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Hal McRae

Hal McRae
Designated hitter / Outfielder / Manager
Born: (1945-07-10) July 10, 1945 (age 71)
Avon Park, Florida
Batted: Right Threw: Right
MLB debut
July 11, 1968, for the Cincinnati Reds
Last MLB appearance
July 17, 1987, for the Kansas City Royals
MLB statistics
Batting average .290
Hits 2,091
Home runs 191
Runs batted in 1,097
Managerial record 399–473
Winning % .458
Teams

As player

As manager

As coach

Career highlights and awards

As player

As manager

As coach

Harold Abraham McRae (/məˈkr/; born July 10, 1945) is a former left fielder in Major League Baseball who played for the Cincinnati Reds (1968, 1970–72) and Kansas City Royals (1973–87). Utilized as a designated hitter for most of his career, McRae batted and threw right-handed. He is the father of former major league outfielder Brian McRae.

McRae was selected by the Reds in the 6th round of the 1965 draft with the 117th overall pick. Then in the pre-1969 offseason, playing winter ball in Puerto Rico, McRae suffered a multiple leg fracture sliding on the basepaths. In the words of Bill James in The Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract, "Before the accident, McRae was a burner, a center fielder who could fly...after the accident, his speed was major league average." He was considered a below-average outfielder with the Reds.

In spring training 1969, McRae came to the Reds' camp with his leg still in a cast from the fracture. The same offseason, St. Louis Cardinals announcer Harry Caray had suffered multiple fractures being struck by a car while on foot. During a Reds-Cardinals preseason game where Caray was interviewing ballplayers on the field while still on crutches, Reds Manager Dave Bristol pointed in Caray's direction and said to McRae, "Look at that. There's an old man. Broke two legs. Broke his shoulder. Broke his everything. And here he is walking around doing his job, doing anything he wants. Here you are, all you did was break your leg sliding into second base, and you can't get your leg out of your goddam cast! You ought to be ashamed of yourself."


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Wikipedia

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