September 13, 2002: Barry Bonds Breaks the Record for Games Played In Left Field

September 13, 2002: The San Francisco Giants beat the San Diego Padres 10-3 at Qualcomm Stadium, formerly known as San Diego Stadium and Jack Murphy Stadium. Russ Ortiz is the winning pitcher. Jeff Kent hit a home run.

Barry Bonds went 4-for-4 with a walk and 3 RBIs. He did not hit a home run. At that point, he had 510 career home runs. It was the 2,329th game he played in left field, setting a new major league record. Whether that record has any dependence on his steroid use is debatable.

The record had been held by Zack Wheat, who starred from 1908 to 1926. He had a lifetime batting average of .317, and collected 2,884 hits, 2,804 of them with the Brooklyn Dodgers. He remains the all-time hits leader for the Dodger franchise, which has played in Los Angeles since 1958. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1959, and died in 1972.

Bonds finished his career with 2,715 games played in left field. Rickey Henderson was still active when Bonds broke the record, but retired first, and is now 2nd among left fielders with 2,421 games.

After the 2007 season, when his contract with the Giants ran out, the Giants, having gotten all the milestones they could out of him refused to offer him a new contract. He was 43 years old, but had hit 28 home runs that season. Yet no team wanted to deal with his attitude and the steroid accusations around him. He became eligible for the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2013. As of 2022, despite holding the single-season and career records for home runs, he has not yet been elected.

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September 13, 2002 was a Friday -- a Friday the 13th. These other Major League Baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees lost to the Chicago White Sox, 13-2 at Yankee Stadium. Rocky Biddle was the winning pitcher. It was only 3-2 when Mike Mussina left after 7 innings, but the bullpen lost control of the game. Derek Jeter went 1-for-4 with an RBI.

* The New York Mets lost to the Montreal Expos, 11-8 at the Olympic Stadium in Montreal. Bartolo Colón, not yet a Met, outpitched John Thomson. Vladimir Guerrero Sr. and José Vidro hit home runs for the Expos. Mo Vaughn went 4-for-4 with 2 home runs and 4 RBIs, on a rare good day for him in his Mets tenure.

* The Baltimore Orioles beat the Boston Red Sox, 8-3 at Fenway Park in Boston.

* The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 5-3 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia.

* The Florida Marlins beat the Atlanta Braves, 13-3 at Pro Player Stadium (now Hard Rock Stadium) in Miami Gardens, Florida. Carl Pavano was the winning pitcher, while Greg Maddux was pinch-hit for in the 3rd inning. Preston Wilson went 2-for-3 with a home run and 4 RBIs.

* The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, 5-2 at the SkyDome (now the Rogers Centre) in Toronto.

* The Cleveland Indians beat the Minnesota Twins, 12-5 at Jacobs Field (now Progressive Field) in Cleveland.

* The Chicago Cubs beat the Cincinnati Reds, 7-6 at Cinergy Field (formerly Riverfront Stadium) in Cincinnati. Moisés Alou and Fred McGriff hit home runs for the Cubs. Sammy Sosa went 2-for-5, but did not hit a home run. Todd Walker and Reggie Taylor homered for the Reds. Ken Griffey Jr. had a pinch-hit double.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Kansas City Royals, 4-2 at Comerica Park in Detroit. Carlos Peña hit a home run in the bottom of the 10th inning.

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat the Houston Astros, 3-2 at Minute Maid Park (now Daikin Park) in Houston. Édgar Rentería singled Eli Marrero home with the winning run in the top of the 10th inning.

* The Colorado Rockies beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 5-4 at Coors Field in Denver.

* The Milwaukee Brewers beat the Arizona Diamondbacks, 8-4 at Bank One Ballpark (now Chase Field) in Phoenix.

* The Anaheim Angels beat the Texas Rangers, 3-2 at Edison International Field of Anaheim (now Angel Stadium of Anaheim).

* And the Oakland Athletics beat the Seattle Mariners, 5-0 at the Network Associates Coliseum (as the Oakland Coliseum was then known).

Barry Zito allowed only 2 hits and 1 walk, to go 21-5 on the season. (He finished 23-5.) Ray Durham hit a home run. Ichiro Suzuki went 0-for-4.

And in New Jersey high school football, my Alma Mater, East Brunswick, lost to Piscataway, 35-0 at Jay Doyle Field in East Brunswick.