Charlie Lau

Charles (Charlie) Richard Lau- Born April 12 1933; Died March 18 1984- Former Major League Baseball catcher was signed by the Detroit Tigers as an amateur free agent. After spending three season with the organization (1956; 1958-1959) he was traded (with Don Lee) to the Milwaukee Braves for Casey Wise, Don Kaiser, and Mike Roarke. After the Baltimore Orioles purchased him from the Milwaukee Braves in 1962, he adopted a contact hitter's batting stance (feet wide apart, bat held almost parallel to the ground).That season he had a .294 batting average with six homeruns and thirty-seven runs batted in.

Related Topics:
April - 12 - 1933 - March - 18 - 1984 - Major League Baseball - Detroit Tigers - 1956 - 1958 - 1959 - Milwaukee Braves - Baltimore Orioles - 1962 - Batting average - Homeruns - Runs batted in

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Hitting .194 in 23 games, he was sold by the Baltimore Orioles to Kansas City Athletics on July 1 1963 hitting .294 in Kansas City and having a batting average of .272 in 92 games. On June 15, 1964, he was traded back to the Baltimore Orioles from the Kansas City Athletics for Wes Stock. May 31, 1967, he was purchased by the Atlanta Braves and on November 27, 1967, he was released by the Atlanta Braves.

Related Topics:
Baltimore Orioles - Kansas City Athletics - July - 1 - 1963 - Kansas City - June - 15 - 1964 - May - 31 - 1967 - Atlanta Braves - November - 27

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Charlie Lau as a hitting coach

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After his playing career ended, Lau taught his hitting technique to the Baltimore Orioles, Oakland Athletics, Kansas City Royals, New York Yankees , and Chicago White Sox as a hitting instructor. He wrote the book How to Hit .300, which supplanted Ted Williams 's The Science of Hitting as the "Bible of Batting." When we was coaching the Kansas City Royals from 1971-1978, while there he taught his spray-hitting style to some of the players, including Hal McRae, Amos Otis, Willie Wilson and Hall of Fame George Brett. They (and other players) used the Lau approach during their most successful seasons.

Related Topics:
Baltimore Orioles - Oakland Athletics - Kansas City Royals - New York Yankees - Chicago White Sox - 1971 - 1978

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On March 18, 1984, as the White Sox coach, he died at the age of 50 after a long bout with cancer.

Related Topics:
March - 18 - 1984 - White Sox - Cancer

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External Links

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http://Baseballreference.com

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http://baseballlibrary.com

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