Joseph Salvatore Altobelli (May 26, 1932 – March 3, 2021) was an American
professional baseball
Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world.
Mod ...
first baseman
A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...
and
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 cat ...
who played 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 F ...
and
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 ...
of
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), ...
. He was also a
manager
Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business.
Management includes the activities o ...
for the
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yor ...
,
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) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...
, and
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...
. He batted and threw left-handed.
Altobelli succeeded
Earl Weaver
Earl Sidney Weaver (August 14, 1930 – January 19, 2013) was an American professional baseball manager, author, and television broadcaster. After playing in minor league baseball, he retired without playing in Major League Baseball (MLB). He be ...
as manager of the Orioles in 1983 and led the team to their sixth
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 ...
pennant and their third (and most recent)
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...
championship. He ended his involvement in professional baseball in 2009, retiring after over a decade as a
color commentator
A color commentator or expert commentator is a sports commentator who assists the main (play-by-play) commentator, typically by filling in when play is not in progress. The phrase "colour commentator" is primarily used in Canadian English and t ...
for the
Triple-A Rochester Red Wings
The Rochester Red Wings are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. They are located in Rochester, New York, and play their home games at Innovative Field ...
.
Early life
Altobelli was born in
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 th ...
on May 26, 1932.
He earned All-City recognition in baseball, football, and basketball while attending
Eastern High School.
He was signed as an amateur free agent 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 F ...
before the 1951 season.
Professional career
As player
Although Altobelli's playing career included three brief stints in the Major Leagues, his greatest success came in the minors. After being signed by the Indians, he was assigned to their Florida State League
The Florida State League (FSL) is a Minor League Baseball league based in the state of Florida. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following ...
affiliate in Daytona Beach for the 1951 campaign. On April 26, Altobelli singled to begin a 36-game hitting streak
In baseball, a hitting streak is the number of consecutive official games in which a player appears and gets at least one base hit. According to the Official Baseball Rules, such a streak is not necessarily ended when a player has at least 1 plate ...
which stood as the Florida State League
The Florida State League (FSL) is a Minor League Baseball league based in the state of Florida. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following ...
record for 59 years until it was surpassed in 2010. In 140 games with the Islanders that season, he notched 204 hits while posting a .341 batting average.
He earned a promotion to the Eastern League the following year, posting two solid seasons with the Reading Indians
The Reading Fightin Phils (also called the Reading Fightins) are a Minor League Baseball team based in Reading, Pennsylvania, playing in the Northeast Division of the Eastern League. The team plays their home games at FirstEnergy Stadium. The Re ...
, as he helped lead them to 101 wins and the Eastern League pennant in 1953. Another pennant followed in 1954, this time as a member of the AAA American Association's Indianapolis Indians
The Indianapolis Indians are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. They are located in Indianapolis, Indiana, and play their home games at Victory Field, which open ...
. His .297 average and 79 RBI that season were enough to earn him a callup to the Majors the following year.
Altobelli made his big league debut in his hometown of Detroit on April 14, 1955, when he was inserted into the lineup in the eighth inning as a pinch runner
In baseball, a pinch runner is a player substituted for the specific purpose of replacing another player on base. The pinch runner may be faster or otherwise more skilled at base-running than the player for whom the pinch runner has been sub ...
for three-time All-Star Vic Wertz
Victor Woodrow Wertz (February 9, 1925 – July 7, 1983) was an American professional baseball first baseman and outfielder. He had a 17-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career from 1947 to 1963. He played for the Detroit Tigers, St. Louis Brown ...
. His first hit and RBI came a week later when singled to left with the bases loaded to score Larry Doby
Lawrence Eugene Doby (December 13, 1923 – June 18, 2003) was an American professional baseball player in the Negro leagues and Major League Baseball (MLB) who was the second black player to break baseball's color barrier and the first black pl ...
. He played in 20 games with the Tribe before being returned to Indianapolis on May 9, where the Indians felt he could get more playing time as an everyday player. He was recalled to Cleveland in late June, and played in 13 games before being returned to AAA, where he hit .271 with 7 HRs and 53 RBI in 98 games that season with Indianapolis. With a September callup, Altobelli played in a total of 42 games for the big league club that season, hitting .200 BA, 2 HR, 5 RBI.
Joe remained with Indianapolis in 1956, as the club posted one of the most successful seasons in franchise history. The AAA Indians won the American Association pennant with a 92-62 record, including a 24-0 win over the Louisville Colonels on May 18. They swept the Denver Bears in the American Association finals, then swept the International League's Rochester Red Wings
The Rochester Red Wings are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. They are located in Rochester, New York, and play their home games at Innovative Field ...
in the Junior World Series
The Junior World Series was a postseason championship series between champions of two of the three highest minor league baseball leagues modeled on the World Series of Major League Baseball. It was called the Little World Series (no relation to ...
. In 145 games that year, Joe displayed a newfound power by slugging 19 home runs and ten triples while driving in 81 runs to go along with a .254 batting average.
Alto spent most of the 1957 season with the Cleveland Indians, playing in 83 games while filling a prime pinch hitter role and spotting Wertz at first base and Rocky Colavito
Rocco Domenico "Rocky" Colavito Jr. (born August 10, 1933) is an American former professional baseball player, coach and television sports commentator. He played in Major League Baseball as an outfielder from 1955 to 1968, most prominently as a m ...
in right field.
As a player, Altobelli was a slugging first baseman
A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...
and 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 cat ...
who enjoyed his greatest success at the AAA
AAA, Triple A, or Triple-A is a three-letter initialism or abbreviation which may refer to:
Airports
* Anaa Airport in French Polynesia (IATA airport code AAA)
* Logan County Airport (Illinois) (FAA airport code AAA)
Arts, entertainment, and me ...
level. He batted only .210 in 166 MLB games with the Cleveland Indians (1955, 1957) and Minnesota Twins (), with five 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 i ...
, and 28 runs batted in
A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the bat ...
(RBI).[ However, Altobelli reached double-digits in home runs in nine of his thirteen seasons as a AAA player.][ As a member of the ]Montreal Royals
The Montreal Royals were a minor league professional baseball team in Montreal, Quebec, during 1897–1917 and 1928–1960. A member of the International League, the Royals were the top farm club (Class AAA) of the Brooklyn Dodgers from 1939; pi ...
, he led the 1960 International League
The International League (IL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the United States. Along with the Pacific Coast League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major League Baseball ...
(IL) in home runs (31) and RBI (105).
In between, Altobelli played baseball in three winter seasons in Venezuela
Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
: one year in the Liga Occidental de Béisbol Profesional (LOBP) and two in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League
The Venezuelan Professional Baseball League or Liga Venezolana de Béisbol Profesional (LVBP) is the professional baseball league in Venezuela. The league's champion takes part in the Caribbean Series each year.
History Early years
Baseball exp ...
(VPBL). He claimed a batting title with a .378 average for the 1955–56 Gavilanes de Maracaibo The Gavilanes de Maracaibo was a Venezuelan professional baseball club based in Maracaibo, the capital city of Zulia state. The team was founded by the brothers and ballplayers Ernesto Aparicio and Luis Aparicio, Sr., and debuted in the extinct Z ...
championship team; he then posted two solid campaigns with the Indios de Oriente
The Indios de Oriente was a baseball club which played from 1956 through 1964 in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League. They played its home games at the Estadio Municipal de Puerto La Cruz in Anzoátegui, Venezuela.
History
The Indios de O ...
(1956–57) and Industriales de Valencia The Industriales de Valencia was a baseball club who played from 1955 through 1968 in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League. The Industriales joined the league as a replacement for the Santa Marta BBC.
The Industriales were based at Valencia ...
(1960–61).
As coach and manager
In 1966, Altobelli began an 11-year apprenticeship as a manager in the Baltimore farm system
In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team, feeder club, or nursery club is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a higher ...
, culminating in six seasons (1971–1976) managing the IL Rochester Red Wings. During his tenure, the Red Wings finished first four times. Altobelli's first major league managerial assignment began when the San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yor ...
hired him to succeed Bill Rigney
William Joseph Rigney (January 29, 1918 – February 20, 2001) was an American infielder and manager in Major League Baseball. A 26-year big-league veteran, Rigney played for the New York Giants from to , then spent 18 seasons as the skipper ...
, on October 7, 1976. Although Altobelli's 1978 club finished 16 games above .500 and in third place in the National League West Division
The National League West is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. This division was formed for the 1969 season when the National League expanded to 12 teams by adding the San Diego Padres and the Montreal Expos. For purpose of keeping a re ...
, he was dismissed in 1979, his third season, with a mark of 225–239 (.485) as Giants' manager.
Altobelli then joined the New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...
as manager of their AAA farm team, the Columbus Clippers
The Columbus Clippers are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. They are located in Columbus, Ohio, and are named for speedy Merchant ship, mercha ...
. After another first-place IL finish in 1980, Altobelli became a Yankees coach, from 1981 to 1982, working under managers Gene Michael
Eugene Richard Michael (June 2, 1938 – September 7, 2017), known as Stick, was an American professional baseball player, coach, scout, manager and team executive. He played in Major League Baseball as a shortstop from 1966 to 1975, most promine ...
, Bob Lemon
Robert Granville Lemon (September 22, 1920 – January 11, 2000) was an American right-handed pitcher and manager (baseball), manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). Lemon was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, National Ba ...
, and Clyde King
Clyde Edward King (May 23, 1924 – November 2, 2010) was an American pitcher, coach, manager, general manager and front office executive in Major League Baseball.
King's career in baseball spanned 67 years, including 35 full years with the New ...
.
Altobelli signed a two-year contract as manager of the Orioles on November 12, 1982, succeeding Earl Weaver
Earl Sidney Weaver (August 14, 1930 – January 19, 2013) was an American professional baseball manager, author, and television broadcaster. After playing in minor league baseball, he retired without playing in Major League Baseball (MLB). He be ...
who had retired one month prior. Jim Palmer
James Alvin Palmer (born October 15, 1945) is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 19 years in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Baltimore Orioles (1965–1967, 1969–1984). Palmer was the winningest MLB pitcher in the ...
said that Altobelli was "very compassionate and sensitive compared to most managers" unlike Weaver who "isn't all that compassionate and sensitive even compared to most chain gang wardens." The Altobelli-led team posted 98 wins, winning the American League East Division
The American League East is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. MLB consists of an East, Central, and West division for each of its two 15-team leagues, the American League (AL) and National League (NL). This division was created before ...
championship, then bested 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 p ...
, three games to one, in the American League Championship Series
The American League Championship Series (ALCS) is a best-of-seven playoff and one of two League Championship Series comprising the penultimate round of Major League Baseball's (MLB) postseason. It is contested by the two winners of the American ...
(ALCS). The Orioles then defeated the Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...
in the 1983 World Series
The 1983 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1983 season. The 80th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American League champion Baltimore Orioles and the National ...
, winning in five games.
The Orioles fell to fifth in the AL East in 1984, despite playing eight games over .500. After the Orioles began the 1985 season in first place with an 18–9 record, an 11–17 slump resulted in Altobelli's dismissal on June 13 and Weaver's return as manager which ended the latter's -year retirement. (Orioles' owner Edward Bennett Williams
Edward Bennett Williams (May 31, 1920 – August 13, 1988) was an American lawyer who became a high-profile defense lawyer and co-founded the law firm of Williams & Connolly. Williams also owned several professional sports teams, including the Ba ...
had never really respected Altobelli's intellect, referring to him as "cement head".)
Altobelli then returned to coaching, working with the Yankees again (1986–1987), serving next under Don Zimmer
Donald William Zimmer (January 17, 1931 – June 4, 2014) was an American infielder, manager, and coach in Major League Baseball (MLB). Zimmer was involved in professional baseball from 1949 until his death, a span of 65 years, across 8 d ...
with the Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...
from 1988 to 1991, and filling in as interim manager for one game when Zimmer was fired in 1991, before being replaced in Chicago by Jim Essian
James Sarkis Essian, Jr. (born January 2, 1951) is an American former professional baseball player, coach, and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a catcher for the Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago White Sox, Oakland Athletics, Sea ...
.
Return to Rochester
Altobelli returned to Rochester
Rochester may refer to:
Places Australia
* Rochester, Victoria
Canada
* Rochester, Alberta
United Kingdom
*Rochester, Kent
** City of Rochester-upon-Medway (1982–1998), district council area
** History of Rochester, Kent
** HM Prison ...
in 1991 and took over as general manager
A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...
of the Red Wings the following year, overseeing a staff that included Russ Brandon
Russ Brandon (born June 1967) is an American sports executive, and current President of the XFL. Brandon is best known for his 21-year tenure in the front office of the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League.
Career Early career
Brando ...
, Glenn Geffner Glenn Geffner, a Miami native, is a radio play-by-play announcer who recently announced for the Miami Marlins. Geffner joined the Marlins radio broadcast team in 2008. Geffner partners with Dave Van Horne on the Marlins Radio Network. In addition to ...
, Joe Kehoskie
Joe Kehoskie (born January 18, 1973) is an American baseball consultant, executive, and entrepreneur. He has worked in professional baseball in a variety of capacities since 1984, formerly working in minor league baseball (1984–1994) and as a ...
, Josh Lewin
Josh Lewin is an American sportscaster who works as a play-by-play announcer for the UCLA Bruins football and basketball teams.
Early life and career
Lewin is originally from Rochester, New York, but lived outside of Boston for several years ...
, and Bob Socci. He served in this capacity for three years. Altobelli subsequently acted as special assistant to the club president until 1997. One year later, he began serving as the color commentator
A color commentator or expert commentator is a sports commentator who assists the main (play-by-play) commentator, typically by filling in when play is not in progress. The phrase "colour commentator" is primarily used in Canadian English and t ...
for Red Wings home-game broadcasts. He announced his retirement in early 2009, making it the first year he was out of organized baseball since 1950.
Altobelli was referred to as Rochester's "Mr. Baseball." His 26 was the first number retired by the team, he was an inaugural inductee into the Red Wings Hall of Fame, and in 2010 a statue of Altobelli was installed on the Frontier Field
Innovative Field (originally known as Frontier Field) is a baseball stadium located at One Morrie Silver Way in downtown Rochester, New York. It has been the home of the Rochester Red Wings of the International League since 1997. The park opened ...
concourse, which included a plaque noting he is the only man to have been a player, coach, manager, and general manager of the team.
Managerial record
Personal life
Altobelli resided in Rochester, New York
Rochester () is a City (New York), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, the county seat, seat of Monroe County, New York, Monroe County, and the fourth-most populous in the state after New York City, Buffalo, New York, Buffalo, ...
. He married Patsy Ruth Wooten in 1952. Together they had six children: Mike, Mark, Jody, Jackie, Jerry, and Joe. They remained married for 51 years until her death in 2003.[
Altobelli suffered a stroke in November 2017, and consequently resided at a rehabilitation center. He made his final public appearance two years later in August 2019, when ]Rich Dauer
Richard Fremont Dauer (born July 27, 1952) is an American baseball former infielder and coach in Major League Baseball (MLB). He spent his entire 10-year MLB playing career with the Baltimore Orioles, winning the 1983 World Series. He was primar ...
– who played under Altobelli in 1976 – was inducted into the Rochester Red Wings Hall of Fame.[ Altobelli died on March 3, 2021, at the age of 88.][Pitoniak, Scott; , Rochester Business Journal, March 3, 2021]
References
External links
Joe Altobelli
at Pura Pelota (Venezuelan Professional Baseball League)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Altobelli, Joe
1932 births
2021 deaths
American people of Italian descent
Baseball coaches from Michigan
Baltimore Orioles coaches
Baltimore Orioles managers
Minor League Baseball broadcasters
Baseball players from Detroit
Caribes de Oriente players
American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela
Chicago Cubs coaches
Chicago Cubs managers
Cleveland Indians players
Columbus Jets players
Gavilanes de Maracaibo players
Indianapolis Indians players
Indios de Oriente players
Industriales de Valencia players
Major League Baseball bench coaches
Major League Baseball first basemen
Major League Baseball third base coaches
Minnesota Twins players
New York Yankees coaches
Martin Luther King High School (Detroit) alumni
Sportspeople from Rochester, New York
Rochester Red Wings managers
Rochester Red Wings players
San Francisco Giants managers
Toronto Maple Leafs (International League) players
World Series-winning managers
Dallas–Fort Worth Spurs players
Daytona Beach Islanders players
Elmira Pioneers players
Montreal Royals players
Omaha Dodgers players
Reading Indians players
Syracuse Chiefs players
American expatriate baseball players in Canada