Orlando Cepeda
Orlando Cepeda was teammate to no less than thirteen future Hall of Famers, and he played for another. He won pennants with two NL teams, and later was the first DH in Red Sox history. He was a power hitter who finished in the top ten in slugging nine times. He won the Rookie of the Year award (1958), and MVP, in 1967. Despite an earlier conviction for drugs he was elected to the Hall of Fame by the veterans committee in 2000.
Played For
San Francisco Giants (1958-1966)
St. Louis Cardinals (1966-1968)
Atlanta Braves (1969-1972)
Oakland Athletics (1972)
Boston Red Sox (1973)
Kansas City Royals (1974)
All-Time Rankings
Orlando Cepeda ranks #23 among the Top 50 all-time at 1B. Rankings ⇒
Best Season: 1961
Cepeda led the NL in homers (46), and RBI (142), and finished in the top ten in batting (.311), slugging (.609), OPS, games, at-bats, runs, hits, total bases, doubles, and steals. He finished second in MVP voting to Cincinnati's Frank Robinson.
Factoids
Orlando Cepeda hit the first home run ever on the West Coast, in 1958 as a rookie. It was his first ML homer.
Where He Played
First base and the outfield, early in his career. Later, he was a DH.
Born
Orlando Manuel (Penne) Cepeda was born on September 17, 1937, in Ponce
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
Primary Position: 1B
Primary Team: SFN
Major League Debut
April 15, 1958
Nine Other Players Who Debuted in 1958
Vada Pinson
Ron Fairly
Tony Taylor
Orlando Cepeda
Norm Cash
Felipe Alou
Mudcat Grant
Frank Howard
Jerry Adair
Nicknames
Cha Cha, Baby Bull
He was both "Cha-Cha" and "Baby Bull," the latter a nickname he inherited because his father was a great baseball player known as "Bull."
Family Tree
Cepeda's father, Perucho, was one of the greatest players in Puerto Rican baseball history.
Similar Players
Gil Hodges, Tony Perez, Andres Galarraga
Related Players
Willie McCovey
| Hall of Fame Voting |
| Year |
Election |
Votes |
Pct |
| 1980 |
BBWAA |
48 |
12.5% |
1981 |
BBWAA |
77 |
19.2% |
1982 |
BBWAA |
42 |
10.1% |
1983 |
BBWAA |
59 |
15.8% |
1984 |
BBWAA |
124 |
30.8% |
1985 |
BBWAA |
114 |
28.9% |
1986 |
BBWAA |
152 |
35.8% |
1987 |
BBWAA |
179 |
43.3% |
1988 |
BBWAA |
199 |
46.6% |
1989 |
BBWAA |
176 |
39.4% |
1990 |
BBWAA |
211 |
47.5% |
1991 |
BBWAA |
192 |
43.3% |
1992 |
BBWAA |
246 |
57.2% |
1993 |
BBWAA |
252 |
59.6% |
1994 |
BBWAA |
335 |
73.6% |
|
Post-Season Appearances
1962 World Series
1967 World Series
1968 World Series
1969 National League Championship Series
Awards and Honors
1958 NL Rookie of the Year
1967 NL MVP
Hitting Streaks
16 games (1967)
15 games (1961)
Transactions
After his first seven ML seasons, in which he hit .309 and averaged 32 homers and 107 RBI, fans expected Cepeda to be the greatest Latin player in history. But a knee injury cost him most of 1965, and the next spring he was dealt to the Cards, where he rebounded and was named Comeback Player of the Year. In '67 he won his only MVP award, to the chagrin of Giant fans it came in a Redbird uniform.
Home Run Facts
182 at home, 197 on the road; 220 solo-shots, 102 two-run Hr, 48 three-run HR, and nine grand slams; hiot two HR in one game 22 times, three in a game once; blasted five homers in extra-innings, two inside-the-park, and two as a pinch-hitter; hit 258 off RHP and 121 off LHP. In all, Cepeda homered in 26 different parks.
Matchup Data
Cepeda hit 10 home runs off both Warren Spahn and Lew Burdette of the Braves.
All-Star Selections
1959 NL
1960 NL
1961 NL
1962 NL
1963 NL
1964 NL
1967 NL
Best Strength as a Player
Power, which he generated largely through his great wrist action. Cepeda hit some of the hardest hit home runs in several NL ballparks. There are still dozens of players he played with or against who can tell stories of how Cepeda hit his home runs so hard, they seemed to launch out of the park with terrific speed. In that sense, he was much like Mark McGwire. One of his other great strengths was his leadership ability.
Largest Weakness as a Player
Cepeda was a slow baserunner, especially in the middle and latter parts of his career.
Learn More about Orlando Cepeda
Search Amazon.com for Books about Orlando Cepeda ⇒
Search for Orlando Cepeda at Google ⇒
View a map of his hometown at Mapquest ⇒
