Sad news to pass along late this afternoon, as former Indians great and major league executive Al Rosen has passed away at the age of 91.
“He was an inspiration to us all and had a special presence, strength and intellect. His fierce competitive nature and toughness was legendary,” Indians president Mark Shapiro said in a statement from the team.
Rosen had a brief, but impressive career, all as a member of the Indians from 1947-1956. A four-time All-Star, he had a .285/.384/.495 batting line with 192 home runs and 717 RBI over 1,044 games. He won the American League MVP Award in 1953 in a year he just narrowly missed out on a Triple Crown.
Injuries forced Rosen into early retirement from his playing career at age 32, but he later returned to the game as an executive, making stops with the Yankees, Astros, and Giants. San Francisco won two division titles with him at the helm as president/general manager and made the World Series in 1989. He was named Executive of the Year in 1987.
MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred: "Al Rosen was truly a triple threat - a great player, executive and man. We will always remember him."
— MLB Communications (@MLB_PR) March 14, 2015
Here’s an interesting video about Rosen in a discussion about his Jewish heritage:
[mlbvideo id="18446467" width="400" height="224" /]
We send our condolences to Rosen’s family, friends, and colleagues.