| Steve Balboni | |
|---|---|
 | |
| First baseman / Designated hitter | |
| Born: January 16, 1957 Brockton, Massachusetts, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| April 22, 1981, for the New York Yankees | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| October 2, 1993, for the Texas Rangers | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .229 |
| Home runs | 181 |
| Runs batted in | 495 |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Stephen Charles Balboni (/bælˈboʊni/; born January 16, 1957) is an American former Major League Baseball player, who played for the New York Yankees, Seattle Mariners, Kansas City Royals, and Texas Rangers. He was a player with home run power and a tendency to strike out. He was nicknamed "Bye Bye" because of his home run hitting prowess. He was also known by the nickname "Bones", which is a malapropism for Balboni. He is also known for the "Curse of the Balboni", an idea written about by Rany Jazayerli which said no baseball team with a player hitting more than 36 home runs for that team could win the World Series.[1] Since Balboni was the last player to hit 36 home runs and win a World Series, (1985 Royals), the curse bore his name. The curse ran from 1985 until Luis Gonzalez and the Arizona Diamondbacks won the 2001 World Series.