Steven Curtis Henderson (born November 18, 1952) is a former

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

left fielder In baseball, a left fielder, abbreviated LF, is an outfielder who plays defense in left field. Left field is the area of the outfield to the left of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In the numbering system ...

who is best remembered for being one of the players the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

acquired in the infamous "Midnight Massacre."

Cincinnati Reds

Henderson was drafted by the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

in the fifth round of the 1974 Major League Baseball Draft out of

Prairie View A&M University Prairie View A&M University (PVAMU or PV) is a public historically black land-grant university in Prairie View, Texas. Founded in 1876, it is one of Texas's two land-grant universities and the second oldest public institution of higher learnin ...

. After leading the Eastern League with 158

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * ''H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014 - a British compilation album se ...

, eleven triples and 255 total bases, and batting .312 in for the Reds' Double-A affiliate, the

Trois-Rivières Aigles The Aigles de Trois-Rivières (English: ''Three Rivers Eagles'') were a Canadian Minor League Baseball team of the Eastern League and the Double-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds from 1971 to 1977. They were located in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, ...

, he was batting .326 for the Triple-A

Indianapolis Indians The Indianapolis Indians are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. They are located in Indianapolis, Indiana, and play their home games at Victory Field, which open ...

in at the time of his trade to New York.

New York Mets

Tom Seaver George Thomas Seaver (November 17, 1944 – August 31, 2020), nicknamed "Tom Terrific" and "the Franchise", was an American professional baseball pitcher who played 20 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played for the New York Mets, Cinc ...

was in a contract dispute with New York Mets chairman M. Donald Grant when on June 15, 1977, the Mets traded Seaver to the Cincinnati Reds for

Pat Zachry Patrick Paul Zachry (born April 24, 1952) is a former professional baseball pitcher. He pitched in Major League Baseball from to , and is likely best remembered as one of the players the Cincinnati Reds sent to the New York Mets in the infamous " ...

Doug Flynn Robert Douglas Flynn, Jr. (born April 18, 1951) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1975 to 1985 as an infielder for the Cincinnati Reds, New York Mets, Texas Rangers, Montreal Expos a ...

Dan Norman Daniel Edmund Norman (born January 11, 1955) is an American former professional baseball right fielder, who played for the New York Mets and Montreal Expos of Major League Baseball (MLB). His professional career started in the Cincinnati Reds ...

and Henderson, one of a series of trades that became known as the "Midnight Massacre". Steven Henderson and Nick Colosi - Sep 3, 1978 (cropped)

Henderson debuted with the Mets the following day as a

pinch runner In baseball, a pinch runner is a player substituted for the specific purpose of replacing another player on base. The pinch runner may be faster or otherwise more skilled at base-running than the player for whom the pinch runner has been sub ...

for

Ed Kranepool Edward Emil Kranepool (born November 8, 1944) is an American former professional baseball player. He spent his entire Major League Baseball career with the New York Mets. He was predominantly a first baseman, but he also played in the outfield ...

, and his first major league

run Run(s) or RUN may refer to: Places * Run (island), one of the Banda Islands in Indonesia * Run (stream), a stream in the Dutch province of North Brabant People * Run (rapper), Joseph Simmons, now known as "Reverend Run", from the hip-hop group ...

was the tying run in the Mets' 4-3 victory over the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after ...

. On June 21, facing the

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. The Braves ...

Shea Stadium Shea Stadium (), formally known as William A. Shea Municipal Stadium, was a multi-purpose stadium in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park, Queens, New York City.home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

off

Andy Messersmith John Alexander "Andy" Messersmith (born August 6, 1945) is a former Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. During a 12-year baseball career, he pitched for the California Angels (1968–72), Los Angeles Dodgers (1973–75 and 1979), Atlanta B ...

to send the game into

extra innings Extra innings is the extension of a baseball or softball game in order to break a tie. Ordinarily, a baseball game consists of nine regulation innings (in softball and high school baseball games there are typically seven innings; in Little Lea ...

. Following a one-out

double A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another. Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to: Film and television * Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character * Th ...

John Stearns John Hardin Stearns (August 21, 1951 – September 15, 2022), nicknamed "Bad Dude", was an American professional baseball catcher and coach in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played for the New York Mets from 1975 to 1984 after playing a single ...

in the 11th inning, the Braves

intentionally walked In baseball, an intentional base on balls, usually referred to as an intentional walk and denoted in baseball scorekeeping by ''IBB'', is a walk issued to a batter by a pitcher with the intent of removing the batter's opportunity to swing at the ...

Félix Millán Félix Bernardo Millán Martínez (born August 21, 1943) is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball second baseman, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Atlanta Braves and New York Mets. He holds one of the best at-bat to str ...

to get to Henderson. The strategy didn't work, as Henderson connected for a three-run

walk off home run In baseball, a walk-off home run is a home run that ends the game. For a home run to end the game, it must be hit in the bottom of the final inning of the game and generate enough runs to exceed the opponent's score. Because the opponent will not ...

. He set a Mets rookie record, tied by

Josh Satin Joshua Blake Satin (born December 23, 1984) is an American former professional baseball corner infielder. Satin played first base, second base, and third base. During his career, he played for the New York Mets of Major League Baseball, as well a ...

in 2013, by reaching base in 29 consecutive games that he started. For the season, Henderson had a .297

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

in 99 games and 350 at-bats with twelve home runs, 65

runs batted in A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the bat ...

, 67 runs, 104 hits, sixteen doubles, six triples, six

stolen base In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a runner advances to a base to which they are not entitled and the official scorer rules that the advance should be credited to the action of the runner. The umpires determine whether the runner is safe or ...

s, 43

base on balls A base on balls (BB), also known as a walk, occurs in baseball when a batter receives four pitches that the umpire calls '' balls'', and is in turn awarded first base without the possibility of being called out. The base on balls is defined in Se ...

, and four sacrifice flies. He finished second to

Andre Dawson Andre Nolan Dawson (born July 10, 1954), nicknamed "The Hawk" and "Awesome Dawson", is an American former professional baseball player and inductee into the Baseball Hall of Fame. During a 21-year baseball career, he played for four different tea ...

of the

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos (french: link=no, Les Expos de Montréal) were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal, Quebec. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in t ...

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...

Rookie of the Year balloting by only one point (10–9). On June 14, 1980, Henderson had perhaps his best moment in a major league uniform. The Mets had recovered from a terrible start to the season, going on a tear to approach the .500 mark. That day, facing the Giants, Mets' starting pitcher

Pete Falcone Peter Frank Falcone (born October 1, 1953) is an American former professional baseball pitcher for the San Francisco Giants, St. Louis Cardinals, New York Mets, and Atlanta Braves. Early years As a senior at Lafayette High School in Brooklyn, N ...

was lit up, staking the Giants to a 5-0 lead, which later became 6-0. Still trailing 6-2 with two outs in the ninth, the Mets staged a highly improbable comeback, which ended with Henderson hitting a three-run home run to win the game 7-6 in the bottom of the ninth, pulling the team within a game of .500. Alas, the Mets resumed their losing ways immediately thereafter, as that day turned out to be the high point of the season. According to Henderson, he was at his best when he focused on getting hits, and suffered when he was pressured by the Mets to try to hit home runs. Henderson was not a natural power hitter, but the Mets were desperate for power at the time. On February 28, , eager to make right with a fan base that had become disenchanted with the team, the Mets sent Henderson and cash to the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...

in order to reacquire

Dave Kingman David Arthur Kingman (born December 21, 1948), nicknamed "Kong," "King Kong," and "Sky King", is a former Major League Baseball left fielder, first baseman, third baseman, and designated hitter who was a three-time MLB All-Star with 442 career hom ...

, who had been traded away during the "Midnight Massacre". For his Mets career, Henderson batted .287 with 35 home runs and 227 RBI.

Chicago Cubs

Henderson batted .293 with five home runs and 32 RBIs during the strike shortened season. His production fell off considerably the following season, as he batted only .233, and found himself sharing playing time in

left field In baseball, a left fielder, abbreviated LF, is an outfielder who plays defense in left field. Left field is the area of the outfield to the left of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In the numbering system ...

with

Keith Moreland Bobby Keith Moreland (born May 2, 1954), nicknamed "Zonk", is a former outfielder, catcher and infielder in Major League Baseball who played for the Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago Cubs, and San Diego Padres. In 1989, the final year of his career, ...

and

Jay Johnstone John William Johnstone Jr. (November 20, 1945 – September 26, 2020) was an American professional baseball player and television sports announcer. He played in Major League Baseball as an outfielder from 1966 to 1985 for the California Angels, ...

. Following the season, he was traded to the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West division. The team joined the American League ...

for

Rich Bordi Richard Albert Bordi (born April 18, 1959) is a former Major League Baseball relief pitcher who played from to . He played for the Oakland Athletics, Seattle Mariners, Chicago Cubs, New York Yankees and Baltimore Orioles. Bordi threw and batted ...

Oakland A's

After two seasons in Seattle, Henderson and Kingman became teammates when Henderson signed as a free agent with the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...

on March 31, 1985. Batting only .077 for the season, he was released by the A's on May 29, 1986. He signed with the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and p ...

shortly afterwards, and spent the remainder of the season with their triple-A affiliate, the

Buffalo Bisons The Buffalo Bisons (known colloquially as the Herd) are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays. Located in Buffalo, New York, the team plays their home games at Sahlen Fiel ...

, where he batted .288 with five home runs. The ChiSox released him at the end of the season. Henderson then signed again with the A's for 1987, and split the season between Oakland and their Triple-A affiliate, the Tacoma Tigers.

Houston Astros

Henderson signed a minor league deal with the

for . After splitting the season between the Astros and their Triple-A affiliate, the

Tucson Toros The Tucson Toros were a professional baseball team based in Tucson, Arizona, in the United States. The original Toros were a Triple-A minor league baseball team in the Pacific Coast League from 1969 to 1997, where they won the PCL Championship in ...

, Henderson was released during the off season. He played the entire season with the Buffalo Bisons, who were now a

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

affiliate, before retiring. Henderson finished in the top ten in the National League in OBP twice during his career.

Post playing career

Following his retirement, he won the

Senior Professional Baseball Association The Senior Professional Baseball Association, referred to commonly as the ''Senior League'', was a winter baseball league based in Florida for players age 35 and over, with a minimum age of 32 for catchers. The league began play in 1989 and had ei ...

championship with the St. Petersburg Pelicans. Henderson served as a coach in the Pittsburgh Pirates minor league system from through . He moved to the Houston Astros organization in , and served as their hitting coach from to . He moved to the

Tampa Bay Devil Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since its inception, the team's home venu ...

organization in , serving as hitting coach during their inaugural season and from to , making the first trip of his baseball career to the post season in . He was relieved of his duties as hitting coach of the Tampa Bay Rays on October 5, 2009. Henderson joined the Philadelphia Phillies in 2010 as an outfield/baserunning coordinator, and he spent 2011 and 2012 as the organization's hitting coordinator. On October 4, 2012, he was promoted to hitting coach for the major league team. He was fired by the Phillies after the 2016 season. He and his wife, Pam, reside in

Tampa, Florida Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and ...

. He graduated with degrees in Multimedia and

Political Science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

from

McMaster University McMaster University (McMaster or Mac) is a public research university in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The main McMaster campus is on of land near the residential neighbourhoods of Ainslie Wood and Westdale, adjacent to the Royal Botanical Ga ...

in .

References

External links

Steve Henderson
at Baseball Gauge
Steve Henderson
at Pura Pelota (Venezuelan Professional Baseball League) {{DEFAULTSORT:Henderson, Steve 1952 births Living people African-American baseball coaches African-American baseball players Baseball players from Houston Billings Mustangs players Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Chicago Cubs players Houston Astros coaches Houston Astros players Indianapolis Indians players Leones del Caracas players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Major League Baseball hitting coaches Major League Baseball left fielders New York Mets players Oakland Athletics players Philadelphia Phillies coaches Prairie View A&M Panthers baseball players Prairie View A&M University alumni Seattle Mariners players St. Petersburg Pelicans players Tacoma Tigers players Tampa Bay Devil Rays coaches Tampa Bay Rays coaches Tampa Tarpons (1957–1987) players Trois-Rivières Aigles players Tucson Toros players 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American sportspeople