Talkin’ Baseball: And Then There Was One… RIP, Duke Snider

Former Brooklyn Dodgers outfielder Duke Snider has passed away. The Hall-of-Famer died of natural causes this morning at the age of 84 at the Valle Vista Convalescent Hospital in Escondido, Calif.

Snider was a part of the fabled “Boys of Summer” with the Dodgers in the late-1940s and 1950s. He helped lead the club to its one and only World Series championship in 1955. He was a lifetime .295 hitter, who was named to the all-star team on eight occasions. During his 18-year career, he hit 407 home runs. He is the only player to hit four home runs in each of two different World Series (in 1952 and 1955).

He was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1980, in his 11th year of eligibility.

“The Duke of Flatbush” was immortalized in Terry Cashman’s ditty, “Talkin’ Baseball (Willie, Mickey and The Duke)”, a song written in tribute to New York’s three great center fielders – Willie Mays (Giants), Mickey Mantle (Yankees) and Snider [see below].