Ron Blomberg (born August 23, 1948 in Atlanta, Georgia), nicknamed "Boomer", is a former Major League Baseball first baseman who played with the New York Yankees (1969, 1971-76) and Chicago White Sox (1978). He batted left-handed and threw right-handed. Blomberg's name is pronounced "Bloomberg", like Michael Bloomberg, the NYC mayor. A perennial prospect for most of his career, Blomberg was selected by the Yankees in the first round (1st pick) of the 1967 amateur draft. He debuted on September 10, 1969.
Unfortunately, Blomberg disappointed the Yankees' great expectations for him. He was a notoriously injury-prone player. After going 3-for-6 in his first season, Blomberg was out in 1970. Things were not much better in the years to come. He played 107 games in 1972, 100 in 1973, 90 in 1974, 34 in 1975, and only one in 1976. Out in 1977, he was granted free agency at the end of the season. He played his final game for the White Sox on October 1, 1978.
Blomberg's place in baseball history, however, is assured, as he has the distinction of being the first major leaguer to play a game as a designated hitter. On April 6, 1973 at Fenway Park, he was walked by Red Sox pitcher Luis Tiant in his first plate appearance of the game.
In his eight-season career, Blomberg compiled a .293 batting average (391-for-1333) with 52 home runs, 224 RBI, 184 runs, 67 doubles, eight triples, and six stolen bases in 461 games. He added a .360 on base percentage and a .473 slugging average, for a combined .833 OPS.
In April 2006, Blomberg's biography, Designated Hebrew: the Ron Blomberg Story was released by Sports Publishing. It was co-written by Dan Schlossberg, the legendary author of over 30 baseball books including The Baseball Catalog and host of the syndicated radio show, BallTalk.
