I'd like to thank Damaso Garcia. As a young boy attending my first ever game at Exhibition Stadium, the greatest thing in my mind was the grand slam. One swing, four runs on the board. At the time, I also felt the grand slam was a great deal rarer than it is now. Although I don't have the statistics on hand to prove it, I'm pretty sure they were less frequent in the early 80s than they are now.
Already a die hard Jays fan, I was so excited to actually see the team live. There was a moment late in the game when we loaded the bases. Damaso Garcia was at the plate, and I was hoping and praying for one thing. I wanted to see a grand slam.
I remember vividly what happened next. I can still feel myself sitting on that uncomfortable bench and watching him make contact. The ball was hit hard, I was getting my wish. It was deep to left field and... off the top of the wall. Garcia ended up on third with a bases clearing triple but for a couple of seconds I remember feeling like the luckiest kid in the world.
As I got older, I began to see grand slams and even saw a game at Exhibition Stadium in which three of them were hit, but that didn't dull the memory of Garcia missing a grand salami by half a foot. Thanks again, Damaso.
