FRANK HOWARD

Like a giant folk hero, this big former basketball star, All-American at Ohio State came, saw and conquered in baseball flannels. Signing a bonus contract in 1958 with the Dodgers, Frank Howard spent his first year at Green Bay for seasoning and learning to play first base. In a game against Rochester, he cracked three homers --- one over each fence, left, center and right. The one to right, was, according to accounts, "a one hander" as his right hand slipped off the bat as he was swinging hard, and his left wrist 'flicked' the ball over the opposite field fence!

When you are 245 pounds and 6-feet-7 and your sport is baseball-well your image on the field is all the more "on parade." Frank "Hondo" Howard didn't let up. With rawboned strength that often made for Herculean home runs, he put on long distance, spheroid shows for L.A. from 1958 to 1964. Then Hondo went to Washington and became the "Capital Punisher."

With Killebrew at Minnesota, the A.L. had Superman and Captain Marvel on display on the diamond. From 1968-1970, "Marvel" Howard hit 136 home runs! From 1967-1970,"Superman" Killebrew and "Captain Marvel" Howard alternately led the league in homers.

It didn't take a whole lot of imagination to put these two in comic hero proportion. Harmon Killebrew was just under 6 foot tall and was put together like the original Superman-short waisted, wide shouldered with bulging biceps. Howard was a lot like C.C. Beck's red clad giantÉ big, tall, thickset from head to toe.

There were painted seats at the old Met Stadium in Bloomington, Minn., where Harm kissed 'em and put them there...home run balls where none others ever dwelled. Same in Washington where Hondo launched his shots . . .500 feet in many cases.

Both Hondo and Harmon shared a Tiger Stadium feat. In August, 1962, off Jim Bunning, Harmon became the first to clear the left-field roof with a titanic shot. It took one bounce out. Hondo became the second to do so a few years later. Since then, Cecil Fielder has joined this select few-but what the hey, he plays first!