By Scott Plack

The home run craze ramped in the mid ‘90s as armsgot bigger, balls were wound tighter, and park designers seemed to have it out for pitchers. Unfortunately, it was also an age driven by steroids as players juiced up in order to jack more and more past the walls into record books. The now defunct Major League imploded in a backlash of fan disapproval and a deep divide amongst the players. But the home run…that long fly ball…drifting slowly, dreamily…or laser beaming, screaming…or hooking, and will it stay fair…the home run still captures the imagination. In the highly successful PEBA there have been none better at the singular skill of smashing home runs than Tsumemasa Morimoto. Morimoto has averaged a home run every 16.2 plate appearance to the tune of 532 long balls in his 13 year career. With the Trendsetters seemingly buckling down for a rebuild, he may be the only player worth watching for the next two years (how much he has left on his contract) at New Frontier Park.

But what will be his lasting legacy? He leads the PEBA in home runs and runs batted in, but his other stats are substandard, including a particularly poor OPS for a power hitter. If he continues to average his home run totals this year and the next then he could possibly send out 600 home runs, and then maybe a few more here and there in his travels before retirement. And that record would be pretty tough to beat, considering Morimoto started when he was 20 and has avoided any major injuries. He lifted the Rodriguez cup once in 2011. That year he also won the Royal Raker and All-leather award at first base. The year was his finest as far as achievements. Morimoto hit at least 50 home runs in three years, including sitting the seasonal mark at 53, and is the only player to top 50 home runs in a season more than once.

After three full and a fourth partial season in New Orleans, Morimoto is not even the best first baseman in the history of the team. That honors lies with the underrated Augusto Valdéz who holds the New Orleans team best in both home runs and runs batted in. If Morimoto was to rebound with a year that reminisced his 2011 form, then he surely would catch and surpass Augusto – but his .201 batting average last year, certainly doesn’t give fans much to hope for.

Catching one of the final home runs of his career will certainly net some fan a souvenir like none other, but will Morimoto be remembered as one of the greatest to step onto the PEBA field? Only time will tell.