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Albert Jojuan Belle (born August 25, 1966), known until 1990 as Joey Belle, is an American former
Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL) ...
outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to c ...
who played from 1989 to 2000, most notably for the
Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive ...
. Known for his fierce, competitive temperament and intimidating stature, Belle was one of the leading sluggers of his time, and in 1995 became the only player to ever hit 50 doubles and 50
home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run is ...
s in a season. He was also the first player to break the $10 million per year compensation contract in Major League Baseball. Belle was a five-time All-Star and Silver Slugger. He retired with a .295 career batting average, and averaged 37
home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run is ...
s and 120 RBIs per season between 1991 and 2000. He is one of only six players in MLB history to have nine consecutive 100-RBI seasons.


Early life

Albert and his
fraternal twin Twins are two offspring produced by the same pregnancy.MedicineNet > Definition of TwinLast Editorial Review: 19 June 2000 Twins can be either ''monozygotic'' ('identical'), meaning that they develop from one zygote, which splits and forms two ...
, Terry, were born on August 25, 1966, in Shreveport, Louisiana, the son of Albert Belle Sr., a high school baseball and football coach, and Carrie Belle, a former math teacher. He attained the rank of Eagle Scout in the
Boy Scouts of America The Boy Scouts of America (BSA, colloquially the Boy Scouts) is one of the largest scouting organizations and one of the largest List of youth organizations, youth organizations in the United States, with about 1.2 million youth partici ...
. Belle attended Huntington High School in Shreveport, where he was a star baseball and football player, a member of the
National Honor Society The National Honor Society (NHS) is a nationwide organization for high school students in the United States and outlying territories, which consists of many chapters in high schools. Selection is based on four criteria: scholarship (academic ach ...
and vice president of the local
Future Business Leaders of America The Future Business Leaders of America, or FBLA, is an American career and technical student organization headquartered in Reston, Virginia. Established in 1940, FBLA is a non-profit organization of high school ("FBLA"), Middle Level ("FBLA ...
. He graduated sixth in his high school class and made the all-state baseball team twice. In 1984, he was selected to play for the USA in the Junior Olympics, in which the U.S. won a silver medal. He played outfield and pitched, winning one game. After graduation, Belle accepted a baseball scholarship to
Louisiana State University Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 near ...
.


College

Belle played college baseball at
Louisiana State University Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 near ...
from 1985 to 1987, where he made 1st team All-SEC in 1986 and 1987 and played in 184 games, with 585 at bats, 194 hits, 30 doubles, 49 home runs, 172 runs batted in, 157 runs, a .670 slugging percentage, and a .332 batting average. In 1986, he played
collegiate summer baseball Collegiate summer baseball leagues are amateur baseball leagues in the United States and Canada featuring players who have attended at least one year of college and have at least one year of athletic eligibility remaining. Generally, they operate ...
in the
Cape Cod Baseball League The Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL or Cape League) is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league located on Cape Cod in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. One of the nation's premier collegiate summer leagues, the league boasts over one thous ...
for the Chatham A's and was named a league all-star, then returned to the league in 1987 to play for the Hyannis Mets. However, the stress of being a potential high prospect shifted his personality, turning tense after his sophomore year. In his junior year, he was batting .349 before an incident involving a heckler insulting him with racial epithets at an SEC Tournament game led to a suspension that kept him out of the
College World Series The College World Series (CWS), officially the NCAA Men's College World Series (MCWS), is an annual baseball tournament held in June in Omaha, Nebraska. The MCWS is the culmination of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Divis ...
. After college, he was drafted by the
Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive ...
in the second round of the 1987 MLB draft.


Major League career summary

Belle became the fourth player to have eight straight seasons of 30 home runs and 100 RBIs, joining
Babe Ruth George Herman "Babe" Ruth Jr. (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948) was an American professional baseball player whose career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanned 22 seasons, from 1914 through 1935. Nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Su ...
, Jimmie Foxx and Lou Gehrig (a feat since matched by Albert Pujols, Rafael Palmeiro, Manny Ramirez and
Alex Rodriguez Alexander Emmanuel Rodriguez (born July 27, 1975), nicknamed "A-Rod", is an American former professional baseball shortstop and third baseman, businessman and philanthropist. Rodriguez played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the ...
). He was an accomplished baserunner, with a career-high 23 steals in 1993, and 17 steals in 1999 despite hip problems. He led the league three times in RBIs, three times in total bases, three times in extra-base hits and twice in slugging. He was a five-time All-Star between 1993 and 1997. He had a powerful throwing arm, and was a gifted pitcher in high school. His range factor by games played was consistently higher than the major league average at that position; nevertheless, he still managed to accrue a -63 ''Total Zone Runs'' during 12 major league seasons. Belle's career highs in home runs, RBIs, batting average, runs scored and walks occurred in five separate seasons. In 2006, the '' Hardball Times'' published a statistical comparison of Belle's career statistics with that of 60 of his current and former peers. The article ranked him in career "prime value", behind current Hall of Famer Ralph Kiner and recent inductee Frank Thomas. In 1992, Belle would have become one of only five players in MLB history to hit a home run over the left-field roof of
Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...
's Tiger Stadium (joining Harmon Killebrew, Frank Howard, Cecil Fielder and
Mark McGwire Mark David McGwire (born October 1, 1963), nicknamed "Big Mac", is an American former professional baseball first baseman who played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1986 to 2001 for the Oakland Athletics and the St. Louis Card ...
). However, the ball struck a light tower on top of the roof and caromed back into the stands. In 1994, Belle lost the batting title to
New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one o ...
outfielder Paul O'Neill, .359 to .357. In 1995, Belle became the first player in major league history to hit 50 home runs and 50 doubles in the same season; the last player before him to reach as many as 40 in both categories had been Willie Stargell in 1973. The achievement was especially impressive because Belle played only 143 games in 1995 due to a season shortened by the previous year's player strike. Belle's reputation and disdain of the media cost him votes for the 1995
MVP Award In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particu ...
. He finished second in the voting to the
Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eig ...
' Mo Vaughn even though he led the
American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...
that season in runs scored, home runs, RBIs, slugging percentage and total bases, and outpaced Vaughn head-to-head in every important offensive category except RBIs (both men had 126); both players' teams reached the playoffs. This was in the middle of a three-year streak in which Belle finished 3rd, 2nd and 3rd for the American League MVP. Belle had two other top ten MVP finishes, in 1993 (7th) and 1998 (8th). In the winter of 1996, Belle signed a 5-year, $55 million (equivalent to $ today) deal with the
Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...
as a free agent. This contract made him the highest-paid player in baseball for a brief period and the first player in baseball history to make $10 million in a season. He enjoyed two great seasons in Chicago, including a career-high 27-game hitting streak in May 1997, and came close to another 50/50 season in 1998 with 49 home runs (a White Sox team record that still stands) and 48 doubles. He also drove in 152 runs to break Zeke Bonura's single-season franchise record of 138 in 1936 (to date, the RBI total also remains a White Sox single-season record). Additionally, when Cal Ripken Jr. ended his record consecutive game streak at 2,632 in September 1998 on the last day of the season, it was Belle who took over as the major leagues' active leader in the category (his streak of 392, however, ended the next year due to a perceived lack of hustle viewed by his manager). Belle's contract with the White Sox had an unusual clause allowing him to demand that he would remain one of the three highest-paid players in baseball. In October 1998 he invoked the clause, and when the White Sox declined to give him a raise he immediately became a free agent. He again became the game's highest-paid player, signing a five-year, $65 million ($ today) deal with the
Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...
. But his career ended just two seasons later when he was forced into retirement at age 34 by degenerative hip
osteoarthritis Osteoarthritis (OA) is a type of degenerative joint disease that results from breakdown of joint cartilage and underlying bone which affects 1 in 7 adults in the United States. It is believed to be the fourth leading cause of disability in the ...
. He was, however, kept on Baltimore's active 40-man roster for the next three years as a condition of the insurance policy which largely reimbursed the Orioles for the remainder of his contract. Belle homered in the final at-bat of his major-league career, at
Oriole Park at Camden Yards The Oriole Park at Camden Yards is a baseball stadium located in Baltimore, Maryland. It is the home field of Major League Baseball's Baltimore Orioles, and the first of the "retro" major league ballparks constructed during the 1990s and early ...
on October 1, 2000. In 1,539 games over 12 seasons, Belle posted a .295 batting average (1726-for-5853) with 974 runs, 389 doubles, 21
triples TripleS (stylized as tripleS; Help:IPA/English, /ˈtɹɪpəl:ɛs/; ) is a South Korean girl group formed by MODHAUS. They aim to be the world's first decentralized K-pop idol group. The members will rotate between the group, sub-unit, and solo ac ...
, 381
home runs In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run is ...
, 1239
RBI RBI most often refers to: *Reserve Bank of India *Run batted in RBI may also refer to: Organisations *Radio Berlin International *Raiffeisen Bank International *Reed Business Information *Restaurant Brands International *Ruđer Bošković In ...
, 88 stolen bases, 683
bases on balls A base on balls (BB), also known as a walk, occurs in baseball when a batter receives four pitches that the umpire calls '' balls'', and is in turn awarded first base without the possibility of being called out. The base on balls is defined in Sec ...
, .369
on-base percentage In baseball statistics, on-base percentage (OBP) measures how frequently a batter reaches base. An official Major League Baseball (MLB) statistic since 1984, it is sometimes referred to as on-base average (OBA), as it is rarely presented as a ...
and .564
slugging percentage In baseball statistics, slugging percentage (SLG) is a measure of the batting productivity of a hitter. It is calculated as total bases divided by at bats, through the following formula, where ''AB'' is the number of at bats for a given player ...
. Defensively, he recorded a .976 fielding percentage playing at left and right field. In 18 postseason games, he hit .230 (14-for-61) with 10 runs, 2 doubles, 6 home runs, 14 RBI, 1 stolen base and 14 walks.


Controversies

In 1990, the Indians sent Belle to the Cleveland Clinic for two months for
alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol that results in significant mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognized diagnostic entity. Predomina ...
rehabilitation. Belle was suspended in 1994 for using a corked bat, resulting in a seven-game suspension. The incident gained further notoriety for his sending teammate
Jason Grimsley Jason Alan Grimsley (born August 7, 1967) is a former Major League Baseball relief pitcher who played for seven teams during a 15-year career. He was a member of both the 1999 and 2000 World Series champion New York Yankees. Major League career ...
through the building's ceiling panel to break into the locked umpires' dressing room to replace his corked bat with a teammate's bat. The revelation of Belle's use of corked bats was later given more emphasis when Cleveland teammate Omar Vizquel wrote in his 2002 autobiography that it would be naive to suggest otherwise, and that "all of Albert's bats were corked." Belle was fined in 1996 for knocking down Brewers infielder Fernando Viña, who had blocked his way between bases. Sports reporters resented Belle's refusal to grant interviews before a game. A profane outburst directed at a group of reporters in his team's dugout, including
NBC Sports NBC Sports is an American programming division of the broadcast network NBC, owned and operated by NBC Sports Group division of NBCUniversal and subsidiary of Comcast. The division is responsible for sports broadcasts on the network, and it ...
personality
Hannah Storm Hannah Lynn Storen Hicks (born June 13, 1962), known professionally as Hannah Storm, is an American television sports journalist, serving as the anchor of ESPN's ''SportsCenter'' Face to Face. She was also host of the ''NBA Countdown'' pregame s ...
, was widely reported during the 1995 World Series. He was unrepentant afterward: "The Indians wanted me to issue a statement of regret when the fine was announced, but I told them to take it out. I apologize for nothing." Eventually, Belle routinely refused to speak with the media. "I don't get excited talking about myself", he explained. "Guys such as
Sandy Koufax Sanford Koufax (; born Sanford Braun; December 30, 1935) is an American former left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played his entire career for the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers from 1955 to 1966. He has been hailed as one of t ...
, Joe DiMaggio and Steve Carlton did not interview, and it was no big deal. They were quiet. I am also quiet. I just want to concentrate on baseball. Why does everyone want to hear me talk, anyway?" Buster Olney wrote about his outbursts as a member of the
Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive ...
: :It was taken as fact in baseball circles that Albert Belle was nuts.... He slurped coffee constantly and seemed to be in a perpetual caffeinated frenzy. Few escaped his wrath: on some days he would destroy the postgame buffet ... launching plates into the shower, and after one poor at-bat against Boston, he retreated to the visitors' clubhouse and took a bat to teammate Kenny Lofton's boombox. Belle preferred to have the clubhouse cold, below 60 degrees, and when one chilly teammate turned up the heat, Belle walked over, turned down the thermostat and smashed it with his bat. His nickname, thereafter, was "Mr. Freeze." ... The Indians billed him $10,000 a year for the damage he caused in clubhouses on the road and at home, and tolerated his behavior only because he was an awesome slugger.... In 2001, following his retirement, the ''
New York Daily News The New York ''Daily News'', officially titled the ''Daily News'', is an American newspaper based in Jersey City, NJ. It was founded in 1919 by Joseph Medill Patterson as the ''Illustrated Daily News''. It was the first U.S. daily printed in Ta ...
columnist Bill Madden wrote: :Sorry, there'll be no words of sympathy here for Albert Belle. He was a surly jerk before he got hurt and now he's a hurt surly jerk....He was no credit to the game. Belle's boorish behavior should be remembered by every member of the Baseball Writers' Association when it comes time to consider him for the Hall of Fame. In his first year of Hall of Fame eligibility (2006), he garnered only 7.7% of the baseball writers' votes, missing election by an extremely wide margin. But his vote total was high enough to keep his name on the ballot for the following year. In 2007, however, he garnered only 19 votes (3.5%). In retirement, Belle had his first encounter with the Cleveland Indians since leaving the club in 1996, during their 2012 spring training in Goodyear, Arizona and was joined by former teammates Kenny Lofton, Sandy Alomar Jr., and Carlos Baerga. In spite of this, Belle declined both to attend the 20th anniversary celebration of the 1995 World Series team in 2015 and the 2016 ceremony when he was inducted into the Indians team Hall of Fame.


Legal troubles

In October 1995, Belle's house in Euclid, Ohio was egged by teenagers after he turned away trick-or-treaters on
Halloween Halloween or Hallowe'en (less commonly known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve) is a celebration geography of Halloween, observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Saints' Day. ...
. Belle chased one of the trick-or-treaters in his car. Belle was fined $100 for reckless operation of a vehicle. The guardian of the teenager later sued Belle for $850,000 contending that Belle's car had bumped into the teenager. The lawsuit was settled in 1997. In 2006, Belle was sentenced to 90 days in jail and five years' probation after he admitted to stalking his former girlfriend. On March 25, 2018, Belle was arrested in
Scottsdale, Arizona , settlement_type = City , named_for = Winfield Scott , image_skyline = , image_seal = Seal of Scottsdale (Arizona).svg , image_blank_emblem = City of Scottsdale Script Logo.svg , nick ...
and charged with indecent exposure and DUI. All charges were dismissed the following month.


Awards and accomplishments

College (LSU): * 1st team All-SEC (1986, 1987) * South 1 Regional Tournament MVP (1986) * 2nd team All-America (1986) * 3rd team All-America (1987) Major League Baseball (Cleveland Indians, Chicago White Sox, Baltimore Orioles): * AL home run leader (1995) * AL RBI leader (1993, 1995-tied with Mo Vaughn, 1996) * AL doubles leader (1995-tied with Edgar Martínez) * AL runs leader (1995-tied with Edgar Martínez) * AL slugging percentage leader (1995, 1998) * AL outfield assist leader (RF) (1999-tie) * Named to Silver Slugger team (1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1998) * All-Star (1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997) * First player to ever hit 50 HR and 50 Doubles (1995) * The Sporting News Player of the Year (1995) * Baseball Digest Player of the Year (1995) * Led major leagues in the 1990s with 1,099 RBI * Led major leagues in extra-base hits in the 1990s with 711 * 4th player ever to have 8 straight seasons with 30 HR and 100 RBI * Inducted into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame (June 2005) * AL leader in runs created (1998) * AL leader in OPS+ (1998) * AL leader in total bases (1994, 1995, 1998)


See also

* Cleveland Guardians award winners and league leaders * List of Major League Baseball annual runs scored leaders * List of Major League Baseball annual doubles leaders * List of Major League Baseball career home run leaders * List of Major League Baseball career OPS leaders *
List of Major League Baseball career putouts as a left fielder leaders In baseball statistics, a putout (denoted by PO or fly out when appropriate) is given to a defensive player who records an out by tagging a runner with the ball when he is not touching a base, catching a batted or thrown ball and tagging a base ...
* List of Major League Baseball career runs batted in leaders * List of Major League Baseball career slugging percentage leaders * List of Major League Baseball doubles records * List of people from Shreveport, Louisiana * Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame


References


External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Belle, Albert 1966 births Living people Major League Baseball left fielders Baltimore Orioles players Chicago White Sox players Cleveland Indians players American League All-Stars Baseball players from Shreveport, Louisiana American League home run champions American League RBI champions African-American baseball players Kinston Indians players Hyannis Harbor Hawks players Chatham Anglers players LSU Tigers baseball players Canton-Akron Indians players Silver Slugger Award winners Fraternal twins American twins 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American sportspeople