David Justice
A powerful and clutch-hitting outfielder whose bat delivered a World Series walk-off and fueled multiple championship-contending teams.
Born 1966 (age 60)·American baseball player·Birthday: April 14·Generation X
Biography
David Justice arrived in the majors with the Atlanta Braves and immediately looked the part of a star, winning the 1990 National League Rookie of the Year award. With a smooth left-handed swing and formidable presence in the cleanup spot, he became the offensive cornerstone for the Braves teams that dominated the National League in the 1990s. His most iconic moment came in the 1995 World Series, a taut, pitching-dominated affair against the Cleveland Indians. With the series tied 1-1 in Game 6, Justice's solo home run in the sixth inning provided the only run of the game, clinching Atlanta's first and only World Series title in the city. Later traded to Cleveland, he helped the Indians return to the Series, and a final stop with the New York Yankees yielded another American League pennant in 2001. Justice's career was defined by performing when the lights were brightest, a consistent power threat who always seemed to find himself in the heart of a postseason race.
Generation X
1965–1980
The latchkey kids. Raised during divorce, recession, and the end of the Cold War. Skeptical, self-reliant, media-literate. They invented indie culture, grunge, and the early internet — then watched the Boomers take credit.
David was born in 1966, placing them squarely in the Generation X. The events that shaped this generation — economic uncertainty, the end of the Cold War, and the rise of personal computing — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When David Was Born
The biggest hits of 1966
#1 Movie
The Bible: In the Beginning
Best Picture
A Man for All Seasons
#1 TV Show
Bonanza
David's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1966Born
Star Trek premieres on television
Gas: $0.32/galHome: $14,200Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"The Ballad of the Green Berets" — SSgt Barry SadlerBest Picture: A Man for All Seasons
1971Started school
Voting age lowered to 18 in the US
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $18,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Joy to the World" — Three Dog NightBest Picture: The French Connection
1979Became a teenager
Iran hostage crisis begins; Three Mile Island accident
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $37,900Min wage: $2.90/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"My Sharona" — The KnackBest Picture: Kramer vs. Kramer
1982Could drive
Michael Jackson releases Thriller
Gas: $1.22/galHome: $55,200Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Physical" — Olivia Newton-JohnBest Picture: Gandhi
1984Could vote
Apple Macintosh introduced
Gas: $1.13/galHome: $59,800Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"When Doves Cry" — PrinceBest Picture: Amadeus
1987Turned 21
Black Monday stock market crash
Gas: $0.90/galHome: $72,400Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Walk Like an Egyptian" — The BanglesBest Picture: The Last Emperor
1996Turned 30
Dolly the sheep cloned
Gas: $1.23/galHome: $99,700Min wage: $4.75/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Macarena" — Los del RioBest Picture: The English Patient
2006Turned 40
Twitter launches; Pluto reclassified as dwarf planet
Gas: $2.59/galHome: $174,700Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Bad Day" — Daniel PowterBest Picture: The Departed
2016Turned 50
Donald Trump elected president; Brexit vote
Gas: $2.14/galHome: $181,700Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Love Yourself" — Justin BieberBest Picture: Moonlight
2026Turned 60
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Hit a solo home run in Game 6 of the 1995 World Series to win the championship for the Atlanta Braves.
- Won the National League Rookie of the Year Award in 1990 with the Atlanta Braves.
- Was a three-time All-Star (1993, 1994, 1997) and won two Silver Slugger Awards.
- Played in four World Series with three different teams (Braves, Indians, Yankees).
Did You Know?
He was married to actress Halle Berry from 1993 to 1997.
He hit over 300 career home runs (305) despite never hitting 40 in a single season.
In the 1997 ALCS, he hit a key three-run homer for Cleveland that propelled them to the World Series.
“I hit home runs, but I played to win the game.”
