It’s Jimmy Piersall, of course

Jimmy Piersall backpedaling his way to the plate on his 100th career homer

Jimmy Piersall, the sporadically brilliant and equally erratic outfielder then with the New York Mets, celebrates his 100th career home run 61 years ago today by running the bases – in order – backward at the Polo Grounds.

The homer leads off the bottom of the fifth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies’ Dallas Green, a drive to short right field that gives the Mets a 2-0 lead in a game they eventually win 5-0 to open a doubleheader before a Sunday crowd of 19,901.

The home run is the only one Piersall hits in 40 games during his lone season with the Mets, who are so unimpressed with Piersall’s antics that they release him a few weeks later.

The most miffed Met is their manager, Casey Stengel, who as a player did a stunt or two that rivals what Piersall does on this day in 1963.

“Casey was so mad that he cut me,” Piersall later tells ESPN, “but I got $6,000 severance pay for one month, which made it my best payday in baseball, although I'd hit only .194 for the Mets. He did me a favor.”