Salvador Perez, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Shohei Ohtani enter the final days of an intriguing home run race reminiscent of another memorable battle 50 years ago.
The 1971 American League battle between Chicago White Sox third baseman Bill Melton, Oakland Athletics slugger Reggie Jackson and Detroit Tigers first baseman Norm Cash came down to the final day of the season, but Melton was the only one with a chance to win it.
“I had one game left to play in the daytime,” Melton recalled recently from his home in Arizona. “The other guys’ seasons were over.”
Melton took advantage of having the last at-bats, belting a solo home run in the third inning off Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Bill Parsons to win the AL crown on Sept.