R.I.P. Al Kaline

[a700hitter]

R.I.P. I saw Kaline at the end of his career. My first big exposure to him was the 1968 World Series. He did everything well -- every aspect of the game. He was one of those athletes that made it look easy. In my book, he was very underrated.

Al Kaline Passes Away

 

By Steve Adams | April 6, 2020 at 3:10pm CDT

Tigers legend Al Kaline passed away Monday at his home at the age of 85, a family friend confirmed to John Lowe of the Detroit Free Press. An 18-time All-Star, a 10-time Gold Glover in the outfield, the 1955 AL batting champ and a key contributor on Detroit’s 1968 World Series-winning roster, Kaline is among the very best to ever play the game and joins Ty Cobb among the top players to ever suit up for the Tigers organization.

 

The Baltimore native posted a career .297/.376/.480 batting line with 3007 hits, 399 home runs, 498 doubles, 75 triples, 137 steals, 1622 runs scored and 1582 RBIs, establishing himself as the face of a generation of Tigers baseball from his debut in 1953 to the time he retired in 1974. He is the Tigers’ all-time leader in games played, home runs and walks, and he trails only franchise greats and fellow Cooperstown inductees like Cobb, Hank Greenberg and Charlie Gehringer in virtually all key offensive categories. His No. 6 was retired by the club in 1980, making him the first recipient of that honor.

 

Kaline’s importance to the organization reaches immeasurably beyond his on-field accolades, however. Even after he retired as a player, the next generation of Tigers fans who didn’t have the good fortune to watch him play instead grew up listening to his insights, anecdotes and experience as one of the voices of Tigers baseball. He also served as a special assistant in the club’s front office and regularly appeared in Spring Training to work with upcoming waves of young Tiger talent.

Kaline will be remembered both as a one of the all-time greats and a revered gentleman off the field. He was named the 1970 Fred Hutchison Award winner, recognizing “character and competitive spirit” and also named the winner of the 1973 Roberto Clemente Award. Media members, former teammates and Tigers players alike have flocked to social media to express their sorrow over the loss of one of the game’s iconic figures.

 

Said Justin Verlander: “Such a kind and generous man who meant so much to so many. I hope you knew how much I enjoyed our conversations about baseball, life, or just giving each other a hard time. I am honored to have been able to call you my friend for all these years. R.I.P. Mr Tiger, Al Kaline.” James McCann, John Hicks, Niko Goodrum, Grayson Greiner and Jake Rogers are among the many recent Tigers players who have echoed similar sentiments on Twitter.

We at MLB Trade Rumors join those around baseball in expressing heartfelt condolences to the friends, family, loved ones and legions of fans whose lives have been touched by Kaline.

[Thunder]

Does it make you feel old if I say I've never heard of him?

 

RIP nonetheless

[mvp 78]

Does it make you feel old if I say I've never heard of him?

 

RIP nonetheless

 

You should take a trip to the HOF.

[a700hitter]

Does it make you feel old if I say I've never heard of him?

 

RIP nonetheless

Like I said, he was very underrated.

[a700hitter]

Does it make you feel old if I say I've never heard of him?

 

RIP nonetheless

Check his stats against Clemente's stats.

[Thunder]

You should take a trip to the HOF.

 

It's on the bucket list. Only a 5 hour drive from me. Only been to Springfield and the Rock Hall, even though I have family about 45 minutes from Canton

[5GoldGlovesOF,75]

Like I said, he was very underrated.

 

I became aware of Kaline about the same time as you, when I started collecting baseball cards as a kid in '68. What I remember is looking at Everyready batteries and wondering if they were endorsed by the Tiger (they were all printed with the word "alkaline")... then, when I realized it might be a coincidence, I wondered why Everyready didn't recruit Kaline as a spokesman?

[notin]

I became aware of Kaline about the same time as you, when I started collecting baseball cards as a kid in '68. What I remember is looking at Everyready batteries and wondering if they were endorsed by the Tiger (they were all printed with the word "alkaline")... then, when I realized it might be a coincidence, I wondered why Everyready didn't recruit Kaline as a spokesman?

 

When I was a kid, maybe 7 or 8, I told my mom my batteries had a baseball player’s name. She thought I was referring to some “Ray O’Vac” guy before I pointed out the “Alkaline” label on them.

 

(For those of you 40+ folks who remember Ray-O-Vac batteries.)

[notin]

Like I said, he was very underrated.

 

Kaline would have beaten Yastrzemski to becoming the first American Leaguer with 3,000 hits and 400 home runs. But he just decided to retire with 399 dingers...

[Bellhorn04]

I was a bandwagon Tigers fan in 1968. They pulled off a pretty amazing comeback in the World Series that year.

[TeddyBallGame9]

Plus, if he’d played in New York he would have been considered a real all-time great which he was.

 

I’m so old that I saw him play toward the end of the ‘54 season when he had just signed as a “Bonus Baby”. My dad and I always watched pregame practice and I noticed this new kid shagging fly. He was as graceful as anyone I saw. I liked him ever since. A truly nice guy and a GREAY ball player. RIP Mr. Tiger.