José Tartabull

José Milages Tartabull Guzmán (born November 27, 1938) is a retired Major League Baseball outfielder; his Major League career lasted nine years, from 1962 to 1970. He played for the Kansas City and Oakland Athletics and Boston Red Sox of the American League.

Tartabull is well remembered by Red Sox fans for throwing out the Chicago White Sox' Ken Berry at home plate on August 27, 1967, to win a key game during the 1967 American League pennant drive. In the bottom of the ninth inning with Boston leading 4–3 with one out at Comiskey Park, in the first of two scheduled that day, the contending White Sox had the fleet Berry at third base with one out. Pinch hitter Duane Josephson lofted a fly ball to Tartabull in medium right field — a probable sacrifice fly that would have tied the game. Tartabull was not known for a strong arm, but his throw, though high, arrived in time to beat Berry to home plate, where Red Sox catcher Elston Howard made the catch while blocking the plate, then swept a tag on Berry to end the game.^[1] The Red Sox would win the AL championship by a single game on the final day of the season. The play is the subject of a novel, Tartabull's Throw, by Henry Garfield, published by Simon & Schuster in 2001. Tartabull also was known for his speed and was always a threat to steal on the basepaths.

Tartabull was born in Cienfuegos, Cuba. He and his wife lived in Puerto Rico before moving to the United States. Their son, Danny Tartabull, was an All-Star major league baseball player with the Kansas City Royals, New York Yankees, and Philadelphia Phillies.

References

• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference