Randy Bass
Randy Bass
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Randy Bass

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Randy Bass

Randy William Bass (born March 13, 1954) is an American politician and former baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) and Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), and served in the Oklahoma Senate.

Bass made his MLB debut in 1977, playing with five different teams over six seasons. He moved to NPB in 1983, signing with the Hanshin Tigers, whom he led to a Japan Series title in 1985. Bass twice won the batting Triple Crown in NPB and still holds the highest single-season batting average. He is considered one of the greatest American players in Japanese baseball history, and was inducted into the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame in 2023.

From 2005 to 2019, Bass represented the 32nd district in the Oklahoma Senate as a member of the Democratic Party.

Bass attended Lawton High School and was named all-state in baseball and football. He received college football scholarship offers from Kansas State University and the University of Oklahoma.

The Minnesota Twins selected Bass in the seventh round of the 1972 MLB draft out of Lawton High School. He signed with the Twins rather than attend college. Bass made his MLB debut as a first baseman in 1977. He was blocked at first base by Rod Carew and ran out of options after the 1977 season. In April 1978, the Twins sold Bass outright to the Triple-A Toledo Mud Hens, who sold him to the Triple-A Omaha Royals. The Royals traded Bass to the Montreal Expos for Lamont Harris in April 1979. In August 1980, the Expos traded Bass to the San Diego Padres for John D'Acquisto. The Texas Rangers acquired Bass from the Padres on waivers in May 1982.

In his six seasons in the Major Leagues (divided among five teams), he was never an everyday player, usually coming off the bench to pinch hit. Bass posted a .212 batting average in 325 at-bats with nine home runs and 42 runs batted in in 130 games played.

After his contract expired following the 1982 season, Bass signed with the Hanshin Tigers of Nippon Professional Baseball's Central League, who made him their starting first baseman. Bass is often credited with single-handedly turning around the fortunes of the Tigers, which ultimately resulted in the team's pennant run and Japan Series title in 1985.

Bass adapted quickly to Japanese pitching, hitting 35 home runs in his first season in 1983, and became the Tigers' star slugger for several seasons. He won four consecutive league batting titles; in 1986, he nearly became the first player in Japan to bat .400, finishing the season with a .389 average, a record that still stands, despite Ichiro Suzuki's formidable challenges to it in 1994 and 2000. Bass won consecutive batting Triple Crowns (1985 and 1986).

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