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By MARC TOPKIN
© St. Petersburg Times, published September 24, 2000
TORONTO -- It's a small mention, tucked in the back somewhere, but Fred McGriff earned another notation in baseball's record books Saturday.
McGriff's first-inning home run was his 200th in the American League, allowing him to join Hall of Famer Frank Robinson as the only players to hit 200 in each league.
"When I first started playing my goal was to always be consistent, and hitting a home run today says I'm pretty consistent," McGriff said. "I've played seven years in each league, and I've got 200 home runs in each league.
The Tampa native hit 214 homers from 1991-97 with San Diego and Atlanta, and has 200 after playing 1987-90 with Toronto and since 1998 with the Rays.
McGriff seems to collect these unusual distinctions. He shares a record with Mark McGwire of hitting home runs in 37 different major-league stadiums, and McGriff and Jose Canseco are the only players who have hit 30 home runs with four different teams.
Saturday's home run was McGriff's 414th overall, tying Darrell Evans for 29th place all-time.