Jamie Moyer to AARP: Go Away, I’m Busy Here!

When last we saw Jamie Moyer, he was a 47-year-old hurler going 9-9 with a 4.84 ERA for the Phillies in 2010.  Then his elbow gave out and instead of hanging them up, he underwent Tommy John surgery.  Now, he’s gotten a Minor League deal and an invite to Spring Training from the Colorado Rockies.

How old is Jamie Moyer?  Well when he made his Major League debut on June 16, 1986:

• It was versus a then-41-year-old Steve Carlton.
• Hall of Famer Roberto Alomar was 18.
• Besides Alomar, 2012 Hall of Fame candidates Edgar Martinez, Jeff Bagwell, Bernie Williams and Larry Walker had all yet to make their debuts.
• New Hall of Famer Barry Larkin was just about two months away from his debut.
• Reggie Jackson was the active homerun leader, at 530.
• Current career homerun leader Barry Bonds had played 19 games in his first season in the Majors.
• All-Star game pitchers Clayton Kershaw, Trevor Cahill, Michael Pineda, Craig Kimbrel, Jordan Walden and Neftali Feliz hadn’t been born yet.
• At least 179 players in all had not been born yet.
• There were 18 members of the 300-win club.  (There are now 6 more).
• The Rockies franchise was more than six years away from playing their first game.
• Camden Yards was five years from opening.
• The Metrodome was four years old.
• The average player salary was $412,520.  (The minimum salary in 2012 is $480,000.)

(Addendum: Reader Josh Nelson points out that it was two years prior to the first night game at Wrigley Field.)

Other fun Moyer facts:

• He’s faced 1,412 different batters in his career.
• Those 1,412 batters have had 17,270 plate appearances.  (1,409 more than career leader Pete Rose amassed.)
• He’s yielded homers to 326 different players.

I for one hope he makes the Rockies squad coming out of Spring Training . . . and I also hope he gets to face Bryce Harper, who is just about 30 years younger than Moyer, in September 2012.