This article is about the famous American baseball player Hank Greenberg. Read more about his childhood, development and personal life at i-manhattan.
Early years
Hank Greenberg was a famous American baseball player. He was born on January 1, 1911, in Greenwich Village, Manhattan. His parents, Sarah and David, were entrepreneurs who immigrated from Romania. He was the third of three children. The boy received his secondary education at James Monroe High School, where he developed a keen interest in sports, particularly baseball and basketball. He also excelled in track and field and football. Greenberg pursued higher education at New York University. After his first year of studies, he joined the American baseball team, the Detroit Tigers.
Career development
Greenberg played in the minor leagues for over three years. In 1930, he played seventeen games for the Hartford Senators and later for the Raleigh Capitals. He joined the Evansville Hubs in 1931, where he showed impressive results. He advanced to the major leagues in the 1930s while playing against the New York Yankees. Notably, Hank was the youngest player in the major leagues at that time. In 1934, he also achieved significant results, being the leader in doubles (63) and extra-base hits (96). He ranked third in the American League in slugging percentage. In 1935, Greenberg was also the leader in RBIs. After achieving outstanding results, he was recognized as the Most Valuable Player of the American League (AL). That season, Greenberg scored 25 home runs and set an MLB record with 103 RBIs. In 1937, Hank was selected to the list of AL All-Stars, and in 1938, he impressed again by hitting 58 home runs in one season. He topped the league for the second time. That year, he played 11 games with multiple home runs, setting a new league record.
In 1938, Greenberg was once again included in the AL All-Star roster. In 1939, the baseball player was named to the All-Star team for the third consecutive year, playing at first base. In 1940, Hank transitioned from first base to left field. That year, he was chosen for the All-Star team for the fourth time in a row. During that season, Greenberg hit 41 home runs for the third time, in RBIs (150), doubles (50), total bases (384), hits (99), home runs per at-bat (14.0) and slugging percentage (.670). At that time, Greenberg ranked second in the runs scored.
Military service and continuation of sports career
The baseball player was drafted into the US Army on May 7, 1941. He served there until 1945. Initially, he was an anti-tank gunner and later served in the Army Air Forces. In 1944, he was promoted from sergeant to captain. That same year, he continued his service in the China-Burma-India Theater, scouting locations for bomber bases.
The athlete re-entered the sport in the 1940s. By the way, Hank was the first Major League player to resume playing after the war. After a fairly successful sports career, Greenberg retired in 1947 and became the director of the American team Cleveland Guardians.
Personal life
Greenberg’s first wife was Caral Gimbel, whom he married in 1946. They had three children together: daughter Alva and sons Glenn and Stephen. However, their happiness did not last long, as the couple divorced in 1958. In 1966, Greenberg got married again, this time to model and actress Linda Douglas. They had no children. On September 4, 1986, the famous American baseball player died of oncology. He was buried in a cemetery in California.