Roger Maris Jr. shared a tweet: "Sal Durante the guy who caught my dad’s 61st home run died last night"
Sal Durante, the iconic New York Yankees fan who famously grabbed Roger Maris' record-breaking 61st home run in 1961, has died at the age of 80. Roger Maris Jr. announced the information on Twitter.
The precise cause of death has not been made public, but Durante's son told the New York Post that his father was suffering from dementia. Here's Maris Jr.'s tweet:
“Sal Durante the guy who caught my dad’s 61st home run died last night. Sal was such a gentleman and loved his Yankees. Sal and my dad will always be connected to each other because of that historic day on October 1, 1961. Condolences to the Durante family from the Maris Family.”
Sal Durante the guy who caught my dad’s 61st home run died last night. Sal was such a gentleman and loved his Yankees. Sal and my dad will always be connected to each other because of that historic day on October 1, 1961. Condolences to the Durante family from the Maris Family https://t.co/1UfbZwVfUX
Left-hander Maris had the opportunity to break Babe Ruth's MLB record of 60 home runs in a single season in the fourth inning. He then forced Boston Red Sox pitcher Tracy Stallard to throw the ball deep into the right-field stands, where Durante was able to collect the memento. Here's what Durante told the Seattle Times in 2016:
“I heard the crack of the bat and saw it headed toward the right-field bleachers where we were sitting. I jumped up on my seat and stretched as high as I could, and the ball slammed into the palm of my bare hand.”
Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, and Barry Bonds broke the big league record between 1998 and 2001, respectively. Prior to that, Roger Maris' 61 home runs held the mark for the major leagues.
Roger Maris Jr. tweeted about Aaron Judge's 62nd HR
Before Aaron Judge hit 62 home runs this past season, many believed Maris to be the real record-holder. Roger Maris Jr. shared his thoughts on Judge's achievements on Twitter:
"Aaron Judge is the new CLEAN HOME RUN KING!! All the young kids who watched Aaron Judge set the single season record for home runs … you finally have someone to revere! No more trying to explain to you how someone could possibly hit 73 home runs."
Aaron Judge is the new CLEAN HOME RUN KING!! All the young kids who watched Aaron Judge set the single season record for home runs … you finally have someone to revere! No more trying to explain to you how someone could possibly hit 73 home runs.
When The Post spoke to Durante's son Tom in September (when Judge was trying to break Maris' American League mark), he revealed that his 80-year-old father had dementia:
“He still had — and still has — all his pictures of him and Maris through the house. He would talk about it. If we asked questions about it until recently, he would have known the answers. About one-and-half months ago, his mind completely shut off.”
In addition to being an AL Most Valuable Player in 1960 and 1961 and winning the AL Gold Glove Award in 1960, Maris was an AL All-Star from 1959 to 1962.
Maris participated in seven World Series. He played for the 1961 and 1962 World Series champion Yankees teams as well as the 1967 World Series champion Cardinals team.