| Monte Irvin | |||||||||||||||||||
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 Irvin with the New York Giants, c. 1953 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Left fielder | |||||||||||||||||||
| Born: February 25, 1919 Haleburg, Alabama, U.S. | |||||||||||||||||||
| Died: January 11, 2016 (aged 96) Houston, Texas, U.S. | |||||||||||||||||||
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |||||||||||||||||||
| Professional debut | |||||||||||||||||||
| NgL: 1938, for the Newark Eagles | |||||||||||||||||||
| MLB: July 8, 1949, for the New York Giants | |||||||||||||||||||
| Last MLB appearance | |||||||||||||||||||
| September 30, 1956, for the Chicago Cubs | |||||||||||||||||||
| MLB statistics | |||||||||||||||||||
| Batting average | .305 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Home runs | 140 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Runs batted in | 694 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Stats at Baseball Reference | |||||||||||||||||||
| Teams | |||||||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Member of the National | |||||||||||||||||||
 Baseball Hall of Fame | |||||||||||||||||||
| Induction | 1973 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Election method | Negro Leagues Committee | ||||||||||||||||||
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Monford Merrill "Monte" Irvin (February 25, 1919 – January 11, 2016) was an American left fielder and right fielder in the Negro leagues and Major League Baseball (MLB) who played with the Newark Eagles (1938–1942, 1946–1948), New York Giants (1949–1955) and Chicago Cubs (1956). He grew up in New Jersey and was a standout football player at Lincoln University. Irvin left Lincoln to spend several seasons in Negro league baseball. His career was interrupted by military service from 1943 to 1945.
When he joined the New York Giants, Irvin became one of the earliest African-American MLB players. He played in two World Series for the Giants. When future Hall of Famer Willie Mays joined the Giants in 1951, Irvin was asked to mentor him. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1973. After his playing career, Irvin was a baseball scout and held an administrative role with the MLB commissioner's office.
At the time of his death, Irvin was the oldest living former Negro Leagues player, New York Giant and Chicago Cub. He lived in a retirement community in Houston before his death.