Mickey Mantle Biography

1931-1995

American baseball player

Many argue that he was the greatest baseball player ever, and were it not for the almost constant menace of alcohol and health-related maladies during his long and successful career as a New York Yankee, chances are there would be no argument. Mickey Mantle played in twenty All-Star games, and he holds the record for most career World Series home runs, runs scored and runs batted in. He subscribed to the old adage that, "It is just as important to be lucky as it is to be good." But Mantle's luck would eventually run out. His body, hindered by alcoholism and physical afflictions, would eventually give up on him. Too weak to fight any longer, he would die of cancer in 1995 at the age of 63. In spite of his personal hardships, however, Mickey Mantle remains a hero in America.

Semi-Pro During High School

In addition to playing football, Mantle played semi-pro baseball in high school. In a 1946 semi-pro game with his team, the Baxter Springs (Oklahoma) Whiz Kids, an umpire encouraged Mickey to try out for the pros. Mantle traveled to Joplin, Missouri, and tried out with the Yankees Farm club. A few years later, when Mickey Charles Mantle received his high school diploma, he also had a contract with the New York Yankees for $1000.

SELECTED WRITINGS BY MANTLE:

(With Ben Epstein) The Mickey Mantle Story, Holt, 1953.

(With Whitey Ford) Whitey and Mickey: A Joint Autobiography of the Yankee Years, New American Library, 1978.

(With Herb Gluck) The Mick, Doubleday, 1985.

(With Phil Pepe) My Favorite Summer, 1956, Doubleday, 1991.

With Mickey Herskowitz) All My Octobers, Harper Collins, 1994.