Staten Island Advance

Raised in Staten Island

Bobby Thomson, a 15-year Major League veteran, three-time MLB All-Star, and author of "The Shot Heard 'Round The World,"came with his family to Staten Island from his native Scotland at the age of two.

The outfielder, born in Glasgow in 1923, was raised in New Dorp and West Brighton, but he lived in Dongan Hills during his playing days in the '40s and '50s.

The Curtis HS alum spent his final days in Savannah, Ga., prior to his demise in 2010 at age 86, though he lived long enough to see the school rename its baseball field after him in 2007.

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Staten Island Advance

One for the Record Books

Thomson's MLB journey is one of the most notable and historic of all time, and it was all thanks to one crack of the bat in 1951.

"The Shot Heard 'Round The World" is recognized as the most iconic home run in baseball history.

Thomson's 1951 New York Giants trailed the National League leading Brooklyn Dodgers by 13.5 games in mid-August, but after reeling off 37 wins in the season's final 44 contests, the teams wound up tied at the top of the standings.

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Staten Island Advance

The Shot Heard 'Round the World

A three-game playoff ensued for the right to the NL pennant, and Thomson crushed a two-run homer that proved to be the game-winner off Ralph Branca in game one of the series, a minuscule blow in comparison to what was to come.

After dropping game two of the series, the pennant came down to one final bout.

Trailing 4-1 entering the home half of the ninth inning, Thomson stepped to the plate -- now trailing 4-2 with runners on second and third.

Branca entered the game, replacing a tired Don Newcombe.

Thomson took the first pitch, and belted the second into the left field seats -- delivering the Giants the pennant as pandemonium erupted at the hallowed Polo Grounds.

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Staten Island Advance

The Say Hey Kid Looks On

"It was the best thing that ever happened to me," said Thomson. "It may have been the best thing that ever happened to anybody."

And after his historic achievement, he rode the Staten Island Ferry back home.

The Giants ultimately went on to lose to the New York Yankees in the World Series that year.

Fun fact: Hall of Famer Willie Mays watched from the on-deck circle as Thomson's blast traveled into the left field seats -- it was also the first-ever major sporting event televised coast-to-coast in the United States.

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Staten Island Advance

Around the League

Prior to the fame and glory, Thomson was a Curtis graduate who signed with the Giants out of HS in 1942.

However, a stint in the Air Force delayed his MLB debut until 1946, and he'd stick around through 1960 -- playing for the Giants, Milwaukee Braves, Chicago Cubs, Boston Red Sox, and Baltimore Orioles during his career.

He also played for the Yomiuri Giants in Japan in 1963.

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Staten Island Advance

The Staten Island Scot

"The Staten Island Scot," as he was known, boasted a .270 career batting average, stroking 264 homers while driving in over 1,000 runs during his tenure.

In 1954, Thomson went down with an ankle injury while playing for the Braves, subsequently paving the way for Hall of Famer Hank Aaron.

Thomson played in the Giants' final game at the Polo Grounds in 1957, before the team relocated to San Francisco.

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Staten Island Advance

He Never Forgot

For as good a ballplayer as he was, Thomson was regarded as being a gracious, mild-mannered man.

"Bobby Thomson hit 264 home runs, including the biggest one of them all, and spent the rest of his life wondering what all the fuss was about," said former Advance columnist Jay Price.

"He was a genuine, loving, cheerful person," said Thomson's daughter Nancy Mitchell. "He loved Staten Island and he never forgot it was home."

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Staten Island Advance

Hall of Fame

Thomson was a member of the Staten Island Sports Hall of Fame's inaugural class in 1995. He is also enshrined in Scotland's Hall of Fame.

The Edinburgh Diamond Devils, a Scottish professional team, renamed its field after Thomson in 2003.

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Staten Island Advance

Global Impact

In the '90s, Thomson received a letter from a former U.S. Marine who had been stationed in Korea in 1951.

"I was in a bunker in the front line with my buddy listening to the radio," wrote the Marine. "It was contrary to orders, but he was a huge Giants fanatic.

"He never made it home and I promised him if I ever got back I'd write and tell you about the happiest moment of his life. It's taken me this long to put my feelings into words. On behalf of my buddy, thanks Bobby."

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Staten Island Advance

"I'll Miss Him"

When Thomson passed in 2010, Ralph Branca, his former adversary who had become a close friend, spoke to the Associated Press.

"I'll miss him," said Branca. "I mellowed over the years and we became good friends."

The duo is etched in baseball lore, and Thomson, whose name presides over both Curtis' and P.S. 46's ball fields, is both figuratively and literally etched into Staten Island history.

His home run bat from the legendary blast still resides at the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y.

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