No. 400 for No. 8

When home runs actually meant something – you know, in the pre-steroid era – Willie Stargell launches his 400th career homer 48 years ago today.

Stargell’s milestone homer comes off Eric Rasmussen in the fifth inning of Pittsburgh’s 9-1 victory at St. Louis before a Wednesday night crowd of 15,248 at Busch Stadium.

The homer is Stargell’s 12th of the season.

Stargell, though, hits only one more homer in 1977 before missing the final two months of the season with an elbow injury.

Stargell plays another five seasons, finishing his Hall of Fame career in 1982 with 475 homers.

Of those 475, only one comes off Rasmussen.