| Leon Durham | |
|---|---|
 | |
| First baseman /Outfielder | |
| Born: (1957-07-31)July 31, 1957 (age 67) Cincinnati,Ohio, U.S. | |
Batted: Left Threw: Left | |
| MLB debut | |
| May 27, 1980, for the St. Louis Cardinals | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 17, 1989, for the St. Louis Cardinals | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .277 |
| Home runs | 147 |
| Runs batted in | 530 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Leon"Bull"Durham (born July 31, 1957) is an American former first baseman and outfielder inMajor League Baseball who played for 10 seasons. Durham was a longtime minor league hitting coach, and most recently served as the assistant hitting coach for theDetroit Tigers during the 2017 season. Durham played with theSt. Louis Cardinals (1980,1989),Chicago Cubs (1981–1988), andCincinnati Reds (1988). Durham batted and threw left-handed.
Durham graduated fromCincinnati Woodward High School in 1976 where he was a high school All-American selection his senior year, posting a .385 batting average with 16home runs and an 11–3 record as a pitcher.
Durham was selected by the St. Louis Cardinals in the1976 amateur draft in the first round and 15th overall.
Durham made his major league debut on May 27, 1980, with theSt. Louis Cardinals. He was traded that off-season to the Cubs forBruce Sutter, and his career took off. He hit 10 home runs and drove in 55 runs in a strike-shortened 1981 season, then followed that with a stellar 1982 season in which he had a .312 batting average with 22 homers, 90 RBI, and 28 stolen bases. He won theSilver Slugger Award as the Cubs' left fielder and made the All-Star team. He followed that with a hot first half in 1983 of 12 homers and 55 RBI and another All-Star Game appearance, but was injured shortly after the break and missed the rest of the season.
In 1984, the Cubs made several team-improving deals. They acquiredBob Dernier andGary Matthews from the Phillies, movedKeith Moreland to right field, and Durham to first base. Durham essentially supplantedBill Buckner, who was then dealt to the Red Sox forDennis Eckersley. Durham responded with another stellar year by hitting .279 with 23 homers and 96 RBIs as the Cubs won the National League East. For good measure, Durham homered in both Games 4 and 5 of the1984 NLCS. Durham would follow that season with three more consecutive 20-homer seasons, including a career-high 27 in 1987. However, his RBI totals decreased from 96 in 1984 to 75, 65, and 63, respectively.
In 1988, Durham got off to a miserable start, hitting only .218 with 3 homers after 21 games.Mark Grace began to see more time at first, and the Cubs traded Durham to theCincinnati Reds forPat Perry amid rumors of drug use. Durham played in only 21 games for the Reds that season before entering into drug and alcohol rehabilitation. He tried a comeback with the Cardinals the next season, but was suspended for 60 days for failing to comply with the commissioner's drug policy[1] and only went 1 for 18 before retiring.
In a 10-year Major League career, Durham compiled a lifetime batting average of .277, hitting 147 home runs and driving in 530 runs. He recorded an overall .991fielding percentage playing primarily at first base and all three outfield positions.
In 1993, Durham played for the thenNorthern League'sSaint Paul Saints.
Leon Durham is widely remembered for an error that he made at first base during the1984 National League Championship Series. In the bottom of the seventh inning in the decisive fifth game[2] between Durham'sChicago Cubs and theSan Diego Padres, the Padres sent pinch-hitterTim Flannery to face the Cubs' ace pitcherRick Sutcliffe.
Through the top of the sixth inning, the Cubs had a 3–0 lead, aided by Durham's home run offEric Show in the first inning.[3] In the bottom of the sixth inning, the Padres cut the Cubs' lead to 3–2 with a pair of singles byAlan Wiggins andTony Gwynn, a walk toSteve Garvey, and sacrifice flies byGraig Nettles andTerry Kennedy. The bottom of the seventh inning kicked off withCarmelo Martínez walking on four pitches from Sutcliffe.Garry Templeton then sacrificed Martínez to second, setting things up for Tim Flannery. Martinez would then score when Flannery hit a sharp grounder that trickled through Leon Durham's legs for an error.
Groundball hit to Durham...RIGHT THROUGH HIS LEGS!!! Here comesMartínez, we're tied at three!
— ABC'sDon Drysdale calling Cubs first basemen Leon Durham's crucial error in the bottom of the seventh inning in Game 5 of the1984 NLCS.
The error became known as the "Gatorade Glove Play" because before taking his position in the field that inning,Gatorade was spilled on Durham's glove. Some Cub fans believe the Gatorade spilled on Durham's glove amounted to a curse, similar to thegoat andBartman curses of Cub lore.
The play would also turn out to be very similar, in style and effect, toBill Buckner's much-discussed error in the1986 World Series. The coincidental connection between these two events is that Durham had been moved from the outfield to first base during the 1984 season, replacing Buckner after the Cubs traded him to theBoston Red Sox for pitcherDennis Eckersley. Buckner's error, like Durham's, would be seen as turning a post-season series around. The same joke even circulated for both incidents: That they had been despondent, jumped in front of a moving truck, and "the truck went between their legs".
The Padres wound up winning the game 6–3 to reach theWorld Series for the first time ever. The Cubs had won the first 2 games of the series (1984 marked the last time that theLeague Championship Series was a best-of-five series) over the Padres. Incidentally, Durham went 3-for-20 in the NLCS, garnering two of his three hits in the final two games on home runs (his shot in Game 4 had given the Cubs a 3–2 lead).[4]
Durham previously served as the hitting coach for theDetroit Tigers'Triple-A affiliate theToledo Mud Hens. On October 21, 2016, he was named the assistant hitting coach of the Detroit Tigers, after 17 seasons as a coach with the Mud Hens.[5] Durham is presently in his second year as the hitting coach for theLouisville Bats theTriple-A affiliate of theCincinnati Reds.[6]
| Preceded by | National League Player of the Month May1984 | Succeeded by |
