Graig Nettles (born August 20, 1944), nicknamed "Puff", is an American former

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (A ...

third baseman A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the scoring system u ...

. During a 22-year baseball career, he played for the

Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities area w ...

(1967–1969),

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central division. Since , they have ...

(1970–1972),

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one ...

(1973–1983),

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penn ...

(1984–1986),

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in ...

(1987), and

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos (french: link=no, Les Expos de Montréal) were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal, Quebec. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in ...

(1988). Nettles was one of the best defensive third basemen of all time, and despite his relatively low career batting average, he was an excellent offensive contributor, particularly in clutch moments with players in scoring position. In addition, he set an

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league b ...

record for career

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s by a third baseman. His 68.0

Wins Above Replacement Wins Above Replacement or Wins Above Replacement Player, commonly abbreviated to WAR or WARP, is a non-standardized sabermetric baseball statistic developed to sum up "a player's total contributions to his team". A player's WAR value is claimed to ...

(WAR) is the highest among all players with a batting average of .250 or lower. As a part of four pennant-winning Yankee teams, Nettles enjoyed his best season in 1977 when he won the

Gold Glove Award The Rawlings Gold Glove Award, usually referred to as simply the Gold Glove, is the award given annually to the Major League Baseball (MLB) players judged to have exhibited superior individual fielding performances at each fielding position in bo ...

and had career-highs in home runs (37) and

runs batted in A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the b ...

(107) in leading the Yankees to the

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the Worl ...

against the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League West, West division. Established in 1883 i ...

Early life

Nettles was born and raised in

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. Nettles' unusual first name derives from his mother's dislike of the names Greg and Craig – and her combining the two to produce "Graig." "My dad was away at the war, so he didn't have any say." The name also led to confusion for

baseball card A baseball card is a type of trading card relating to baseball, usually printed on cardboard, silk, or plastic. In the 1950s they came with a stick of gum and a limited number of cards. These cards feature one or more baseball players, teams, stad ...

companies; the error-prone inaugural 1981

Fleer The Fleer Corporation, founded by Frank H. Fleer in 1885, was the first company to successfully manufacture bubble gum; it remained a family-owned enterprise until 1989. Fleer originally developed a bubble gum formulation called '' Blibber-Blu ...

baseball card set includes an error card where his name is spelled ''"Graig"'' on the front, and ''"Craig"'' on the back. Nettles graduated from

San Diego High School San Diego High School (SDHS) is an urban public high school located on the southern edge of Balboa Park, in San Diego, California, United States. It is the oldest high school in the San Diego Unified School District, one of the oldest public sc ...

in 1962 then attended

San Diego State College San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California. Founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) system ...

on a

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

scholarship. and played for both the

Aztecs The Aztecs () were a Mesoamerican culture that flourished in central Mexico in the post-classic period from 1300 to 1521. The Aztec people included different ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those groups who spoke the Nahuatl ...

and

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

teams.St. Petersburg Times – Google News Archive Search
/ref> In 1964 and 1965, he played

collegiate summer baseball Collegiate summer baseball leagues are amateur baseball leagues in the United States and Canada featuring players who have attended at least one year of college and have at least one year of athletic eligibility remaining. Generally, they operat ...

for the

Alaska Goldpanners The Alaska Goldpanners of Fairbanks are a collegiate summer baseball team which was founded in 1960 as an independent barnstorming team. The Goldpanners were charter members of the Alaska Baseball League at the league's inception in 1974. The Go ...

of the

Alaska Baseball League The Alaska Baseball League (ABL) is an amateur collegiate summer baseball league. Players in the league must have attended one year of college and must have one year of NCAA eligibility remaining. The Midnight Sun Game, held at Growden Memorial ...

, helping to lead the team to two league championships.

Career

The

drafted Nettles in the fourth round of the

1965 Major League Baseball draft The 1965 Major League Baseball Draft is the first year in which a draft took place for Major League Baseball. It was held on June 8–9 in New York City. In Major League Baseball's first Free Agent Amateur Draft, the Kansas City Athletics selec ...

. He made his MLB debut with the Twins on September 6, 1967. Nettles batted .222 in 96 games with the Twins in 1969. On December 10, 1969, the Twins traded Nettles with Dean Chance, Ted Uhlaender, and a

player to be named later In Major League Baseball, a player to be named later (PTBNL) is an unnamed player involved in exchange or "trade" of players between teams. The terms of a trade are not finalized until a later date, most often following the conclusion of the seaso ...

(PTBNL) to the

for

Luis Tiant Luis Clemente Tiant Vega () (born November 23, 1940) is a Cuban former Major League Baseball (MLB) right-handed starting pitcher. He pitched in MLB for 19 years, primarily for the Cleveland Indians and the Boston Red Sox. Tiant compiled a 22 ...

and Stan Williams. After playing three seasons with the Indians, Nettles was acquired with Jerry Moses by the

for John Ellis,

Charlie Spikes Leslie Charles Spikes (born January 23, 1951) is a former Major League Baseball outfielder who played from 1972 through 1980 for the New York Yankees, Cleveland Indians, Detroit Tigers, and Atlanta Braves. He also played 26 games for the Chunichi ...

, Rusty Torres and

Jerry Kenney Gerald Tennyson Kenney (born June 30, 1945) is an American former Major League Baseball infielder. He is from Beloit, Wisconsin. Baseball career The second hit of his major league career was an inside-the-park home run with the New York Yankees i ...

at the

Winter Meetings Representatives of all 30 Major League Baseball teams and their 120 Minor League Baseball affiliates convene for four days each December in the Winter Meetings to discuss league business and conduct off-season trades and transactions. Attendees in ...

on November 27, 1972. The Indians traded Nettles due to a feud between Nettles and manager Ken Aspromonte. Nettles was named the AL player of the month for April 1974, as he set the AL record for home runs in a month with 11. On September 7,

1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; ...

, Nettles was caught using a bat that had six

superball A Super Ball or Superball is a toy bouncy ball based on a type of synthetic rubber invented in 1964 by chemist Norman Stingley. It is an extremely elastic ball made of Zectron, which contains the synthetic polymer polybutadiene as well as hyd ...

s inside it. He said that he had received the bat from a Yankees fan in Chicago and did not know that the bat had been altered. On September 14, , Nettles and his brother

Jim Jim or JIM may refer to: * Jim (given name), a given name * Jim, a diminutive form of the given name James * Jim, a short form of the given name Jimmy * OPCW-UN Joint Investigative Mechanism * ''Jim'' (comics), a series by Jim Woodring * ''Jim ...

homered in the same game, joining a select club that includes Bret and

Aaron Boone Aaron John Boone (born March 9, 1973) is an American baseball manager and former infielder who is the manager of the New York Yankees in Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played in MLB for 13 seasons from 1997 through 2009. As a player ...

José José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced differently in each language: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ). In French, the name ''José'', pronounced , is an old vernac ...

and Héctor Cruz, Felipe and

César Crespo César Antonio Crespo (born May 23, 1979) is a Puerto Rican former second baseman who last played in the Baltimore Orioles organization. Listed at 5'11, 170 lb., Crespo was a switch-hitter and throws right-handed. He is the younger brother ...

, Al and Tony Cuccinello, Joe and

Dom DiMaggio Dominic Paul DiMaggio (February 12, 1917 – May 8, 2009), nicknamed "The Little Professor", was an American Major League Baseball center fielder. He played his entire 11-year baseball career for the Boston Red Sox (1940–1953). DiMaggio w ...

, and

Rick Rick may refer to: People *Rick (given name), a list of people with the given name * Alan Rick (born 1976), Brazilian politician, journalist, pastor and television personality *Johannes Rick (1869–1946), Austrian-born Brazilian priest and myco ...

and Wes Ferrell. The seven sets of brothers hit their homers playing for opposing teams. Nettles was named the starting third baseman for the AL in the 1975 MLB All-Star Game. During a brawl in a game against the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

on May 20, , Nettles, who was on second base at the onset of the brawl, tackled Boston pitcher Bill Lee from behind. When it appeared that the dust had settled and the brawl was over, Lee confronted Nettles for tackling him from behind. The fracas resumed when Nettles swung at Lee. More players joined in the fray and Nettles broke Lee's collarbone when they went down in the pile. Despite the incident, Nettles was not suspended and went on to lead the American League with 32 home runs. Graig Nettles - New York Yankees

Nettles enjoyed his best season in 1977, when he picked up his first of two Gold Glove Awards, and crushed 37 homers and 107 RBI in helping lead the Yankees to a World Series win over the Dodgers. The following season, Nettles earned his second Gold Glove to help the Yankees bring back-to-back World Series championships to the Bronx. During Game 3 of the

1978 World Series The 1978 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1978 season. The 75th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American League (AL) champion New York Yankees and the Natio ...

against the

Yankee Stadium Yankee Stadium is a baseball stadium located in the Bronx, New York City. It is the home field of the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball, and New York City FC of Major League Soccer. Opened in April 2009, the stadium replaced the orig ...

, with the Dodgers leading the series two games to none, Nettles made several plays at the hot corner to stop potential run-scoring hits, and helping the Yankees gain a key win in the series. New York went on to win the next three contests and clinch the world championship. In July 1980, Nettles hit his 267th career home run, the most among AL third basemen. He was limited to 89 games in 1980 because of hepatitis, which plagued him all year long. In the fall of 1982,

George Steinbrenner George Michael Steinbrenner III (July 4, 1930July 13, 2010) was an American businessman who was the principal owner and managing partner of Major League Baseball's New York Yankees from 1973 until his death in 2010. He was the longest-serving own ...

, the Yankees owner, stated that Nettles "is in the twilight of his career, and if he never plays another game for me, he has earned more than what I have paid him." This comment insulted Nettles, and led to his increased dissatisfaction with the Yankees. The Yankees acquired Toby Harrah in February 1984, intending to

platoon A platoon is a military unit typically composed of two or more squads, sections, or patrols. Platoon organization varies depending on the country and the branch, but a platoon can be composed of 50 people, although specific platoons may rang ...

him with Nettles at third base. Dissatisfied with the platoon, Nettles reported to spring training at the deadline for his arrival. On March 30, 1984, the Yankees traded Nettles to the

for Dennis Rasmussen and a PTBNL. Nettles had wanted to play closer to his San Diego home, and his approval of the trade was required given his years of service. Nettles famously characterized his career with the Yankees when he said that " en I was a little boy, I wanted to be a baseball player and join the circus. With the Yankees I have accomplished both." Nettles was involved in the infamous 1984 "

–

Beanball Game", while playing for the Padres during a Braves home game on August 12, 1984. Nettles charged the mound, and attempted to tackle Braves relief pitcher Donnie Moore, after Moore intentionally beaned Nettles. Nettles missed and then was thrown to the ground by Braves first baseman (and former longtime Yankee teammate)

Chris Chambliss Carroll Christopher Chambliss (born December 26, 1948) is an American professional baseball player and coach (baseball), coach. He played in Major League Baseball from to for the Cleveland Indians, New York Yankees and Atlanta Braves. He served ...

. In 1985, after teammate

Eric Show Eric Vaughn Show (; May 19, 1956 – March 16, 1994) was an American professional baseball player who was a pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB). He spent most of his career with the San Diego Padres and holds the team record for most career ...

surrendered

Pete Rose Peter Edward Rose Sr. (born April 14, 1941), also known by his nickname "Charlie Hustle", is an American former professional baseball player and manager. Rose played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1963 to 1986, most prominently as a membe ...

's record-breaking 4,192nd hit, Nettles was known for saying, "The Birch Society is going to expel Eric for making a Red famous," in reference to Show's association with the anti-Communist group, the

John Birch Society The John Birch Society (JBS) is an American right-wing political advocacy group. Founded in 1958, it is anti-communist, supports social conservatism, and is associated with ultraconservative, radical right, far-right, or libertarian ideas. T ...

. The Padres declined to offer Nettles a contract after the 1986 season, making him a free agent. He signed with the Braves for the 1987 season as a non-roster player, making the Braves' 24-man

Opening Day Opening Day is the day on which professional baseball leagues begin their regular season. For Major League Baseball (MLB) and most of the American minor leagues, this day typically falls during the first week of April, although in recent years ...

roster. Nettles re-signed with the Braves for the 1988 season. The

purchased Nettles on March 24, 1988. In his 22-season career, Nettles hit .248 with 390 home runs and 1,314 RBI in 2,700 games. He had a career

fielding percentage In baseball statistics, fielding percentage, also known as fielding average, is a measure that reflects the percentage of times a defensive player properly handles a batted or thrown ball. It is calculated by the sum of putouts and assists, di ...

of .964, exceptional for the hot corner (third base). After retiring at age 43, Nettles coached for the Yankees (1991) and Padres (1995).

After baseball

Nettles resides in

Lenoir City, Tennessee Lenoir City is a suburban city in Loudon County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 10,117 at the 2020 Census. It is included in the Knoxville metropolitan area in the state's eastern region, along the Tennessee River southwest of K ...

, a suburb of

Knoxville Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division and the state' ...

. Graig and his wife Ginger have four children: Michael (deceased), Barrie, Tim, and Jeff. Jeff was selected by the Yankees in the 47th round of the 1998 draft. Nettles managed and played for the St. Lucie Legends of the

Senior Professional Baseball Association The Senior Professional Baseball Association, referred to commonly as the ''Senior League'', was a winter baseball league based in Florida for players age 35 and over, with a minimum age of 32 for catchers. The league began play in 1989 and had ei ...

in 1989. He also played for the league's

Bradenton Explorers The Bradenton Explorers were one of the eight original franchises that began play in the Senior Professional Baseball Association in . That season, the club compiled a record of 38-34, finishing in second place in the league's Northern Division, ...

. Nettles batted .301 and played in a total of 62 games; 10 for St. Lucie and 52 for Bradenton. Nettles managed the

Bakersfield Blaze The Bakersfield Blaze were a minor league baseball team in Bakersfield, California. They played in the Class A – Advanced California League. They played their home games at Sam Lynn Ballpark. Opened in 1941, the stadium is well known for facin ...

of the

California League The California League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in California. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following Major L ...

in 1996 to a 39-101 record. Nettles served as a consultant for '' The Bronx Is Burning'', a television drama that documented the 1977 Yankees. On March 21, 2008, he announced that he had been diagnosed with

prostate cancer Prostate cancer is cancer of the prostate. Prostate cancer is the second most common cancerous tumor worldwide and is the fifth leading cause of cancer-related mortality among men. The prostate is a gland in the male reproductive system that su ...

in late November 2007 and would undergo surgery at Manhattan's

Memorial Sloan–Kettering Cancer Center Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK or MSKCC) is a cancer treatment and research institution in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, founded in 1884 as the New York Cancer Hospital. MSKCC is one of 52 National Cancer Institute� ...

on April 8. His brother had been diagnosed with prostate cancer earlier in 2007.

Legacy

Tommy John Thomas Edward John Jr. (born May 22, 1943), nicknamed "The Bionic Man," is an American retired professional baseball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 26 seasons between 1963 and 1989. He played for the Cleveland Indians, ...

remembered Nettles for his great sense of humor, writing: "Graig Nettles was great with the one-liners, the zingers...He was the team's pressure valve...Every clubhouse needs a guy like that, the guy with the acerbic wit who can take your mind off a bad situation." Nettles wrote a controversial book, ''Balls'', a memoir of his baseball career written in collaboration with

Peter Golenbock Peter Golenbock (born July 19, 1946) is an American author. He is noted for his many books about baseball and other sports. Many of his books have been bestsellers. Career Golenbock initially worked as a lawyer for Prentice Hall, a publishing hou ...

. In the book, Nettles criticized Steinbrenner and some players as well. When the book's advance promotion came to Steinbrenner's attention in March 1984, Nettles was summarily traded to his hometown

. Baseball writer

Bill James George William James (born October 5, 1949) is an American baseball writer, historian, and statistician whose work has been widely influential. Since 1977, James has written more than two dozen books devoted to baseball history and statistics. ...

noted in his ''1984 Baseball Abstract'' that Nettles is arguably the best position player (i.e., non-pitcher) in major league history whose surname begins with the letter "N." this judgment appears to hold up: the only three players elected to the baseball Hall of Fame with "N" surnames are pitchers

Hal Newhouser Harold Newhouser (May 20, 1921 – November 10, 1998), nicknamed "Prince Hal," was an American professional baseball player. In Major League Baseball (MLB), he pitched 17 seasons on the Detroit Tigers and Cleveland Indians, from 1939 through 19 ...

Kid Nichols Charles Augustus "Kid" Nichols (September 14, 1869 – April 11, 1953) was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher who played for the Boston Beaneaters, St. Louis Cardinals and Philadelphia Phillies from 1890 to 1906. A switch hitter who ...

and

Phil Niekro Philip Henry Niekro ( ; April 1, 1939 – December 26, 2020), nicknamed "Knucksie", was an American baseball pitcher who played 24 seasons in Major League Baseball, 20 of them with the Milwaukee / Atlanta Braves. Niekro's 318 career vict ...

. In 1991, Nettles was also inducted by the San Diego Hall of Champions into th
Breitbard Hall of Fame
honoring San Diego's finest athletes both on and off the playing surface. As of 2010, Nettles holds the single-season major league record for assists by a third baseman, and is tied with

Brooks Robinson Brooks Calbert Robinson Jr. (born May 18, 1937) is a former third baseman in Major League Baseball who played his entire career for the Baltimore Orioles from 1955 to 1977. Nicknamed "the Human Vacuum Cleaner" or "Mr. Hoover", he is generally co ...

for second-most all-time. His 412 assists in 1971 broke the record of 405 shared by Harlond Clift in 1937 and Robinson in 1967. In 1973, his first year as a New York Yankee, he recorded 410 assists, breaking

Clete Boyer Cletis Leroy "Clete" Boyer (February 9, 1937 – June 4, 2007) was an American professional baseball third baseman — who occasionally played shortstop and second base — in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Kansas City Athletics (1955–57 ...

's franchise record of 396 in 1962; Robinson would tie this mark in 1974. To date, Nettles and Robinson have four of the six 400-assist seasons by a third baseman in Major League history. Nettles is mentioned in the video for

Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He has released 21 studio albums, most of which feature his backing band, the E Street Band. Originally from the Jersey Shore, he is an originato ...

's 1985 song " Glory Days." At the end of the video, Springsteen's character, a pitcher, tells a teen that he lost an imaginary game playing against the

because "Nettles got me, bottom of the ninth."

References

External links