Clutch Cargo?

The ledgers of Carlos Gómez are vastly different from those of Maris, May, and Perez. Those players, and any others that played before 1997, had compartmentalized ledger periods. A long stretch with one team afforded many ledgers. A short stretch completed that league’s ledger. Another stretch added most of the teams of the other league and a short stretch completed it. That’s how it worked.

But Gómez represents a change. Interleague home runs are interspersed throughout. We bounce from team to team and league to league. It was the new way and despite having more opportunities than any predecesor, Gómez still needed some post-season magic to complete his list.

2007 – New York Mets

LEDGER ONE: June 10 at Detroit Tigers

We start off with a ledger that bridges the two generations. Gómez was a hot-shot 21-year-old playing all over the Mets’ outfield and his first career home run came sixty-one games into their season. This was a three-run home run that drove in the ageless Julio Franco who played in the league with Tony Perez for four seasons in the early eighties. Franco would score only three more runs in his career.

Gómez also batted in Ben Johnson, and it would be the last run scored of his career.

LEDGER TWO: June 25 vs. St. Louis Cardinals

Gómez knocked this ledger against Mike Maroth who was making his first start for the Cardinals after being traded mid-season.

2008 – Minnesota Twins

Gómez was included in the trade that sent Johan Santana to the Mets. He would hit his first homer twenty-two games into the season.

LEDGER THREE: April 24 at Oakland Athletics

This home run led off the game. Gómez hit it off Greg Smith who was making his fourth career start of forty in his career.

LEDGER FOUR: May 7 at Chicago White Sox

This home run also led off the game. Gómez hit it off Mark Buehrle who made many more than forty starts in his career. More uniquely, Gómez hit for the reverse cycle in this game. It was one of only two instances of a ledger being part of a reverse cycle1.

LEDGER FIVE: May 13 vs Toronto Blue Jays

Gómez launched this solo shot to open the scoring in the third inning. He appeared in only twenty-five games against the Jays in his career, the third lowest total against any opponent. He hit seven home runs against them.

LEDGER SIX: May 22 vs Texas Rangers

Gómez had four hits on the day, including this solo home run in the fifth inning off Vincente Padilla.

LEDGER SEVEN: September 17 at Cleveland Indians

Cliff Lee was padding his Cy Young Award credentials at this late stage of the season. He allowed this solo blast that tied the game in the fourth inning.

2009 – Minnesota Twins

Gómez was not exhibiting much power in these early seasons. He would only hit three home runs in 2009, with one being a ledger.

LEDGER EIGHT: June 14 at Chicago Cubs

Gómez tied the game with this solo shot at Wrigley Field off Ted Lilly.

At the end of the season he was traded to Milwaukee in one-to-one swap for JJ Hardy.

2010 – Milwaukee Brewers

LEDGER NINE: April 5 vs Colorado Rockies

It was Opening Day in Milwaukee and their newly acquired center fielder had himself a day. He had four hits including a double and this ledger.

Little did anyone know, Gómez was kicking off a ruthlessly efficient run of ledgers.

LEDGER TEN: April 28 vs Pittsburgh Pirates

This home run came in the bottom of the first against Paul Maholm and was one of two hits Gómez had in the fourteen inning game.

Gómez hit more home runs against the Pirates (11) than any other opponent and he also played the most games against them (81; the Reds were next at 73).

LEDGER ELEVEN: May 21 at Minnesota Twins

The Brewers were getting absolutely plastered by Gómez’s former team to the tune of 15-0 until he cut that lead to 15-3 with this eighth inning smash.

LEDGER TWELVE: June 16 at Los Angeles Angels

This was a solo shot off Joel Piñeiro to cut into the Angels lead. Gómez hit the second most home career home runs against the Angels (10).

LEDGER THIRTEEN: June 25 vs Seattle Mariners

Gómez only hit five home runs in 2010, but all five of them were ledgers. This one untied the game in the fourth inning and the Brewers went on to win.

2011 – Milwaukee Brewers

LEDGER FOURTEEN: March 31 at Cincinnati Reds

For the second consecutive year, Gómez nabbed a ledger on Opening Day. While it didn’t lead off the game, it was hit in the top of the first with the Brewers already up one run.

LEDGER FIFTEEN: April 22 vs Houston Astros

Enerio Del Rosario served up this ledger – the first home run allowed in his career. Turns out he would only allow three more before exiting the league. This was a three-run blast that extended the Brewers’ lead.

LEDGER SIXTEEN: May 28 vs San Francisco Giants

Gómez legged a hit to right field out for an inside-the-park home run to ledger against the Giants.

This would conclude Gómez’s run of eight consecutive home runs as ledgers. Of the twenty home runs he had hit in his career, only four were not ledgers. But he wasn’t quite done for the season.

PROVISIONAL: October 5 at Arizona Diamondbacks

The Brewers and Diamondbacks met in the National League Divisional Series in 2011. Gómez hit this home run in game four, but it wasn’t enough to prevent the Diamondbacks from taking the win and forcing a deciding game five. The Brewers ultimately prevailed in the series but were eliminated by the Cardinals in the NLCS.

2012 – Milwaukee Brewers

LEDGER SEVENTEEN: May 31 at Los Angeles Dodgers

For his second home run of the season, Gómez extended the Brewers’ lead with this pinch hit two-run shot in the ninth. He hit it off of Todd Coffey. It was the only home run allowed by Coffey in 2012, and also the last home run he ever gave up.

LEDGER EIGHTEEN: June 30 vs Arizona Diamondbacks

It took three months, but Gómez un-provisioned last season’s NLDS home run against the Diamondbacks with this lead-extending solo knock in the bottom of the sixth.

LEDGER NINETEEN: July 2 vs Miami Marlins

You may not remember it, but Carlos Zambrano ended his twelve year career in Miami after eleven seasons with the Cubs. This would be the second-to-last home run he would allow – a solo dinger that brought the Brewers to within two runs in the fifth inning.

LEDGER TWENTY: July 23 at Philadelphia Phillies

This was a good game for Gómez against future Hall of Famer Roy Halladay. Two hits, three runs, and this ledger that extended the Brewers’ lead.

LEDGER TWENTY-ONE: July 26 vs Washington Nationals

A few days later, Gómez connected against Henry Rodríguez to give the Brewers their first runs of the day.

LEDGER TWENTY-TWO: October 1 vs San Diego Padres

The Brewers wrapped up 2012 with a three game series against the Padres. In the first game, Gómez untied the ballgame with this solo shot off Clayton Richard.

2013 – Milwaukee Brewers

Gómez was putting up bigger power numbers as his career with Milwaukee progressed. Whereas his ledger-to-home ratio once stood at 16-to-20, his first home run of 2013 put the ratio at 23-to-66 after an exceedingly long ledger-less stretch to open the season.

LEDGER TWENTY-THREE: September 23 at Atlanta Braves

The Brewers shut out the Braves to open the last week of the season. Gómez helped the cause with this first inning solo home run off Mike Minor.

LEDGER TWENTY-FOUR: September 28 at New York Mets

In the second-to-last game of the season, Gómez went wild to the tune of a four hit day which included this ledger off Aaron Harang.

2014 – Milwaukee Brewers

We are in the thick of the rotating division match-ups of the Interleague Era. Gómez didn’t hit any ledgers against American League East opponents when they aligned with the NL Central in 2011. 2014 would be different.

LEDGER TWENTY-FIVE: April 5 at Boston Red Sox

It wasn’t quite another Opening Day ledger, but it did come in the second series of the season as a solo homer against Clay Buchholz.

LEDGER TWENTY-SIX: May 10 vs New York Yankees

It was another solo blast, this time off CC Sabathia, that accounted for Gómez’s 26th ledger.

LEDGER TWENTY-SEVEN: May 27 vs Baltimore Orioles

Gómez tagged Wei-Yin Chen for a three-run homer that opened the scoring in the bottom of the first.

The Brewers traded Gómez away at the 2014 trade deadline, sending him to Houston in exchange for a young Josh Hader, amongst others.

2015 – Houston Astros

LEDGER TWENTY-EIGHT: October 12 vs Kansas City Royals

At first blush, this seems like a normal ledger, except the date gives it away. Gómez never homered against the Royals across 185 career plate appearances in the regular season. This home run came in Game 4 of the ALDS off Yordano Ventura to cut the Royals’ lead in half.

2016 – Houston Astros / Texas Rangers

LEDGER TWENTY-NINE: June 11 at Tampa Bay Rays

Gómez tied the game in the top of the seventh with this solo blast of Chris Archer. He would only have one more home run against the Rays in his career.

The Astros released Gómez on August 18. Two days later he was picked up by the Texas Rangers.

LEDGER THIRTY: September 27 vs Milwaukee Brewers

As the 2016 came to a close, so did Gómez’s pursuit of the v30 Club. His final ledger came against his former team. He would add another home run against them the following evening.

Gómez had three more seasons in him – one more with Texas, one with Tampa Bay, and one back with the Mets where he started. He may not have the same home run totals that his fellow profilees had, but he was still able to construct a very tidy ledger.