AUSTIN, TX (CelebrityAccess) — Don Baylor, an outfielder and designated hitter known for his ability to take a hit from a pitch and for winning the American League’s Most Valuable Player Award in 1979, has died. He was 68.
His death was reported by MLB.com, who said that the baseball star died at his home in Austin, Texas on Monday after a battle with multiple myeloma.
"Don passed from this earth with the same fierce dignity with which he played the game and lived his life," his wife, Rebecca, said in a statement.
Baylor played major league baseball for 19 seasons, and with six different teams, including a stint with the Minnesota Twins, in which he helped the team to win a World Series in 1987.
Baylor's 1987 World Series win was one of three times he reached the championship game in consecutive years, and with different teams, a record he shares with Eric Hinske.
Other teams included the Orioles, Angels, Yankees, Red Sox, and the Oakland A's. He was also the first manager of the Rockies, from 1993-98, and skippered the Cubs from 2000-02.
Baylor was known for his aggressive batting style, crowding the plate to take away inside strikes from the pitcher's arsenal. This had a side effect of making Baylor a record-holder for getting beaned — 267 times — a modern-day record when he retired in 1988.
"Today is a sad day for our game as we lost two men who built distinguished careers in the national pastime, Don Baylor, and Darren Daulton," Commissioner Rob Manfred said. "Throughout stints with 14 different Major League teams as a player, coach or manager, Don's reputation as a gentleman always preceded him. … On behalf of Major League Baseball, I extend my deepest condolences to the families, friends, and fans of these two memorable individuals."
