KALINE, AL

born Dec. 19, 1934, Baltimore, Md., U.S. byname of Albert William Kaline American professional American League baseball outfielder who was a preeminent fielder and hitter, batting and throwing right-handed. Kaline started playing sandlot baseball before he went to school. Many in his family had been in semiprofessional baseball. At first he wanted to be a pitcher, but at Southern High School (Baltimore) he was considered too small to pitch and too frail for the infield and so became an outfielder. He was signed to a contract by the Detroit Tigers in mid-season of 1953 and played with them until he retired in 1974. In 1955 he hit 27 home runs, the youngest player to do so, and his .340 batting percentage led the league. From 1968 he played at first base. In the 1968 World Series, which Detroit won, he batted .379 and batted in eight runs. He made his 3,000th hit on Sept. 24, 1974. After retirement he became a television baseball broadcaster, and in 1980 he was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.