
Palmer, 66, says he doesn't need polished pieces of hardware to remind him of what he accomplished over 19 seasons.
"You can't erase the memories of 1973 or 1975 when I came back from my arm injury, when I had 10 shutouts and had to win the last day of the year to beat Catfish Hunter to win a Cy Young and get the ERA down to 2.09," he said. "To me, those are things that happened in the past. I'm really lucky to remember all of them. Whether I have the awards or not, it's not going to take those memories away."

Palmer's recollection of the four straight Gold Gloves he received for fielding prowess at his position is just as vivid. "I was a good fielder to get those, but I didn't win it until Jim Kaat went over to the National League," he said, referring to Kaat's 14-year run of Gold Gloves with the Minnesota Twins.

Palmer hopes his awards end up in the hands of someone who will appreciate them as much as he once did.

"While I am immensely proud to have received these awards, that chapter of my life has passed," he said. "I am aware of people that love baseball and would treasure items like mine. Hopefully, these awards will bring happiness into baseball fans' lives and allow me to make a difference in my family's future."

Surprises Abound with Arrival of Cardinals’ Trophies

Major League Baseball has not always had the trophy that we know so well for the World Series champions -- the ones with the pennants spoking out from a circular base and the logos of the two teams featured near the front of the Tiffany & Co.-designed award.

The 2011 title was the Cardinals' organization's 11th World Series title, but only the fourth trophy for the team. All four are on display right now on the field.

And that surprise was who brought them, especially the two most recent trophies:

• 1967 trophy -- carried out by Mike Shannon
• 1982 trophy -- carried out by Tommy Herr, accompanied by Glenn Brummer
• 2006 trophy -- carried out by Jim Edmonds, joined by World Series MVP David Eckstein
• 2011 trophy -- carried out by former manager Tony La Russa, joined by pitching coach Dave Duncan

The Cardinals began the intros of the trophies and their escorts with a short highlight video from the 2011 season, narrated by Dan McLaughlin. The video featured a brief photo of David Freese as a Lafayette High Lancer.

With the trophies still on the temporary pedestals, the parade of current Cardinals has started.

Chris Carpenter's arrival at home plate -- in a blue pickup truck -- was announced by a highlight from the World Series played on the big screen. The highlight? Why his dive into first base for a groundout in Game 1 of the World Series, of course.