TORONTO — This was late in the morning of April 19, 1960, and Roger Maris was taking some batting-practice hacks against Ralph Terry. In a few hours Maris would make his debut as a member of the Yankees, where the second-biggest Opening Day crowd in the history of Fenway Park would be watching.
Terry threw one in on Maris’ hands. The consequences were dire.
“Oooh,” Maris groaned. “That was my game bat.”
He reached for another, but before he could Mickey Mantle held it in his hands, checked out the weight, the balance, and cooed, “Rog, this is a hell of a bat.