Many of the early-to-mid 20th century baseball stories that speak to the greatness of its stars border on fantastical (Babe Ruth calling his shot, for instance). They can't be proven beyond a shadow of a doubt, but because the players involved established themselves as all-time greats, they're believable enough.
Hall of Fame pitcher Gaylord Perry’s moon-landing home run is another example. But the former Giants star's story isn't believable because his talents — it actually gained steam because of how terrible Perry was in the batter’s box.
For the uninitiated, the general framework of Perry's story, whether you buy it or not, is this: In the early '60s, a reporter named Harry Jupiter (seriously) was shooting the breeze with Giants manager Alvin Dark during a batting practice.