Steve Balboni

From BR Bullpen

Stephen Charles Balboni (The Balb, Bye-Bye)

Bats Right, Throws Right
Height 6' 3", Weight 225 lb.
School Eckerd College
High School Memorial High School (Manchester)
Debut April 22, 1981
Final Game October 2, 1993
Born January 16, 1957 in Brockton, MA USA

[edit] Biographical Information

Steve Balboni was a professional baseball player with tremendous home run power and a tendency to strike out frequently. He was nicknamed "Bye Bye" because of the home runs he hit.

Balboni attended Memorial High School in Manchester, New Hampshire and Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Florida. He was drafted by the New York Yankees in the fourth round of the 1978 amateur draft. They noted that his tremendous power helped to make the decision to draft him. He was named designated hitter on The Sporting News college All-America team in 1978.

He made it to the Yankees in 1981 and went on to play in the big leagues through 1990 with a small comeback in 1993. He played for the Yankees from 1981 to 1983 and then in 1989 and 1990. He was the starting first baseman for the Kansas City Royals from 1984 to mid-1988, when they traded him to the Seattle Mariners. He only played in Seattle until the end of that season.

In 1984, Balboni became the second big league position player to strike out in nine straight plate appearances. He followed Adolfo Phillips (1966). Eric Davis (1987), Reggie Jackson (1987) and Bo Jackson (1988) all followed suit within the next few years; Mark Reynolds was the next, in 2007.

In parts of 11 Major League seasons, Steve hit 181 home runs and had 495 RBI's. He also struck out 856 times. His batting average was .229. In 1985, he led the American League with 166 strikeouts. He homered every 17.2 At Bats and struck out every 3.6 At Bats in the Majors.

1985 turned out to be his best season for many reasons. He had career highs in games played (160), at bats (600), hits (146), runs (74), doubles (28), triples (2), homers (36), runs batted in (88-tied in 1989) and stolen bases (1). He set the Royals record with 36 homers in a season. It still stands today. He led American League first basemen with 1686 total chances and 1573 putouts that year. He also was the starting first baseman in the World Series. Steve batted .320 with 3 RBI's in that Series that the Royals won over the St. Louis Cardinals, four games to three. He also demonstrated good glove work in the field, something he was not known for during his career.

Balboni might be the only player to win multiple AAA home run titles before and after being a regular in the majors. Playing for Columbus, he led the International League in long balls in 1981 and 1982. After peaking in the majors with 36 in 1985 (3rd in the league) The Balb won back-to-back home run crowns in the American Association in 1992 and 1993. He was remarkably consistent in those league-leading seasons, hitting between 30 and 36 homers each of the four years.

Balboni won six home run titles in the minors overall - in addition to his four AAA titles he led the 1979 Florida State League with 26 and the 1980 Southern League with 34, meaning he led his league four years in a row from 1979 through 1982. Balboni hit 420 homers in his pro career.

In 1988, he experienced a post-All Star break surge. Before the break, he hit .197 with 7 home runs and 19 RBI. After the break, he hit .256 with 16 home runs and 47 RBI.

Steve also coached for the Kansas City Royals organization, developing their younger hitters. After three years with the Royals, he joined the Montreal Expos organization, where he ran their extended spring training program and managed the Vermont Expos in 2001. Following his time with the Expos, he became the St. Louis Cardinals' AA hitting coach for three years.

He still coaches part time at the Steve Balboni Baseball School and resides in Berkley Heights, NJ with his wife. He has three sons, all of whom play baseball. His youngest, Matt, was a member of New Jersey's best American Legion team in state history, the Flor-Mad Royals.