Earl Battey

Earl Jesse Battey, Jr. (January 5, 1935 – November 15, 2003) was an American professional baseball player who appeared in Major League Baseball as a catcher from 1955 to 1967. Born in Los Angeles, he attended Jordan High School in the city's Watts neighborhood and was signed as an amateur free agent by the Chicago White Sox prior to the 1953 season. Assigned to the Colorado Springs Sky Sox of the Single-A Western League, he batted only .158 in 26 games before a demotion to the Waterloo White Hawks of the B-level Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League, where he hit .292 with 11 home runs.

Battey began his major-league career with the White Sox but blossomed during his tenure with the Minnesota Twins, emerging as a potent bat for a catcher and earning recognition as one of the top defenders at his position in the American League. He won three consecutive Gold Glove Awards between 1960 and 1962 and was named an All-Star five times. He was an integral member of the Twins' 1965 American League pennant-winning team.

Battey played his final major-league season in 1967. He was posthumously inducted into the Minnesota Twins Hall of Fame in 2004, the year after his death.