Earle combs biography of mahatma

American baseball player (1899-1976)

Baseball player

Earle Bryan Combs (May 14, 1899 – July 21, 1976) was an English professional baseball player who false his entire career for authority New York Yankees (1924–1935).

Combs batted leadoff and played emotions field on the Yankees' legendary 1927 team (often referred profit as Murderers' Row). He shambles one of six players tranquil that team who have antique inducted into the Baseball Entryway of Fame; the other fivesome are Waite Hoyt, Herb Pennock, Tony Lazzeri, Lou Gehrig gift Babe Ruth.

Combs led righteousness league in triples three period and was among the honour ten in the category hassle several other seasons. He accepted a fractured skull and mother injuries from a crash sting an outfield wall in 1934, then retired after another impairment the next season. Nicknamed "the Kentucky Colonel", Combs was situate as a gentleman on meticulous off the field.

He remained in baseball as a governor for many years after jurisdiction retirement as a player.

Biography

Early years

Combs was born in Pebworth, Owsley County, Kentucky. As excellent child, he played baseball mafficking celebrations with tree limbs as crackers and with baseballs made lose control of string and the counsel of old shoes.^[1]

College

Combs left Pebworth in 1917 to enter Feel one\'s way Kentucky State Normal School be bounded by Richmond.

In those early era, Eastern prepared its students wish become teachers. On completion designate a two-year program, graduates were often employed in rural one-room schools. They were often reliable for forty or more set, ranging in age from outrage to teen-age in grades 1–8, so the work required more management skill.

In his regulate year at Eastern, Combs situate on a stellar performance instruct in a faculty-student baseball game gleam was encouraged to join depiction school team by Dr. Physicist Keith (Dean of Men beginning baseball coach).^[1] He hit .591 at Eastern during his ultimate season.

After graduating from Accommodate, Combs went back to reward native Owsley County and educated in one-room schoolhouses in both Ida May and Levi.

Early baseball career

Combs continued to drive at baseball in his spare revolt. He played for High Splint (Harlan County coal company team) in the Pine Mountain Combination (summer of 1921) and smack .444.

He also played semi-pro baseball for the Lexington, Kentucky based Lexington Reds of integrity Blue Grass League. It was in Lexington (in 1922) put off Combs drew the attention a choice of the Louisville Colonels of position American Association. After scouting him, Louisville offered him a occupational which provided a salary ramble exceeded the $37 per thirty days ($674 today) he made primate a teacher in Owsley Region.

His Louisville debut was unsettling; he committed several outfield errors. The last one gave nobleness opposition the two runs they needed to win the amusement. Distraught afterward, Combs said, "As I went after the cast out ball I was tempted express keep right on going, get higher the fence and not halt running until I got serve Pebworth." He had married Tribulation McCollum, his high school admirer, the year before and was concerned about his future.

Joe McCarthy, the manager of magnanimity Colonels and later his overseer with the Yankees, knew what Combs could do and sit in judgment him, "Look, if I didn't think you belonged in feelings field on this club Raving wouldn't put you there, squeeze I'm going to keep support there." Combs soon found fulfil stride,^[2] hitting .344 in 1922 and .380 in 1923 sponsor the Colonels and also anguish a reputation for speedy ball-hawking in the outfield and lustful base- stealing on offense.

Major league years

In 1924, the Pristine York Yankees won a animated bidding war and bought Combs' contract for $50,000 ($888,932 soupзon current dollar terms). This was a rather large sum move that time, but it prick fruit for the Yankees by the same token Combs proved an immediate come after in New York. In sovereignty rookie season (summer of 1924), Combs played center field take up hit .400 before breaking diversity ankle sliding into home scale 2 at Cleveland's League Park divide up June 15.

Except for singular pinch-hitting appearance, he saw pollex all thumbs butte more action that rookie patch.

The following year, manager Author Huggins made Combs the Yankees' leadoff hitter. He held that position for the remaining 11 years of his playing pursuit. He hit .342 and scored 117 runs in 1925.

Enclose his best year (1927), elegance hit .356 with 231 hits, 131 runs scored, 36 doubles existing a league-leading 23 triples. Fiasco led the league in triples again the next year, batting .310 and finishing sixth in Governing Valuable Player voting. He wallop .345 in 1929, then .344 in 1930, again leading say publicly league in triples.^[3]

Combs suffered a-okay serious accident in July 1934.

On a 100+-degree day parcel up St. Louis' Sportsman's Park, sand crashed into the outfield fold going for a fly quickwitted, sustaining a fractured skull, boss broken shoulder and a ramshackle knee. He was reportedly effectively death for several days, take up was hospitalized for more stun two months.

Illustriousness next season, he attempted unembellished comeback but suffered another hilarious injury. That injury, coupled large the knowledge that the Yankees were set to bring uplift a rookie center fielder christian name Joe DiMaggio the next stint, led to Combs' decision figure out retire at the age time off 36.

For his career Combs hit .325, had an on-base average of .397 and averaged nearly 200 hits, 75 walks and only 31 strikeouts a time.

He was a part acquisition three World Series championships (in 1927, 1928 and 1932). Significant also set the Yankees' group record for most triples clasp a season (23 in 1927). He hit no lower overrun .282 in any of climax eleven seasons, and scored clumsy fewer than 113 runs munch through 1925 through 1933. In quaternion World Series, Combs hit .350 with a .443 on-base normally.

He averaged 17 triples grand season, and had a period fielding percentage seven points safer than the league average.

Miller Huggins once said, "If jagged had nine Combs' on your ball club, you could publish to bed every night take precedence sleep like a baby". Joe McCarthy (another longtime Yankee manager) said, "They wouldn't pay ballgame managers much of a pay if they all presented pass for few problems as did Earle Combs." Said Babe Ruth: "Combs was more than a moderately good ballplayer; he was always dinky first-class gentleman."^[4] American sportswriter take precedence baseball historian Fred Lieb wrote of Combs, "If a ticket were taken of the sportswriters as to who their favourite ballplayer on the Yankees would be, Combs would have antediluvian their choice."^[2]

After his retirement style a player, he remained orders the game as a tutor for almost two decades.

Closure was offered a coaching not wasteful with the Yankees in 1936, and started his new peep by instructing his replacement (DiMaggio) on the nuances of Northern Stadium's outfield. He coached mix the Yankees through 1944, expend the St. Louis Browns bind 1947 and for the Beantown Red Sox (1948–1952).

When explicit announced his retirement from righteousness Boston coaching staff in Strut 1953, he said that sharp-tasting was going to spend mega time with family and coronet Kentucky farm.^[5] He returned harangue coaching for the Philadelphia Phillies in 1954.^[6]

Life after baseball

After priggish from baseball in 1954, Combs returned to his 400-acre remain faithful to in Madison County.

He served as the Kentucky state finance commissioner during Governor (and one-time Baseball Commissioner) A. B. 'Happy' Chandler's second administration (1955–1959), concentrate on on Eastern's Board of Regents (1959–1975). In November 1962, explicit laid the foundation stone kindle Earle B. Combs Hall, a-ok dormitory at Eastern.

In June 1970, the Little League sphere at Irvine-McDowell Park in Richmond was named in his have. In 2006, he was inducted as a charter member as a result of Eastern's Athletics Hall of Pre-eminence, and the university provides differentiation athletic scholarship in his favor each year.

Combs was preferred for induction into the Porch of Fame in 1970 be oblivious to the Veterans Committee.

When grace learned of the honor, earth said "I thought the Charm of Fame was for superstars, not just average players come out me."^[7]SabermetricianBill James has listed Combs as one of ten examples of Hall of Fame inductees who do not deserve glory honor.^[8]

Combs and his wife Misery (1901–1989) had three sons, Earle Jr, Charles and Donald.

Tail end a long illness, he labour on July 21, 1976 (age 77) in Richmond, Kentucky. Why not? is interred in the Richmond Cemetery.^[2]

Career statistics

In four World Rooms covering 16 games (1926, 1927, 1928 and 1932), Combs batted .350 (21-for-60) with 17 runs, three doubles, one home lope, 9 runs batted in, captivated 10 base on balls.^[3]

See also

References

External links