Al Kaline

Al Kaline
Kaline in 1957
Right fielder
Born: (1934-12-19)December 19, 1934
Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
Died: April 6, 2020(2020-04-06) (aged 85)
Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, U.S.
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
MLB debut
June 25, 1953, for the Detroit Tigers
Last MLB appearance
October 2, 1974, for the Detroit Tigers
MLB statistics
Batting average.297
Hits3,007
Home runs399
Runs batted in1,583
Teams
Career highlights and awards
Member of the National
Baseball Hall of Fame
Induction1980
Vote88.3% (first ballot)

Albert William Kaline (/ˈkln/ KAY-line; December 19, 1934 – April 6, 2020), nicknamed "Mr. Tiger", was an American professional baseball right fielder who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Detroit Tigers.[1] For most of his career, Kaline played in the outfield, mainly as a right fielder where he won ten Gold Glove Awards and was known for his strong throwing arm.[2] He was selected to 18 All-Star Games, including selections each year between 1955 and 1967. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1980, his first time on the ballot.[1][3]

Near the end of his career, Kaline also played as first baseman and, in his last season, was the Tigers' designated hitter. He retired soon after reaching the 3,000 hit milestone late in the 1974 season. Immediately after retiring from playing, he became the Tigers' TV color commentator, a position he held from 1975 until 2002. Kaline worked for the Tigers as a front office assistant from 2003 until his death in 2020.[4]

  1. ^ a b "Al Kaline Stats". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved August 7, 2011.
  2. ^ "Al Kaline". The Baseball Page.com. Archived from the original on August 4, 2011. Retrieved August 7, 2011.
  3. ^ "Al Kaline biography". National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. Archived from the original on July 17, 2011. Retrieved August 7, 2011.
  4. ^ "Al Kaline – Special Assistant to the President". Detroit Tigers. Archived from the original on June 15, 2011. Retrieved August 7, 2011.