Chicago White Sox
An infielder in the minor leagues,Lemon played third base during his brief stint with the Chicago White Sox in 1975. He entered spring training 1976 as the leading candidate for the third base job,but after failing to impress manager Paul Richards with his glove,was moved to the outfield. [8] He made the transition seamlessly,as he made only three errors all season while logging a .992 fielding percentage in centerfield. He batted .246 with four home runs,38 RBIs and 46 runs scored to earn Topps All-Star Rookie Teams honors.
He came into his own as both a hitter and centerfielder in 1977. He scored a career high 99 runs,while showing a dramatic increase in power,hitting fifteen more home runs than he had his rookie season. He also set an American League record with 524 total chances and 512 putouts in the outfield,a record that still stands. [9]
With the White Sox in sixth place in the American League West,ahead only of the expansion Seattle Mariners,Lemon was selected as his team's lone representative at the 1978 All-Star Game. Though he did not receive an at-bat,he entered the game in left field in the eighth inning,and committed an error in the National League's four-run eighth. [10] The White Sox finished the season in fifth,eventually passing the Oakland A's in the standings. Lemon went 2-for-5 on the second-to-last day of the season to bring his season batting average to .300. [11] He sat out his team's final game.
In 1979,Lemon was again the sole White Sox player on the American League All-Star team. He entered the game in the second inning,and scored in the third after being hit by a Joaquín Andújar pitch. [12] He ended the season with a .318 batting average and 86 RBIs,both career highs. He also hit 44 doubles,tying the Milwaukee Brewers' Cecil Cooper for the American League season best total.
The White Sox finished near the bottom of the division standings during most of Lemon's tenure with the club. With the addition of free agent catcher Carlton Fisk and designated hitter Greg Luzinski,the team improved to 31-22 and finished in third in the first half of the strike shortened 1981 season. For his part,Lemon batted .299 with three home runs and 22 RBIs in the first half. Though his team finished in sixth place in the second half,his stats improved,as he batted .305 with six home runs and drove in 28. Following the season,Lemon was traded to the Detroit Tigers for outfielder Steve Kemp. [13]
Detroit Tigers
1982 and 1983 seasons
On November 27,1981,the Detroit Tigers acquired Lemon in a trade that sent Steve Kemp to the Chicago White Sox. [14]
In his first season with Detroit,Lemon shifted from his regular position in center field,starting 92 games in right field and 25 in center field. [2] The 1982 Tigers compiled an 83-79 record and finished fourth in American League East (AL East). Lemon 's batting average dropped to .266,38 points lower than he had averaged in the preceding four years. [2] Newspaper columnist Mike Downey opined that uprooting Lemon and his young family,along with a torn rib cage,damaged ligaments in his left wrist,and several pulled muscles,had resulted in the worst season in his major league career. [15] Lemon later noted that moving to right field also affected him:"Playing right field wasn't real difficult. I didn't want to play it,that was my problem. It affected me so much mentally. I wasn't happy." [16]
Despite Lemon's 1982 performance,the Tigers signed Lemon to a five-year contract in November 1982. The contract paid Lemon an estimated $450,000 a year. [17]
In 1983,Lemon became the Tigers' regular center fielder,starting 133 games at the position. With only three errors in 417 chances,he provided the club with solid defense in the middle of the outfield. [2] Manager Sparky Anderson in July 1983 called Lemon "the best defensive center fielder I've been around." [18] On July 24,1983,he gained national attention for a leaping catch that deprived Rod Carew of a game-winning home run in the 12th inning. [16] [19] Lemon also developed power with a career-high 24 home runs in 1983,and he led the American League with a career-high 20 times being hit by pitch. However,his batting average fell to .255. [2] His overall contributions helped the 1983 Tigers improve to 92-70,good for second in AL East. [20]
1984 season
In 1984,the Tigers opened with a 35–5 record,won the American League East by 15 games,and defeated the San Diego Padres in the 1984 World Series. Lemon played a key role on the 1984 championship team. Defensively,he started 135 games in center field and compiled a career-high .995 fielding percentage with only two errors in 438 chances. [2] Offensively,his batting average jumped more than 30 points to .287,and his 60 extra-base hits tied Kirk Gibson for the most on the team. His 20 home runs and 76 RBIs ranked third on the 1984 Tigers team. [21] Lemon was also the starting center fielder for the American League at the 1984 All-Star game. [22]
Reaching the post-season for the first time in his career,Lemon went hitless in thirteen at-bats in the Tigers' three-game sweep of the Kansas City Royals in the 1984 American League Championship Series. [23] He improved in the World Series,batting .294 with a run scored and a run batted in. [24] He also had "a Willie Mays–style back-to-the-plate catch" on a Terry Kennedy drive to preserve the Tigers' lead in the seventh inning of Game 3. [25] [26]
1985–1989
In March 1985,the Tigers signed Lemon to a contract extension running through the 1991 season with a club option to extend through 1992. The extension was reported to be worth $4.5 million. [27]
He remained the Tigers' starting center fielder for three more seasons,playing 144 games at the position in 1985,124 games in 1986,and 145 games in 1987. In 1987,he hit at least 20 home runs and 30 doubles for the third time in his career. He also ranked among the league's leading center fielders with a .992 fielding percentage (second),348 putouts (third),and a 2.70 range factor (fourth),and helped the 1987 Tigers win the AL East with a record of 98-64. [2] [28]
In 1988,the Tigers moved Lemon moved to right field to make room for speedy new acquisition Gary Pettis. He played 144 games in right field in 1988 and 111 games in 1989. [2]
Polycthemia and retirement
In the spring of 1990,Lemon was diagnosed with polycythemia vera,a rare blood disorder. [29] During the 1990 season,he missed 47 games with multiple injuries and went through a divorce that affected his concentration. [30] He failed to hit a home run between early May and late September and concluded the 1990 season with a career-low 378 at bats and only 32 RBIs. [2] [31]
Lemon returned to spring training in 1991,but he was injured for much of the training camp. He was waived by the Tigers on April 5,three days before opening day. [32]
In August 1991,Lemon was hospitalized in the intensive care unit at the University of Florida Shands Hospital with a blood clot in his abdomen. [33] [34] He was discharged after almost four weeks of treatment. [35]
In December 2001,he underwent surgery at the Mayo Clinic to have his spleen removed. [29]
