Back in January 2017, the then-Oakland Athletics announced they had designated Max Muncy for assignment.
The decision made sense. To date, Muncy, a former fifth-round pick who was never a top prospect, had slashed .195/.290/.321 in 245 big-league plate appearances. He was 26 years old. Even when the Los Angeles Dodgers picked him up on a minor-league deal, he spent the entire 2017 season at Triple-A.
As most baseball fans know, the story has since taken quite a turn.
An underdog career on the least underdog of teams culminated in Muncy becoming the all-time leader in home runs at Dodger Stadium on Thursday, hitting his 131st in the sixth inning against the Milwaukee Brewers. He had entered the game as a pinch-hitter for Miguel Rojas and lifted a 426-foot homer off Brewers reliever Antonio Senzatela.
Erik Karros was the previous leader with 130 in a run that lasted from 1991 to 2002. As fate would have it, Karros was on the call for Sportsnet LA alongside Joe Davis and was able to congratulate him live:
“You did it Munce, you did it! Now the all-time home run leader at Dodger Stadium, Max Muncy. Congratulations brother.”
It could have been the game-winning hit, as the Dodgers took a 4-2 lead they would carry into the ninth inning. And then Edwin Díaz blew another save, allowing four straight hits to give the Brewers a 5-4 lead and increase his ERA to 11.57 through 14 appearances with the Dodgers.
After the retirement of Clayton Kershaw, Muncy is the longest-tenured player on the Dodgers, though it’s worth noting Kiké Hernández’s time with the team goes back further but with an interruption of two and a half years on the Boston Red Sox.
For all that is made about the Dodgers’ considerable spending, Muncy looms as a symbol of the other stuff that makes them perennial World Series contenders. There was a always a good player in him, but it took the Dodgers’ player development machine to draw it out.
Muncy became one of the best stories in baseball in 2018, when he clubbed 35 homers for a team that frankly needed it, and he has been solid ever since. He’s been a regular at three different positions for them and made his third career All-Star team this season, ranking second on the team with 23 homers.
At 35 years old, it’s unclear how much longer Muncy will be a regular, though he’s under contract for next season with a $10 million team option for 2028. Whatever happens, though, it’s hard to argue he hasn’t proven something.