SAN FRANCISCO -- It has been a year of milestones for Andrew McCutchen. In March, he launched his 800th career extra-base hit. In June, he passed Roberto Clemente for the third-most homers in Pirates history.
And in the seventh inning of a frigid July night at Oracle Park on Monday, he took a Carson Seymour slider deep to left field to break a tie before the Pirates hung on for a 6-5 victory over the Giants.
That homer was his 10th of the season, a plateau he has reached in each of his first 17 Major League seasons, becoming just the 11th player to accomplish that.
That list is nothing but heavy hitters, too. That’s expected for anyone who could play the game for 17 years, but some of the greatest power hitters of all-time didn’t accomplish the feat. Not Griffey, Thome nor Thomas. Not Mays, Foxx nor Williams. Not Ruth, Rodriguez, Sosa nor Jackson.
The list goes: Hank Aaron (23 seasons); Eddie Murray and Carl Yastrzemski (20); Barry Bonds, Albert Pujols and Frank Robinson (19); Harold Baines and Mickey Mantle (18); and Jeff Kent, Willie McCovey and McCutchen. If you want to talk about hallmarks of consistency, those are the type of names you point toward.
“For me, I felt like 10 home runs was just like 10 homers. I never [put] much thought into it,” McCutchen said. “I feel like I really had to work for 10 homers this season because, I don't know, it's just harder to hit homers this year, to get there. It was one of the first times I really felt like, 'Man, you've really got to work for it.'
“Yeah, consistency, I guess you can say that. I think it's just showing up and being able to have the opportunity to do it more than anything."
In the grand scheme of things, his 2013 MVP or four Silver Sluggers or five All-Star nods are a better indicator of the offensive force McCutchen has been in his career. But there’s something to be said for consistency.
McCutchen, 38, has had seasons shortened by injuries and a pandemic. He’s had years where he was the best hitter in the National League and others where he slumped compared to his usual production. He’s been traded in-season, and he was in the Minors until June when he was a rookie in 2009.
There were plenty of forks in the road where a left turn would have been understandable, if not expected. Through all of that, McCutchen has managed to trot around the bases at least 10 times a campaign.
“It’s kind of mind-blowing, honestly, to just show up every single season, put in the work and have the success is crazy,” Mitch Keller said. “He’s a role model we all look up to in this room. … Hopefully, he’s got another five seasons of 10 home runs.”
Keller needed to be picked up by his teammates Monday after being uncharacteristically shaky. His stuff wasn’t as sharp as normal, counts went deeper and he was removed after two innings of three run ball because he was already up to 73 pitches.
The offense and bullpen picked him up. Nick Gonzales homered in the first inning and Isiah Kiner-Falefa (two-run double) and Tommy Pham (one-run single) kept things going with RBI hits in the second off Carson Whisenhunt, who was making his Major League debut. Deadlocked at 4, McCutchen delivered the winning hit in what was his home ballpark in 2018.
McCutchen played only five months with the Giants but has spoken glowingly about the opportunities he had by the Bay, especially being able to rub elbows with the greats. When reflecting about the names on the list, McCutchen talked about sitting at a table with Bonds, McCovey and Mays and thinking to himself, “There’s a lot of home runs in here.”
“I just want to be around that, be around greatness,” McCutchen said. “Now we all have to sit at the table and say we all have something to share in common.”