I remember watching the WGN telecast when it happened: a young Cub outfield prospect was pinch hitting in a game and gets brutally beaned on the head with the first pitch. Adam Greenberg was never touted as a great major league prospect, but he did have a good minor league average and some speed to be a reserve like a Seth Smith or a Tyler Colvin. His major league career ended on July 9, 2005.
Since Greenberg got hit in one pitch, he never had an official at bat. So a fan this season took up the cause and sought to have the Cubs give Greenberg an at bat. The Cubs passed on the PR stunt.
After Greenberg was injured, he attempted several come backs. He bounced around the minor leagues a few seasons, then left the game. It is one of many sad footnotes in baseball history.
The Miami Marlins trumpeted season is also a sad footnote. The Marlins spend money on massive free agents in the off season with the simple plan of winning it all this year. New manager Ozzie Guillen was to give South Florida his magic. Fans would flock to the new stadium. All will be good.
But Guillen started the season offending Cuban-Americans, and the Marlins players woefully underperformed. The Marlins owner called it quits, trading Hanley Ramirez to the Dodgers and putting Guillen on the hot seat.
So to salvage some good PR, MLB announed that the Marlins signed Greenberg, 31 years old, to a one-day contract to play on October 2, 2012 against the Mets. It may also be some karma payback for the Marlins, since it was one of their pitchers, Valerio De Los Santos, who hit Greenberg that night.
As part of the agreement, Greenberg is donating his one day salary (which is around $1,300) to a charity through the Marlins Foundation, the Palm Beach Post reported.
It may give some closure to Greenberg. But it really is a bad precedent. Even though the Mets and the Marlins are not in a pennant chase, Greenberg's position takes up space on the Marlin's 40 man roster. He is displacing a current prospect from getting maybe his one and only shot at the major leagues. Leave the happy endings to fiction like in Bull Durham or Field of Dreams.
UPDATE:
MIAMI -- Adam Greenberg struck out on three pitches as a pinch hitter. It was his first at-bat in seven years when the first pitch of his career beaned him out of the game. The Marlins gave Greenberg a one-game contract to complete the publicity stunt.
So Greenberg's career ends with 2 PA, 1 AB, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, .000 BA, 1 HBP.
