On June 29, 1955, Stan The Man Musial picked up the 2,500th hit of his career during a 9-5 victory over the Cincinnati Reds at Sportsman's Park. The Man came into the game two hits shy of the mark, and he knew that 2,500 was going to be his on that fine night in St. Louis. Musial picked up hit number 2,499 with a single in the first, which led to him crossing the dish moments later when his buddy Red Schoendienst parked one in the seats. Then in the sixth Musial's 2,500th hit was also the 307th career home run of his career. It was a two-run shot that tied the game at 4-4. Both hits were served up by Reds starter Rudy Minarcin. Stan had reached a milestone. He had many more in store.The Reds took a 5-4 lead in the eighth, but it did not last long at all, as Wally Moon hit a moonshot in the bottom of that eighth inning, which not only tied the ballgame, it also sparked what turned out to be a five run frame. Musial scored in that inning, after being put on base with a free pass. Once the rally was complete Frank Smith set down the side in order in the ninth to secure the Redbird victory.
Musial was just the 36th man to reach 2,500 hits. As he celebrated the milestone with a victory, he began to set his sights on the coveted mark of 3,000 hits. He thought it may be in the next three seasons if he could maintain the production he expected from himself. Musial knew what he was talking about; he reached that mark on May 13, 1958. Musial's career came to a close in 1963. He had picked up a grand total of 3,630 hits. 1,815 of those hits came on the road, while the other 1,815 came in front of the fans in St. Louis. It truly is one of greatest stats that Stan Musial recorded. It speaks volumes about his consistency, and it says he was at home wherever he played. After all, fans everywhere loved watching him, and he loved playing in front of them.
Check out the box score here: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SLN/SLN195506290.shtml
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