Al Kaline Stats

Al Kaline won a batting title in 1955, the youngest batting champion in baseball history, taking over the age record from Ty Cobb , who was only twelve days older than Kaline.

Did you know that when Al Kaline hung up his cleats in 1974, the Detroit Tigers honored their 22-year veteran by retiring his #6 , the first player in team history to have his number retired?

Al Kaline | National Baseball Hall of Fame Plaque | Class of 1980 ( HOF )
In 1980, Al Kaline was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Mr. Tiger finished on the ballot that year, was a first ballot inductee and received 88.3% of the vote. Duke Snider was inducted alongside Kaline, receiving 86.5% of the votes, his 11th time on the ballot, and future Hall of Famers who were on the same ballot, but not enshrined were Don Drysdale (61.8%), Hoyt Wilhelm (54.3%), Jim Bunning (46.0%), Red Schoendienst (42.6%), Nellie Fox (41.8%), Richie Ashburn (34.8%), Luis Aparicio (32.2%), Orlando Cepeda (12.5%) Bill Mazeroski (8.6%) and Ron Santo (3.9%). Their online biography ( link ) reads in part:

Chuck Dressen

The 18-year-old Kaline came to the Tigers in 1953 directly from high school, having never spent a day in the minors, and by the next season established himself as one of the game’s bright new talents. By 1955, at age 20, he became the youngest player to win a batting title when he hit .340. That same year the youngster became only the fourth American League player to hit two home runs in a single inning.

"I owe everything to baseball," Kaline once said. "Without it, I'd probably be a bum."

Offensive consistency became Kaline’s hallmark over the years, hitting at least 20 home runs and batting .300 or better nine times each. A superb defensive outfielder with a strong throwing arm, he also collected 10 Gold Glove awards. In the 1968 World Series, Kaline's only appearance in the Fall Classic, he batted .379, hit two home runs and drove in eight to help Detroit knock off the St. Louis Cardinals in seven games.

"You almost have to watch him play every day to appreciate what he does," said veteran pitcher and former Tigers teammate Johnny Podres . "You hear about him, sure, but you really can’t understand until you see him. He just never makes a mistake."