Here’s all you need to know about Al Kaline, the baseball player: He has a plaque in the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.
And this is what you really need to know: He was a better person.
Want proof? By most standards, statistical or otherwise, the Hall of Famer he’s most comparable to as a player is Roberto Clemente. By any standard, the Hall of Famer he’s most comparable to as a person is Brooks Robinson.
Enough said? Thought so.
Known in Detroit as “Mr. Tiger” and in Baltimore as a very proud native son, Al Kaline passed away April 6 at the age of 85 — and there’s enough sadness to stretch from here to Michigan and back. Trust me, he would be embarrassed as well as overwhelmed by the kind of attention he never sought, but handled with humility.
