Five memorable moments from Tony Perez's career
As the Reds get set to honor Tony Perez with a statue this weekend, take a look at five memorable moments from his Reds career.
1. Youth springs eternal
Tony Perez is one of just three players, along with Hank Aaron and Jason Giambi, to have hit a pinch-hit, walk-off home run at the age of 42 or older. Perez hit his pinch-hit, walk-off home run in 1984 at 42 years and 110 days old. In his career, Perez hit 379 home runs including nine seasons with at least 20 homers.
2. Oldest Grand Salami
On May 13, 1985, Tony Perez became the oldest player ever to hit a grand slam, breaking a record held for 70 years by Honus Wagner. In 2004, Julio Franco broke Perez's record, becoming the oldest player to ever hit a grand slam.
3. World Series hero
Perez hit three home runs in the 1975 World Series for the Cincinnati Reds, including a key 2-run shot in Game 7. His two-run homer off Boston Red Sox pitcher Bill Lee in the sixth inning of Game 7 in 1975 helped the Reds come back from a 3-0 deficit to win 4-3. In total, Perez played in five World Series.
4. All-Star Game winner
In 1967 All-Star Game, Perez hit the game-winning home run in the 15th inning off Jim "Catfish" Hunter. Perez was named the All-Star Game MVP in 1967. Perez made seven All-Star appearances during his 23-year career.
5. Hall of Famer
Inducted to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2000, Perez had more RBI, 1,652, over his 23-year career than any other Latin American player. For his career, Perez hit .279 with a .341 OBP and .463 SLG. He had 2732 hits, 505 doubles and 79 triples.
