Dick McAuliffe Biography
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- Born Nov. 29, 1939
Richard John "Dick" McAuliffe (November 29, 1939 – May 13, 2016) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a shortstop and second baseman for the Detroit Tigers from 1960 to 1973 and for the Boston Red Sox from 1974 to 1975. He was a part of the Tigers\' 1968 World Series championship, and was known for his unusual batting stance. A left-handed hitter, he held his hands very high with an open stance that faced the pitcher. As the pitcher delivered to home plate, McAuliffe moved his forward (right) foot to a more conventional position for his swing.\n', '
Born in Hartford, Connecticut, McAuliffe graduated from Farmington High School in Farmington, Connecticut, where he was coached by Leo Pinsky and won the state championship in 1957. McAuliffe signed with the Detroit Tigers as an amateur free agent out of high school and spent three seasons in the Tigers\' farm system. In 1960, he led the Sally League in runs (109), triples (21), and shortstop assists (430) while playing for the Knoxville Smokies. He was called up to the big leagues at the end of the 1960 season and made his major league debut on September 17, 1960.\n', '
In the 1961 and 1962 seasons, McAuliffe shifted between shortstop and second base before replacing Chico Fernandez as the Tigers starting shortstop from 1963–1966. Known for his wide-open batting stance and leg kick, McAuliffe never hit higher than .274 but was a significant contributor to the Tigers\' offensive output in the 1960s. In 1964, he hit a career-high 24 home runs, the most by any Tiger that season. In 1965, he was the American League\'s starting shortstop in the All Star game, and he went 2-for-3 with a home run and 2 RBIs. In 1966, he finished the season ranked fourth in the league with a .373 on-base percentage and fifth in the league with a .509 slugging percentage. After making the American League All Star team in 1965 and 1966 at shortstop, McAuliffe agreed to move to second base in 1967 to make room for Ray Oyler to take over at shortstop. Even with the move, McAuliffe was selected for his third consecutive All Star team in 1967. In 1967, McAuliffe was among the American League leaders in walks with 105 (3rd), 245 times on base (3rd), 7 triples (3rd), 92 runs (5th), 118 strikeouts (5th), 22 home runs (8th), and a .364 on-base percentage (9th).\n', '
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