Ron Blomberg

Ronald Mark 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.

Quotation

• The strapping, ebullient Southerner was the nation's and the Yankees' first draft pick in 1967. A powerful lefthanded hitter and terrible fielder, on Opening Day, 1973 he became baseball's first designated hitter; the irrepressible Blomberg commented: "I've been a DH all my life: Designated Hebrew." Accused of being a Designated Hypochondriac, the perennial prospect spent months, and years sidelined with a variety of muscle injuries. Even when he was healthy, he was seldom permitted to face lefthanded pitching. In 1973 he hit a career-high .329 while playing in 100 games -- for him, a full season. Jane Charnin-Aker, at Baseball Library http://www.baseballlibrary.com/baseballlibrary/ballplayers/B/Blomberg_Ron.stm