Elston Howard

Elston Howard
Catcher / Leftfield
Born: February 23, 1929 St. Louis , United States
Died on: December 14, 1980 New York , United States
Suggested: Right	Threw: Right
Debut in Major League Baseball
April 14,  1955  with the  New York Yankees
Last MLB assignment
September 29,  1968  with the  Boston Red Sox
MLB statistics (until end of career)
Batting average	, 274
Home runs	167
Runs Batted In	762
Teams
As a player New York Yankees (1955-1967) Boston Red Sox (1967–1968) As a manager New York Yankees (1969–1979)
Awards
12 × All-Star (1957, 1958, 1959–1965) 6 × World Series Champion (1956, 1958, 1961, 1962, 1977, 1978) AL MVP (1963) 2 × Gold Glove Award (1963, 1964) In his honor, # 32 is no longer awarded by the New York Yankees

Elston Gene Howard (born February 23, 1929 in St. Louis , Missouri , † December 14, 1980 in New York , New York ) was an American baseball player in Major League Baseball .

biography

Elston Howard became the first African-American player to wear the New York Yankees' jersey in the Major League. His career as a professional baseball player began in 1948 with the Kansas City Monarchs in the Negro Leagues . He played there as a catcher and outfielder . In 1950 he became the Yankees drafted and played until his Major League debut on April 14, 1955 in the various minor league teams in New York. Until 1960 he played most of the time in the outfield, as Yogi Berra held the regular position as catcher. From 1957 to 1965, Howard participated in every All-Star game . In 1963 he was elected MVP in the American League . In this honor, too, he was the first African-American to be elected MVP in the AL. In 1963 and 1964 he also won the Gold Glove Award .

In 1967 he moved to the Boston Red Sox, where he ended his career a year later. In 1969 he returned to the Yankees and worked there as a coach for eleven years.

Howard took part in a total of nine World Series , eight times with the Yankees, once with the Red Sox. With a total of 5 defeats, Howard and Pee Wee Reese are the players with the most World Series defeats.

Howard died in 1980 of a heart condition, the Yankees contested the entire 81s season with a mourning ribbon. As of July 21, 1984, Howard's number 32 is no longer awarded by the Yankees. A plaque in Monument Park was dedicated to him that day with the inscription: A man of great gentleness and dignity .

His stations as a player

• 1955-1967 New York Yankees
• 1967-1968 Boston Red Sox

Web links

• Player information and statistics Baseball Reference  or  FanGraphs (English)
• Elston Howard biography