Posted on 04/06/2020 1:08:13 PM PDT by RckyRaCoCo
Al Kaline, the legendary Detroit Tigers outfielder who played for more than two decades, has died at the age of 85.
(Excerpt) Read more at wxyz.com ...
He had a good long, life though.
Requiesce in pace, Al!
Another boy of summer gone. Sigh. Kaline was not a superstar by today’s standards but he was a solid consistent player in all phases of the game. One of the last roll models.
RIP
With a name like Al Kaline, he had to be good on the bases!
“RIP...my favorite Tiger.”
And my favorite Cleveland Indian.
NOOOOOOOOOOOO!
“And my favorite Cleveland Indian.”
I was talking about Rocky Colavito. When he went to the Tigers, he and Al Kaline were my two favorites for them.
I had a AK glove in my yute.
2020 sucks.
Sorry to learn of this. Al Kaline was a helluva ballplayer ... watched him many times at the old Tiger Stadium in his last few years on the team.
Met him a couple of times at spring training and played golf with him a few times. Great guy and a gentleman! Next to Mickey Mantle, my favorite player. RIP
Game Called - Grantland Rice
Game Called. Across the field of play
the dusk has come, the hour is late.
The fight is done and lost or won,
the player files out through the gate.
The tumult dies, the cheer is hushed,
the stands are bare, the park is still.
But through the night there shines the light,
home beyond the silent hill.
Game Called. Where in the golden light
the bugle rolled the reveille.
The shadows creep where night falls deep,
and taps has called the end of play.
The game is done, the score is in,
the final cheer and jeer have passed.
But in the night, beyond the fight,
the player finds his rest at last.
Game Called. Upon the field of life
the darkness gathers far and wide,
the dream is done, the score is spun
that stands forever in the guide.
Nor victory, nor yet defeat
is chalked against the players name.
But down the roll, the final scroll,
shows only how he played the game.
My favorite too. He had a reputation for coming through in clutch situations.
Never played a day in the minors.
RIP.
Hit .379 with 8 RBIs in the 1968 World Series, which was also the last one for Hall of Famer Eddie Matthews.
Detroit took a big gamble and turned another outfielder, Mickey Stanley, into a shortstop with a couple of weeks left in the season. Stanley didn't have a great world series, but did hit .214 and score a couple of runs. He appeared in only 9 games as shortstop dyring the regular season, but stated all 7 games of the world series at that position.
The regular shortstop, Ray Oyler, appeared as a defensive replacement in the four games the Tigers won and got a sacrifice hit in his only plate appearance.
Sure does.
My childhood idol.
Not Kaline and Pussy Galore in the same day!!
I have an autographed photo of him. I followed his career religiously
.
“Kaline was not a superstar by today’s standards ...”
First, I’m not even sure what that means. His career should be evaluated by the standards that prevailed at that time. In any case, he was an 18x all-star, had +3,000 hits, and 399 HRs. Those are (or should be) HOF numbers in any era.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.