Mickey Mantle

Mickey Mantle may have been destined to be a great baseball player.  His father, who played semipro ball, named him after Hall of Famer Mickey Cochran.  At the age of three, “Mick” wore a baseball uniform.  At age five, he could switch-hit. In high school, he played baseball and football, incurring the first of the leg injuries that followed him throughout his career.  During Mantle’s 18 seasons with the Yankees™ (1951-1968), the team won 12 pennants.  A consistent All-Star, Mantle also earned 3 MVP awards, hit for the triple crown, and became the all-time World Series leader with 18 home runs.