Dave Henderson facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Dave Henderson |
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Henderson with the Oakland A's in 1989
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| Center fielder | |||
| Born: July 21, 1958 Merced, California, U.S. |
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| Died: December 27, 2015 (aged 57) Seattle, Washington, U.S. |
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| debut | |||
| April 9, 1981, for the Seattle Mariners | |||
| Last appearance | |||
| July 29, 1994, for the Kansas City Royals | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Batting average | .258 | ||
| Home runs | 197 | ||
| Runs batted in | 708 | ||
| Teams | |||
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| Career highlights and awards | |||
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David Lee Henderson (born July 21, 1958 – died December 27, 2015), known as "Hendu", was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 14 years. He was mostly an outfielder for teams like the Seattle Mariners, Boston Red Sox, San Francisco Giants, Oakland Athletics, and Kansas City Royals.
Henderson is famous for a big home run he hit in 1986. It was in Game 5 of the 1986 American League Championship Series. He helped his teams get to the World Series four times. This included the Red Sox in 1986 and the Oakland Athletics from 1988 to 1990. His Oakland team won the World Series in 1989.
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Becoming a Baseball Star
Henderson was born in Merced, California. He grew up in Dos Palos. There, he played both baseball and football in high school. His football team won championships in 1975 and 1976. He played many positions, like tight end and running back. His baseball team also won championships in 1976 and 1977.
His high school retired his uniform numbers: 42 for football and 22 for baseball. In 2012, he joined the school's Hall of Fame. They even named their baseball field after him!
The Seattle Mariners picked Henderson in the first round of the 1977 Major League Baseball draft. He started playing professionally in 1977. He played for the Bellingham Mariners. He hit very well, with a .315 average, 16 home runs, and 63 runs batted in (RBIs).
He then played two seasons in the Class A California League. He kept improving his skills. In 1980, he moved up to Class AAA with the Spokane Indians. He was getting closer to the big leagues.
Playing in Major League Baseball
Starting with the Seattle Mariners
In 1981, Henderson became the Mariners' starting center fielder. He struggled at first, but he hit his first MLB home run against Oakland. He was sent back to the minor leagues for a while. He came back in September and finished his first year with 6 home runs.
Henderson played more in 1982, appearing in 104 games. He hit 14 home runs and had 48 RBIs. In 1983, he improved his batting average to .269. He hit 17 home runs and had 55 RBIs. He played in 137 games that year.
He had a hamstring injury in 1984 but still hit well. In 1985, his batting average dropped a bit, but he still hit 14 home runs. In 1986, he was one of the three players Roger Clemens struck out when Clemens set a record of 20 strikeouts in a game.
Overall, Henderson played for the Seattle Mariners for six seasons. He played in 654 games. He hit .257 with 79 home runs and 271 RBIs.
Joining the Boston Red Sox
On August 19, 1986, the Boston Red Sox traded for Henderson. They were leading their division. Henderson was meant to be a backup center fielder. He played in 36 games for the Red Sox that season. He mostly came in late in games to play defense or pinch hit.
The Red Sox won their division and faced the California Angels in the American League Championship Series (ALCS).
The Famous 1986 ALCS Home Run
Henderson is most famous for a home run he hit in Game 5 of the 1986 ALCS.
The Angels were ahead in the series, 3 games to 1. They were playing at home. Henderson came into Game 5 after another player got hurt. In the sixth inning, a ball bounced off Henderson's glove and went over the wall for an Angels home run. This gave the Angels a 3–2 lead.
The Angels were leading 5–2 in the ninth inning. They were just three outs away from winning the series. But the Red Sox scored two runs, making it 5–4. Then, with two outs, Henderson came to bat. There was a runner on first base.
The Angels were one strike away from winning. But Henderson kept fighting. On the seventh pitch of his at-bat, he hit a huge home run! It went over the wall and shocked everyone. This gave the Red Sox a 6–5 lead.
The Angels tied the game in the bottom of the ninth. The game went into extra innings. In the 11th inning, Henderson hit a sacrifice fly. This scored a run and put the Red Sox ahead 7–6. This was the winning run!
The Red Sox were still down 3 games to 2 in the series. But they went home and won the next two games. They beat the Angels 10–4 and 8–1 to win the AL pennant. Henderson played center field in those games. His home run in Game 5 saved their season.
1986 World Series
Henderson was the starting center fielder for the Red Sox in the 1986 World Series. He played very well, hitting .400 (10 hits in 25 tries). But the Red Sox lost to the New York Mets in seven games. Henderson hit two home runs in the series. One was in Game 2. The other was in the 10th inning of Game 6, giving the Red Sox a lead in a game they would later lose.
1987 Season
Henderson started the 1987 season as Boston's center fielder. But in April, the Red Sox called up a new player, Ellis Burks. Burks took over as the main center fielder. Henderson played less after that. In September, the Red Sox traded him to the San Francisco Giants.
He played in 111 regular season games for Boston. He hit .226 with nine home runs.
Short Time with the San Francisco Giants
Henderson played for the San Francisco Giants for the last month of the 1987 season. He played in 15 games and hit .238. The Giants won their division. However, Henderson could not play in the playoffs because he joined the team too late. After the season, he became a free agent.
Success with the Oakland Athletics
1988 Season
Henderson signed with the Oakland Athletics before the 1988 season. He became their starting center fielder. He had a great year, setting new personal bests. He hit .304, scored 100 runs, and had 94 RBIs. He also hit 24 home runs. The Athletics won 23 of the 24 games when he hit a home run! He even got votes for the AL MVP award.
The Athletics had an amazing season, winning 104 games. They won their division by 13 games. In the 1988 ALCS, they swept the Red Sox in four games. Henderson hit very well in the ALCS, with a .375 average.
The Athletics went to the 1988 World Series. They lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers in five games. Henderson played well in the World Series too, hitting .300. Overall, he had a great postseason, hitting .333.
1989 World Series Champions
In 1989, Henderson was still the main center fielder for the Athletics. His hitting wasn't as strong as the year before, but he still hit 15 home runs and had 80 RBIs. The Athletics won their division again. In the 1989 ALCS, they beat the Toronto Blue Jays. Henderson hit a home run in that series.
Oakland then faced the San Francisco Giants in the 1989 World Series. The Athletics swept them in four games. The series was delayed for two weeks because of a big earthquake. Henderson hit two home runs in the World Series. This championship was the only one of his MLB career.
1990 Season
The 1990 season saw the Athletics win their division for the third year in a row. Henderson hit .271 with 20 home runs and 63 RBIs. He missed some games due to a knee injury. Oakland again swept the Red Sox in the 1990 ALCS.
Oakland then went to the 1990 World Series. But they were swept by the Cincinnati Reds in four games. Henderson played in three of those games.
Later Years with Oakland (1991–1993)
In the first half of the 1991 season, Henderson played very well. He was chosen for the 1991 All-Star Game by fan votes. He started the game in right field. In August, he hit three home runs in one game! He finished the year with a career-high 25 home runs.
In 1992, Henderson had a bad hamstring injury. This limited him to only 20 games. He missed most of the season. Even though Oakland won their division, Henderson couldn't play in the playoffs because of his injury.
In 1993, he played in 107 games. He hit 20 home runs and had 53 RBIs. After the season, he became a free agent.
Henderson played for Oakland for six seasons. He hit .263 with 104 home runs and 377 RBIs. His time with Oakland included his only All-Star Game and his only World Series championship.
Final Season with the Kansas City Royals
Before the 1994 season, Henderson signed with the Kansas City Royals. He was meant to share playing time with another player. He started as the regular right fielder but didn't hit very well. He played less as the season went on.
Shortly after his 36th birthday, Henderson retired on July 29, 1994. This was his last MLB game. He played in left field for the last two innings.
Over his 14 MLB seasons, Henderson played in 1538 games. He hit .258 with 197 home runs and 708 RBIs. He was a good defensive player, playing in the outfield for 1,388 games.
Life After Baseball
Henderson was married twice and had two sons. One of his sons has Angelman syndrome. Henderson worked to raise money for research into this condition.
After he stopped playing, Henderson lived in Seattle. He stayed involved in baseball. He worked as an agent for other players. He also worked as a broadcaster and ran fantasy baseball camps. He helped start a charity that gives Christmas gifts to children. He also owned a baseball training facility called Dave Henderson's Ball Yard.
Broadcasting Career
From 1997 to 2006, Henderson worked as a color commentator for Mariners radio and TV broadcasts. He returned to the Mariners' radio team in 2011 and 2012.
His Passing
Dave Henderson had a heart attack and passed away on December 27, 2015. He had recently had a kidney transplant.
Images for kids
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Henderson with the Seattle Mariners
