Earle Combs

Earle Combs
Center fielder
Born: May 14, 1899
Pebworth, Kentucky, U.S.
Died: July 21, 1976(1976-07-21) (aged 77)
Richmond, Kentucky, U.S.
Batted: Left
Threw: Right
MLB debut
April 16, 1924, for the New York Yankees
Last MLB appearance
September 29, 1935, for the New York Yankees
MLB statistics
Batting average.325
Home runs58
Runs batted in633
Teams
Career highlights and awards
Member of the National
Baseball Hall of Fame
Induction1970
Election methodVeterans Committee

Earle Bryan Combs (May 14, 1899 – July 21, 1976) was an American professional baseball player who played his entire career for the New York Yankees (1924–1935). Combs batted leadoff and played center field on the Yankees' fabled 1927 team (often referred to as Murderers' Row). He is one of six players on that team who have been inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame; the other five are Waite Hoyt, Herb Pennock, Tony Lazzeri, Lou Gehrig and Babe Ruth.

Combs led the league in triples three times and was among the top ten in the category in several other seasons. He suffered a fractured skull and other injuries from a crash into an outfield wall in 1934, then retired after another injury the next season. Nicknamed "the Kentucky Colonel", Combs was known as a gentleman on and off the field. He remained in baseball as a coach for many years after his retirement as a player.