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Former LSU great Alvin Dark's birthday, January 7 (1922). Happy Birthday, Swamp Fox!
Posted on 1/7/24 at 1:35 pm
Posted on 1/7/24 at 1:35 pm
Alvin Dark, who was born in Comanche, Oklahoma but grew up in Lake Charles, lettered in baseball, football and basketball while at LSU.
He was offered a basketball scholarship from Texas A&M, but he turned it down in favor of a baseball and basketball scholarship from LSU. (Sorry, Aggies...)
After college, he served two years in the U.S. Marines before returning to play professional baseball.
He played 14 years in the Major Leagues and was a three-time All-Star and a two-time World Series champion, once as a player (1954) and once as a manager (1974). After his professional playing days ended he became a Major League coach and manager.
Dark was named the major leagues' 1948 Rookie of the Year after batting .322 for the Boston Braves.
The Swamp Fox, his nickname during his professional baseball playing days, died on November 13, 2014 at the age of 92.
Major League Career Stats
Batting average .289
Hits 2,089
Home runs 126
Runs batted in 757
Managerial record 994–954
Winning % .510
Wiki Bio
He was offered a basketball scholarship from Texas A&M, but he turned it down in favor of a baseball and basketball scholarship from LSU. (Sorry, Aggies...)
After college, he served two years in the U.S. Marines before returning to play professional baseball.
He played 14 years in the Major Leagues and was a three-time All-Star and a two-time World Series champion, once as a player (1954) and once as a manager (1974). After his professional playing days ended he became a Major League coach and manager.
Dark was named the major leagues' 1948 Rookie of the Year after batting .322 for the Boston Braves.
The Swamp Fox, his nickname during his professional baseball playing days, died on November 13, 2014 at the age of 92.
Major League Career Stats
Batting average .289
Hits 2,089
Home runs 126
Runs batted in 757
Managerial record 994–954
Winning % .510
Wiki Bio
This post was edited on 1/7/24 at 1:56 pm
13
Posted on 1/7/24 at 1:37 pm to LSURussian
Posted on 1/7/24 at 1:40 pm to LSURussian
Great street
Posted on 1/7/24 at 1:54 pm to LSURussian
Salute. Good to know I share a birthday with an LSU great!
Posted on 1/7/24 at 1:54 pm to LSURussian
Wow, What a life! 
Posted on 1/7/24 at 1:56 pm to LSURussian
I bet he’s rolling over in his grave knowing what street they named after him
Posted on 1/7/24 at 1:56 pm to mattz1122
quote:
Great street
Man I miss wavin Willie
Posted on 1/7/24 at 3:09 pm to mattz1122
Aardvark
Posted on 1/7/24 at 4:09 pm to LSURussian
My dad, who was an incredible athlete himself (college football, baseball,and boxed) said Alvin Dark was the greatest athlete he ever saw. Said the guy could literally do anything athletically as well as any professional.
Posted on 1/7/24 at 4:11 pm to LSURussian
I’m a younger guy and didn’t know much about this man. Great post, thanks.
Posted on 1/7/24 at 4:37 pm to LSURussian
I met him when I was about 4 or 5 in the mid 1950's. I have two baseballs he signed for me (he misspelled my name on the first). I heard a lot about him when I was young.
Posted on 1/7/24 at 5:00 pm to uftiger
Dark is laughing!!! Love it!
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Posted on 1/7/24 at 5:48 pm to LSURussian
He was on base when Bobby Thompson hit “The Shot Heard Around The World”.
Posted on 1/7/24 at 5:51 pm to LSURussian
Lake Chuck's finest. Dude was a real life Bill Brasky.
Posted on 1/7/24 at 7:27 pm to Lige
quote:Almost but not quite.
He was on base when Bobby Thompson hit “The Shot Heard Around The World”.
With the Dodgers leading Dark’s Giants 4-1 going into the bottom of the 9th inning, Dark led off the inning with a base hit and was then advanced to third base on a single by Don Mueller. Whitey Lockman then doubled scoring Dark from third, reducing the Dodgers lead to 4-2, and advancing Mueller to third.
Mueller injured his ankle sliding into third and was replaced by pinch runner Clint Hartung.
Then Bobby Thomson came up to bat with rookie Willie Mays (yes, THAT Willie Mays…) on deck. (Mays was later named NL Rookie of the Year at the end of that season.)
With Hartung at third and Lockman at second, Thomson’s three-run walk off homerun won the game for the Giants, 5-4.
Posted on 1/7/24 at 7:56 pm to LSURussian
Wonder what he would say about Alvin Dark Ave these days
Posted on 1/7/24 at 8:26 pm to TBoy@LSU
Photo must've been snapped during the 2nd half.
Posted on 1/8/24 at 8:19 am to uftiger
quote:That's a genuine CSB.
I met him when I was about 4 or 5 in the mid 1950's. I have two baseballs he signed for me (he misspelled my name on the first).
Posted on 1/8/24 at 8:32 am to mattz1122
Will never forget the waving black man on that street that we all nicknamed Alvin Dark. He’d stand on the street and waved to every car that passed by multiple days a week 
This was about 10 years ago. Caught him many times on the way to class through Tigerland. Whole time I lived there don’t think I ever realized the street was named after an LSU great.
This was about 10 years ago. Caught him many times on the way to class through Tigerland. Whole time I lived there don’t think I ever realized the street was named after an LSU great.
Posted on 1/8/24 at 8:42 am to LSURussian
Ok, I see it now. I watched the baseball documentary again.
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