Brian McCann reached 1,000 career hits Monday night in fitting fashion. He showed off his power, reaching 999 hits with a two-run home run to right field, and then got to 1,000 with his picturesque left-handed stroke, sending an opposite field single up the left field line against Pirates left-hander Mike Zagurski.
McCann went 2-for-3 in a 7-2 win over Pittsburgh to become the 25th player in franchise history to collect 1,000 hits as a Brave.
“It’s a cool moment,” said McCann, who was drafted by the Braves this time 11 years ago out of Duluth High School. “When you’re a kid you never think you’re going to get a hit in the big leagues, let alone 1,000. So it’s a cool milestone, and I’m hoping to get many more.”
McCann is in the final year of his contract before free agency, and with the emergence of rookie Evan Gattis and the interest McCann is likely to draw from American League teams, there’s a distinct possibility he’s playing out his final season at Turner Field. So Monday’s moment came with its share of nostalgia too.
McCann made sure to pause and enjoy it, tipping his cap to the 19,526 fans on their feet at Turner Field as first base coach Terry Pendleton retrieved the ball and tossed it to the Braves dugout.
“To get 1,000 hits here - it’s something I’ll never forget,” said McCann, a six-time All-Star and five-time Silver Slugger winner. “That’s something I’ll cherish for the rest of my life.”
He’s about a week shy of the eighth anniversary of his major league debut, when he singled off Oakland right-hander Dan Haren in his first at-bat in his first game with his hometown team.
Now he’s got the admiration of younger teammates like Freddie Freeman, who stood on the top step in the Braves dugout with his Braves teammates in the seventh inning and applauded McCann.
“It’s awesome, especially with the homer (for 999),” Freeman said. “But it’s more impressive to watch him hit a lefty right down the left field line. I love to see when people go opposite field. And to get it for your 1,000th hit off a tough lefty like that? I’ve only been here for three years watching him, but it’s been a great time.”
