Isaac Bernard Hampton (born August 22, 1951 in Camden, South Carolina) is a former Major League Baseball catcher. He was signed by the New York Mets as an amateur free agent on August 22, 1970 and played for the Mets (1974) and the California Angels (1975-1979). Hampton made his major league debut as a pinch hitter on September 12, 1974 at Shea Stadium. Batting for first baseman John Milner in the bottom of the 9th against Al Hrabosky of the St. Louis Cardinals, he flew out to center field. During spring training of 1975, he was traded to the Angels for relief pitcher Ken Sanders. Hampton's best year in the big leagues was 1977, when he stayed with the Angels for the entire season. In 52 games he batted .295 (13-for-44) with 3 home runs and 9 runs batted in. Career totals include 113 games played, a .207 batting average (28-for-135), 4 HR, 18 RBI, 15 runs scored, and a .341 slugging percentage. He had a strong arm, and threw out 18 of 48 stolen base attempts. (37.5%) He was released by California on April 1, 1980.
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- Hampton hit his first major league home run against Mike Flanagan of the Baltimore Orioles. {Memorial Stadium -- April 30, 1977}
- He led the Pacific Coast League with 30 home runs while playing for the Salt Lake City Gulls in 1979.
- In four seasons with Triple-A Salt Lake City (1975-76, 1978-79) he hit 58 home runs in 1,111 at bats, an average of 19.2 AB/HR.
- Hampton and Hall of Famer Larry Doby are the only MLB players born in Camden, South Carolina.
References
- 1980 Baseball Register published by The Sporting News
