I had the chance to ask George how many homers he thinks he could have hit in the juiced ball era of the late 90’s. He very directly and without hesitation said 70+. That was about 10 years ago, and by the way he still had a chiseled physique and huge arms. He kept himself in great shape.
Yeah he was on his way to a HOF career & had several great years especially 76,77,78 even 79 & 80 he was on pace for another great year but later just became a good player. Too bad. He was top's for a while.
52 HRs in 1977 is like 92 in 1997. In the late 70s and early 80s, having two 40 HR hitters in the same league was rare. From 75 to 86, if I remember correctly(I am getting old 😔), the only league to have two 40 HR hitters was the year Foster hit 52. Players like Foster, Dale Murphy, Dave Kingman and even Greg Luzinski are so underrated because they played in the era right before Home Runs exploded. I'd argue three of the four I mentioned deserve to be HOFfers.
Of course, you wisely make sure to exclude pre '75 seasons of the era outlined, otherwise, we've got one _team_ sporting *3* _'40 HR hitters'_ - the 1973 Atlanta Braves playing within the cozy confines of Fulton County Stadium's legendary "launching pad" boasts a roster that includes future Hall-of-Famer, Henry Aaron, Darrell Evans, and Davey Johnson all of whom eclipsed the aforementioned milestone. The immortal "Hammerin' Hank" makes it official; nailing his 40th round-tripper on September 29th as the '73 campaign draws to a close. Evans, on his way to a 400+ homer career, clobbers 41 while Johnson insanely leads the trio blasting 43
@@boogitybear2283 Rocky Colavito, Graig Nettles and Chili Davis had more HRs. Mickey Rivers had way higher batting average. All were way better fielders. Foster wasn't that good. But hey, they let anyone in now.
I was excited for the Mets to get Foster, but in 1982--they had no one in the lineup that could protect Foster. He bounced back dramatically the next 3 years when they had a better lineup with Hernandez and Carter et al.
He sucked. He went to "Big Shea", a real ballpark where it was extremly difficult to hit a HR. Just proving what I always said. That so-called "Big Red Machine" was so overrated because they played in a baby ballpark. Especially that 2nd rate catcher Johnny should of been on the Bench.
0:05 that baseball card. so many great memories.
Legend
I had the chance to ask George how many homers he thinks he could have hit in the juiced ball era of the late 90’s. He very directly and without hesitation said 70+. That was about 10 years ago, and by the way he still had a chiseled physique and huge arms. He kept himself in great shape.
Yeah he was on his way to a HOF career & had several great years especially 76,77,78 even 79 & 80 he was on pace for another great year but later just became a good player. Too bad. He was top's for a while.
52 HRs in 1977 is like 92 in 1997. In the late 70s and early 80s, having two 40 HR hitters in the same league was rare. From 75 to 86, if I remember correctly(I am getting old 😔), the only league to have two 40 HR hitters was the year Foster hit 52. Players like Foster, Dale Murphy, Dave Kingman and even Greg Luzinski are so underrated because they played in the era right before Home Runs exploded. I'd argue three of the four I mentioned deserve to be HOFfers.
Could not agree more! Well said 🙌
Actually I believe that the more home runs were hit during the more recent spike due to the juiced ball than the roid Era.
Of course, you wisely make sure to exclude pre '75 seasons of the era outlined, otherwise, we've got one _team_ sporting *3* _'40 HR hitters'_ - the 1973 Atlanta Braves playing within the cozy confines of Fulton County Stadium's legendary "launching pad" boasts a roster that includes future Hall-of-Famer, Henry Aaron, Darrell Evans, and Davey Johnson all of whom eclipsed the aforementioned milestone. The immortal "Hammerin' Hank" makes it official; nailing his 40th round-tripper on September 29th as the '73 campaign draws to a close. Evans, on his way to a 400+ homer career, clobbers 41 while Johnson insanely leads the trio blasting 43
He belongs in the Hall of Fame!
@@boogitybear2283 Rocky Colavito, Graig Nettles and Chili Davis had more HRs. Mickey Rivers had way higher batting average. All were way better fielders. Foster wasn't that good. But hey, they let anyone in now.
He was signing free autographs(Reds or Mets) 8x10 color photos @ Glens Falls,NY Aviation Mall.⚾️⚾️⚾️⚾️⚾️⚾️
And they got all of him. He didn’t do much for the Mets after.
The Mets had no one in the lineup to protect him. That's what Pete Rose predicted and he was right.
If Harold Baines is in the HOF, George Foster should be.
Absolutely.
and Dave Parker and Keith Hernandez
He stunk up the Mets
His rapid decline while playing for the Mets demands an explanation.
I was excited for the Mets to get Foster, but in 1982--they had no one in the lineup that could protect Foster. He bounced back dramatically the next 3 years when they had a better lineup with Hernandez and Carter et al.
@@fasteddie9867 so true. He didn't have Rose or Bench or Perez batting behind or ahead.
@@anthonytripp2251 thanks!
He sucked. He went to "Big Shea",
a real ballpark where it was extremly difficult to hit a HR.
Just proving what I always said.
That so-called "Big Red Machine" was so overrated because they played in a baby ballpark.
Especially that 2nd rate catcher Johnny should of been on the Bench.
You’re goofy
@@mikelockhart5528 When he went to a real ballpark, Big Shea, his b/a went to a paltry .252 & avg. with less than 20 HRs per year.
@@jamesdavis6036 The Mets didn't have the lineup that the Reds did in Foster's first 2 years with the Mets. In the final 3 seasons, he aged rapidly.
Giants made a mistake getting rid of George