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.
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The Year of the Tiger - 1968
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5S6c2va0ulc
I had this record as a kid, wish I’d kept it.
LOL!
I see what you did there.
He spent some years as a broadcaster as well, miss those days and those Tigers.
My first Louisville Slugger was the Al Kaline model.
I believe he actually did lead the league in total bases in ‘68 or so.
A Baltimore kid who made it to the bigs and ultimately all the way to the Hall of Fame. RIP Al Kaline.
Mickey Mantle was also my favorite ball player!!!!
(Just looked at your home page...It brought goosebumps to this old Vietnam vet...THANK YOU...)
And that was a heckuva Series. Tigers came back from down to 3 - 1 to win. Mickey Lolich outshone Bob Gibson over the length of The Series, even though Gibson pitched an absolute masterpiece in Game 1.
Nevertheless, I live and grew up in Minnesota. My favorite Detroit Tiger memory was an event that I can't find anywhere recorded.
My favorite MLB player in my life and I'm pushing 70, is/was Harmon Killebrew. He was the first right-handed hitter to ever hit a ball out of Tiger Stadium over the roof in left field. It was only done about three times, and Killebrew did it X 2. (Frank Howard did it once.)
Our local TV station used to handle 50 live games per year when the Twins were on the road. One of those was in Detroit. Killebrew hit one of those out of the stadium in a night game. When Killebrew connected, the Tiger cameraman focused in 1 tenth of 1 second on Rocky Colavito who was playing left field. Colavito barely moved. He just turned to face the fence and pointed up.
My Dad was a Kaline fan, too. It was likely my Dad who instilled in me a love for MLB.
Who will be the third?!
"we're all behind our baseball team...
What a lift after '67.
How good was Al Cohol?
I have Kaline’s autograph on a baseball that was passed around and signed by a bunch of barnstorming major leaguers during a game in my hometown in October 1959. Also signed by Harmon Killebrew, Frank Bolling, Jim Lemon, Dick Williams, Cal McLish, Jim Bunning, and Paul Foytack, among others. I was able to sit in the dugout for several innings until a hard-hit foul ball ricocheted around the dugout and I was ushered out. I remember sitting next to Jim Bunning for awhile.
Indeed.
Winner! His nickname was, appropriately enough, ‘Old Salty’
I remember that series too. Denny McClain won 30 games that year but had a sore arm for the series. They gave him a shot of cortisone and he won the last game.
There was an NFL HOF player from the Redskins. Mitchell? He was before my time.
He also had a cannon for an arm...and it was accurate.
even after his playing days were over, he was an outstanding broadcaster for the Tiges...what a classy great American...
The Brooklyn Dodgers had a pitcher named Al Koholic. Don’t know what became of him after they moved to LA in 1958.
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