Who spent his entire career with the Detroit Tigers baseball team and retired to commentate their games?

Al Kaline (1934-2020) played Major League Baseball in the United States for only one team- the Detroit Tigers. His career spanned 22 years beginning in 1953. Nicknamed “Mr. Tiger”, Kaline spent most of those years playing in right field where he won ten Gold Glove Awards and was known for his strong throwing arm. This award recognizes a player for superior individual fielding performances determined from voting by the managers and coaches in the league.

Numerous other awards and recognized accomplishments are part of his legacy including being selected to 18 All-Star Games and being elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1980, his first time on the ballot. He also was the batting champion in 1955 for the American League.

After he reached the milestone of 3,000 hits in his last season, he elected to retire and immediately became the Detroit Tigers’ television color commentator, a position he held until 2002. Subsequently he worked for the Tigers as a front office official until his death in 2020.

Kaline was married to his high school sweetheart, Madge and together they raised two sons named Mark and Michael. Michael played college baseball at Miami University and is the father of Colin Kaline, who had a short minor league career and then was a college coach of the game.