The AL Counterpart to Ralph Kiner

When the name “Hank” is said in a conversation about baseball, many times the name is followed by the surname “Aaron.” However, there is another Hank who played baseball and is enshrined in Cooperstown. This Hank could be compared to  Ralph Kiner : both players had pretty short Hall of Fame careers and both were big time home run hitters. This Hank played with the Tigers and is considered one of the franchise’s best players. Ladies and gentlemen, my grandpa’s cousin’s high school classmate and the only Hall of Famer celebrating his birthday today, New Years day:  Hank Greenberg !

This other Hammerin’ Hank played for the Tigers and Pirates from 1930, 1933-1941, 1945-1947. The gaps in his years of playing are as a result of military service and a stint in the minors. But despite losing a chunk of his career, Greenberg still managed to crush 331 dingers, averaging about 25 home runs a season, including a huge 58 in 1938. The two-time MVP, in 1935 and 1940, two years that his Tiger teams won the AL pennant, batted .313 in his career along with 1,276 RBIs. He drove in over 140 runs in four seasons (including a monster 183 in 1937). Hank won only one World Series ring in 1945 with Detroit, when he batted .304 with two homers and seven RBIs and is one of three players to win MVPs at multiple positions, at first base in ’35 and in left field in ’40.

Greenberg may have had a short career, but he certainly had a productive one, getting elected into the Hall in 1956, so happy birthday and happy new year to you, Hank. Anyway, thanks for reading this post. I hope you enjoyed it and check back in a few days for more of “all the buzz on what wuzz.”