Mickey Mantle

From ArticleWorld

Mickey Mantle was named after Hall of Famer Mickey Cochrane when he was born in 1931. As a young athlete, he was kicked in the shin during a football game and became infected with osteomyelitis. Because of this, he was deemed ineligible for service with the military. Because of this, Mantle was quite unpopular with the fans in the beginning of his career. That all changed in 1961 when he and Roger Maris began chasing Babe Ruth's homerun record. Mantle, in spite of his reckless social behavior, became one of the best-loved baseball players of all time.

Career

Mickey mantle began his career in the minors as a short stop before moving to right field with the New York Yankees. When DiMaggio retired, Mantle took up center field and stayed there until a switch to first base occurred in 1967. In addition to being an all around fielder, Mantle was quite proficient swing the bat from both sides of the plate. Being a switch hitter made Mantle a commodity. This batting excellence led to another feat; Mantle hit homeruns that made Major league history. In 1953 he hit a 565-foot homerun at Griffith Stadium and, in 1960,he drilled a 600-foot homer over Tiger Stadium.

In addition to these awesome statistics, Mantle holds some of the all-time records in Major League Play. In 1956, he was awarded the Hickok Belt for athletic excellence as well as the Triple Crown. That year he led the major league with .353 batting average, 52 homeruns, and 130 RBI. He also holds the all time World Series record with 18 homeruns, 42 runs and 40 RBI. With in the span of his amazing career, he won the MVP trophy three times.

Retired

Mickey Mantle retired from baseball in 1969. Five years later he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. In 1983 the Commissioner of Baseball Bowie Kuhn suspended him and fellow player Willie Mays from baseball for promoting Atlantic City casinos. When Kuhn retired, Peter Ueberroth took the position and reinstated the two athletes.

Death

Mickey Mantle was admitted to the Betty Ford clinic in 1994 for alcoholism. His liver was so far gone that his next drink could have killed him. Following treatment, Mantle realized the damage he had done to himself and his relationships. He became a born-again Christian. In June 1995 Mantle received a liver transplant. In August of that same year, Mickey Mantle died of liver complications.