The Inspirational Mickey Mantle

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Influential people are born every day. Some become movie stars, star athletes, or foundation builders. Mickey Mantle became all three. He was larger than life. Mickey inspired a variety of people as he lived all aspects of life. He influenced young boys by his record-breaking statistics, became a pop icon to common folk, and generated funds for needy causes. "All the ballparks and the big crowds have a certain mystique. You feel attached, permanently wedded to the sounds that ring out, to the fans chanting your name, even when there are only four or five thousand in the stands on a Wednesday afternoon." - Mickey Mantle (Frommer). The Mick, or the Commerce Comet, did the exact same thing and was the hero of young boys playing America’s favorite pastime. His lifetime average of .298, a Gold Glove, and 3 MVP’s were all on the resume for his Hall of Fame career. He recorded the fastest home to first ever at 3.1 seconds. Mammoth home runs of over 500 feet were also in his repertoire. The biggest stage, the World Series, was his shining moment. Records for home runs, RBIs, runs scored, walks, extra-base hits, and total bases are all under his name in the World Series statistics. To add, he owns the record for most walk-off home runs. These aspects all appealed to the sluggers and quick single hitters in the neighborhood little league. Children could be seen playing pickup games going on with boys and girls alike taking up Mickey’s stance. Before and after games, Mickey would always sign autographs just to see the smile of children (Early). Songs, movies, or TV shows, Mickey has been mentioned in them all. These appealed to not only the baseball-loving crowd but also common people who just like to pass time. In 1956, Tere... ... middle of the paragraph... ... great message was displayed. Record books have been shattered by this great man. Lives will never be the same because of this great man.
Works Cited:
"61*." IMDb. IMDb.com, 1990. Web. 21 Mar. 2014.
Early, Lewis. "Mickey Mantle “Mini-Biography" A Biography of Mickey Mantle by Lewis Early." Mickey Mantle: The American Dream Comes To Life. Lewis Early, 1998. Web. 21 Mar. 2014.
Frommer, Harvey. "Mickey Mantle Quotes." Mickey Mantle Quotes. Baseball-Almanac, 2000. Web. 21 Mar. 2014.
Mantle, David. "About the Mickey Mantle Family Fund." About the Mickey Mantle Family Fund. American Cancer Society, 2014. Web. 24 Mar. 2014.

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