'The Man They Call Yaz' somehow turns 80 years old today. How can that be? We still see him leaping into the Bronx air to make "a
sensational catch"—as
Ken Coleman recounted. We still see him standing menacingly in the left-hand batters' box at Fenway, weapon waving above his head, coiled to deliver yet another clutch hit. Of course, 1967 is the year that defined
Carl Yastrzemski for the ages—after all, he won the
Triple Crown and (quite literally)
willed the Red Sox to their first pennant in 21 years. But, the totality of his Hall of Fame
career was even more amazing: 18-time All-Star, three batting titles, seven Gold Gloves and an MVP. Yaz clouted 452 HRs and hit .285 over 23 brilliant seasons. In his heyday, there was
Yaz Bread and
Yaz Ford—but Yaz himself was only concerned with playing his heart out every day for his beloved Boston Red Sox.
Happy birthday, Yaz!
