46 Facts About Joe Morgan

1.

Joe Leonard Morgan was an American professional baseball second baseman who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball for the Houston Colt.

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2.

Joe Morgan won two World Series championships with the Reds in 1975 and 1976 and was named the National League Most Valuable Player in each of those years.

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3.

Joe Morgan hosted a weekly nationally syndicated radio show on Sports USA, while serving as a special advisor to the Reds.

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4.

Joe Morgan was African American and the oldest of six children.

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5.

Joe Morgan was a standout baseball player at Castlemont High School, but did not receive any offers from major league teams due to his size.

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6.

Joe Morgan played college baseball at Oakland City College before being signed by the Houston Colt.

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7.

Joe Morgan made his major league baseball debut on September 21,1963.

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8.

Early in his career, Joe Morgan had trouble with his swing because he kept his back elbow down too low.

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9.

Joe Morgan followed the advice, and his flapping arm became Joe Morgan's signature.

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10.

Joe Morgan played ten seasons for the Houston Astros, compiling 72 home runs and 219 stolen bases.

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11.

Joe Morgan was named an All-Star twice during this period, in 1966 and 1970.

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12.

On June 25,1966, Joe Morgan was struck on the kneecap by a line drive during batting practice.

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13.

Joe Morgan joined leadoff hitter Pete Rose as prolific catalysts at the top of the Reds' lineup.

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14.

Joe Morgan added home run power, not always displayed with the Astros in the cavernous Astrodome, outstanding speed and excellent defense.

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15.

Joe Morgan drove in Ken Griffey for the winning run in Game 7 of the 1975 World Series.

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16.

Joe Morgan was the first second baseman in the history of the National League to win the MVP back to back.

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17.

Joe Morgan hit 268 home runs to go with his 449 doubles and 96 triples, excellent power for a middle infielder of his era, and was considered by some the finest base stealer of his generation.

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18.

Besides his prowess at the plate and on the bases, Joe Morgan was an exceptional infielder, winning the Gold Glove Award in consecutive years from 1973 to 1977.

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19.

Joe Morgan went to the San Francisco Giants for the next two seasons.

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20.

Joe Morgan's home run in the last game of the 1982 season eliminated the Dodgers from the division race.

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21.

Joe Morgan won the 1982 Willie Mac Award for his spirit and leadership.

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22.

Joe Morgan then played for the Phillies, where he rejoined ex-teammates Pete Rose and Tony Perez.

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23.

Joe Morgan entered together with Jim Palmer, both in their first year of eligibility.

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24.

In 2017, Joe Morgan wrote a letter to the Hall of Fame in which he asked that players who had cheated by using performance enhancing steroids not be elected into the Hall.

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25.

Joe Morgan named Morgan as the "greatest percentages player in baseball history", due to his strong fielding percentage, stolen base percentage, walk-to-strikeout ratio, and walks per plate appearance.

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26.

In 1999, Joe Morgan ranked Number 60 on The Sporting News list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players, and was nominated as a finalist for the Major League Baseball All-Century Team.

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27.

Joe Morgan served as a member of the board of the Baseball Assistance Team, a 501 organization dedicated to helping former Major League, Minor League, and Negro league players through financial and medical hardships.

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28.

Joe Morgan started his broadcasting career in 1985 for the Cincinnati Reds.

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29.

Joe Morgan added one more local gig when he joined the Oakland Athletics' broadcasting team for the 1995 season.

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30.

In 1986, ESPN hired Joe Morgan to call Monday Night Baseball and College World Series games.

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31.

From 1988 to 1989, Joe Morgan served as an announcer for ABC, where he helped announce Monday Night and Thursday Night Baseball games, the 1988 American League Championship Series with Gary Bender and Reggie Jackson, and served as a field reporter for the 1989 World Series along with Gary Thorne.

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32.

From 1994 to 2000, Joe Morgan teamed with Bob Costas and Bob Uecker to call baseball games on NBC.

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33.

Joe Morgan called three American League Championship Series and three National League Championship Series.

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34.

Joe Morgan spent a previous stint with NBC calling regional Game of the Week telecasts alongside Bob Carpenter.

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35.

Joe Morgan was a member of ESPN's lead baseball broadcast team alongside Jon Miller and Orel Hershiser.

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36.

Besides teaming with Miller for Sunday Night Baseball telecasts, Joe Morgan teamed with Miller for League Championship Series and World Series broadcasts on ESPN Radio.

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37.

In 1999, Joe Morgan teamed with his then-NBC colleague Bob Costas to call two weekday night telecasts for ESPN.

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38.

In 2009, Sports Illustrateds Joe Posnanski spoke about the perceived disparity between Morgan's celebrated playing style and his on-air persona:.

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39.

Joe Morgan was a broadcaster in the MLB 2K video game series from 2K Sports.

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40.

Joe Morgan married Gloria Stewart, his high school girlfriend, on April 3,1967.

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41.

In March 1988, while transiting through Los Angeles International Airport, Joe Morgan was violently thrown to the floor, handcuffed, and arrested by Los Angeles Police Department detectives who profiled him as a drug courier.

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42.

Joe Morgan filed and won a civil rights case against the LAPD in 1991, and was awarded $540,000.

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43.

In 2015, Joe Morgan was diagnosed with Myelodysplastic syndrome, which developed into leukemia.

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44.

Joe Morgan received a bone marrow transplant from one of his daughters.

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45.

Joe Morgan died on October 11,2020, at his home in Danville, California, at the age of 77.

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46.

Joe Morgan suffered from a non-specified polyneuropathy in the time leading up to his death.

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