George Edward Banks (September 24, 1938 – March 1, 1985) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

professional baseball player. He was a prolific home run hitter in minor league baseball, smashing 223 homers over an 11-year career in the minors. A third baseman and outfielder, he played 106

games A game is a structured form of play, usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or games) or art (such ...

of Major League Baseball during all or parts of five seasons (1962–1966) for the

Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities area w ...

and Cleveland Indians. Banks threw and batted right-handed, stood tall and weighed . Banks was born in Pacolet Mills, South Carolina. He signed originally with the New York Yankees in 1957, and made it only to the Eastern League in the Bombers' system. But after back-to-back minor league seasons in which he hit 29 and 30 home runs, Banks was chosen by the Twins in the 1961 Rule 5 draft and spent the entire campaign on the Twins' MLB roster. He appeared in 63 games during his rookie season, and batted .252 with four home runs and 15 runs batted in. It was his only full campaign in the Major Leagues. In June 1964 he was part of a key trade, when the Twins sent Banks and pitcher Lee Stange to the Indians for right-handed pitcher

Mudcat Grant James Timothy "Mudcat" Grant Jr. (August 13, 1935 – June 11, 2021) was an American baseball pitcher who played 14 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played for the Cleveland Indians, Minnesota Twins, Los Angeles Dodgers, Montreal Expos ...

; Grant would win 21 games and lead the Twins to the

1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lyndo ...

American League championship. Banks played in only 17 games for Cleveland over parts of three seasons, and spent most of the rest of his career in the minors at the Triple-A level. He retired after the 1968 campaign. George Banks died at age 46 of

amyotrophic lateral sclerosis Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neuron disease (MND) or Lou Gehrig's disease, is a neurodegenerative disease that results in the progressive loss of motor neurons that control voluntary muscles. ALS is the most comm ...

(ALS or Lou Gehrig's Disease). Athletic fields in his native town of Pacolet are named in his memory.Spartanburg Herald-Journal, April 9, 2010
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Banks, George 1938 births 1985 deaths Atlanta Crackers players Baseball players from South Carolina Binghamton Triplets players Cleveland Indians players Dallas Rangers players Neurological disease deaths in South Carolina Deaths from motor neuron disease Fargo-Moorhead Twins players Greensboro Yankees players Kearney Yankees players Major League Baseball third basemen Major League Baseball outfielders Minnesota Twins players People from Pacolet, South Carolina Portland Beavers players St. Petersburg Saints players Seattle Angels players Spartanburg Phillies players