There’s a lot of talk about the status of Adam Dunn‘s contract situation, and the reason revolves around his power bat. Dunn is one of the most consistent power hitters of the last decade and has back-to-back 38-homer seasons in Nationals Park. Where do those seasons rank among players calling the nation’s capital home? He doesn’t even crack the top six:
48: Frank Howard, 1969 » What a difference Ted Williams makes. The manager provided buzz for the Senators, and Hondo’s power surge added to it. The Capital Punisher hit homers in 44 different games. It was a season worthy enough to earn him fourth in the MVP voting on a team that finished in fourth place in the American League. His 330 total bases led the AL.
46: Alfonso Soriano, 2006 » Fonzie set the franchise (Nats/Expos) single-season record with his 40-40 season in his only year in Washington. The Nats won 71 games that season and made RFK a summer destination despite the team’s poor performance.
44: Frank Howard, 1968 & 1970 » How consistent was this guy? From 1968 to 1970, he gave Senators fans something to watch before the team left the town without baseball following the 1971 season.
42: Harmon Killebrew, 1959, & Roy Sievers, 1957 » Sievers would have a few big seasons in Washington, including a 39-homer performance in 1958, and Killebrew, as most Senators fans painfully remember, would go on to a Hall of Fame career in Minnesota following the franchise’s move in the 1960 offseason.
