Earle Combs

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Earle Bryan Combs (May 14, 1899 - July 21, 1976) was an American center fielder in Major League Baseball whose whole career was spent playing for the New York Yankees (1924‑1935). Combs played nearly his entire career batting leadoff in front of and playing in the same outfield as Babe Ruth.

Born in Pebworth, Kentucky, Combs rose through local leagues, among which was the Pine Mountain League in Kentucky, before entering the major leagues in 1924; he began a string of consistently productive seasons as a rookie in 1925, when he hit .342 and scored 117 runs while batting at the top of one of the most renowned offenses in major league history, which included Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig. Combs batted no lower than .299 and scored no fewer than 113 from then until the 1933 season. Combs' was nicknamed "The Kentucky Colonel".

Earle Combs
is a member of
the Baseball
Hall of Fame

Combs' career effectively ended during 1934 when he fractured his skull in a collision with the outfield fence. Combs retired after the 1935 season. Over his career, he hit .325 and was part of three World Series championships (in 1927, 1928 and 1932). He also set the Yankees team record for most Triples in a season (23 in 1927).

Combs was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1970. He died at age 77 in Richmond, Kentucky.