Beloved Tigers Star, Hall of Famer Al Kaline Dies at 85

Beloved Tigers Star, Hall of Famer Al Kaline Dies at 85
Detroit Tigers Hall of Famer Al Kaline is honored for his 50 years with the Tigers organization at Comerica Park in Detroit. John F. Martin/AP
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Fresh off the train and only 18 years old, Al Kaline ran into an immediate roadblock trying to join the Detroit Tigers. Called up to the majors, he couldn’t get past the security guards at Briggs Stadium.

“I finally convinced them I was the guy who just signed a bonus contract for the enormous sum of $15,000. That was a lot back then,” Kaline recalled in a 1999 documentary.