Mickey Mantle Bio And Facts

Mickey Mantle

Mickey Mantle was a professional American baseball player for the New York Yankees. He played at center field and first base for the team and played all 18 of his career seasons with the Yankees (1951-1968). Throughout his time in the major leagues, Mantle won the World Series seven times and was named most valuable player three times.

Mantle was known as an incredible batter on the diamond. At a young age, he learned to be a switch-hitter, making it much easier for him to hit from left and right handed pitchers. Even though he suffered several injuries to his legs, Mantle could hit the ball like no other. He maintained an impressive batting average throughout his career and retired with a total of 536 career home runs. Although Mantle’s life was cut short due to liver cancer,he is remembered as one of the best Yankees and baseball players of all time.

• Birthday: October 20, 1931 (20-10-1931)
• Died: August 13, 1995 (13-08-1995)
• Education: Commerce High School
• Net Worth: $10 million
• Occupation: Professional baseball player
• Height: 5’11” (1.82 m)
• Weight: 195 lbs (88 kg)
• Position: Center Fielder/First Baseman 
• Years Active: 18
• Nicknames: The Mick
• Teams: New York Yankees

Social Media

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Baseball Career

Mickey Mantle began playing baseball at a young age where his father taught him to be a switch-hitter. At Commerce High School in Oklahoma, Mantle played baseball, basketball, and football. During this time, he was scouted by the New York Yankees and signed a contract with the team.

In 1949, Mantle began to play for the Yankees minor league baseball team in Independence, Kansas. He played as a shortstop for the team for two years. At just 19 years old, Mantle was pulled up to play in the major leagues for the Yankees. However, his play in right field did not impress the team and he was sent back down to the minor leagues.

After the 1951 season, Joe Dimaggio retired from the Yankees and Mantle was pulled up to take his spot as a center fielder. He experienced immediate success on the team and spent the rest of his 18-year career with the Yankees.

Titles and Awards

During his career with the New York Yankees, Mickey Mantle was very successful. In 18 years with the team, Mantle hit a total of 536 home runs. He was voted as Most Valuable Player of the American League three different seasons (1956, 1957, and 1962). In addition to winning MVP in 1956, Mantle also was awarded the American League triple crown for recording 52 home runs, 130 runs batted in (RBI), and achieving a .353 batting average.

In addition to these accomplishments, Mantle led the American League in home runs in four different seasons (1955, 1956, 1958, 1960) and ranked in the top 10 in thirteen different seasons. He received numerous awards such as the Hutch Award in 1965 and American League Gold Glove Award in 1962. On top of all this, Mantle was an all-star 20 times, won seven World Series titles with the Yankees, and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1974.

Personal Life

Mickey Mantle was born in Spavinaw, Oklahoma and raised by parents Elvin (“Mutt”) and Lovell Richardson Mantle. Mantle’s father Mutt was a former semi-pro baseball player and taught Mickey to play from a young age. In fact, Mantle was even named after the Detroit Tigers catcher Mickey Cochrane.

After his retirement from the Yankees, Mantle pursued a career in business, opening his own restaurant and even served as a television commentator that broadcasted New York Yankees games. In addition, he spent some time working in the public relations department for a casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

In the 1950s, Mantle married his wife Merlyn and had four sons with her before separating in 1988. Unfortunately, his son Billy was being treated for Hodgkin’s disease and passed away in 1994 due to heart failure.

Because of his frequent drinking, Mantle was diagnosed with Hepatitis C and liver cancer and died on August 13, 1995.

Fun Facts

• Mickey Mantle led the league in walks in five different seasons (1955, 1957, 1958, 1961, 1962).
• He led the American League in slugging percentage four times (1955, 1956, 1961, 1962).
• He led the American League in runs scored five times (1954, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1960).
• Mantle played a total of 2,401 career games with 2,415 career hits.
• He struggled with alcohol abuse for 42 years which led to his poor health in his older years.
• In addition to alcoholism, Mantle also experienced anxiety attacks throughout his life.
• Mantle developed osteomyelitis after being kicked in the leg in high school. This injury affected his performance for the rest of his career.
• He was a St. Louis Cardinals fan growing up.
• The name of the first baseball team he played on was the Baxter Springs Whiz Kids.
• The Yankees retired his number 7 on June 8, 1969 at Yankee Stadium.

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