Cleveland Indians all-time mustache team

Eddie Murray, Grizzled Veteran

Eddie Murray: Though Murray’s mustache was a fixture throughout his career, it really fit him perfectly as the old grizzled veteran of those mid 1990s powerhouse clubs.

That ‘stache made it clear that it had forgotten more about baseball than most people can ever begin to know.

It also proved useful to help keep up Murray’s reputation as being rough with the media. It’s like he had force field underneath his nose. No wonder he kept it growing throughout a career that spanned three decades.

Murray was with the Tribe when he collected his 3,000th career hit, which came on a summer night on the road against the Twins in 1995.

I remember my favorite baseball card shop at the time, B & B in Fairview Park used to sell tickets from the event. There were so many empty seats at the ballpark that night. Dealers just bought up tickets to sell. Dang, I wish I had one.

Defying father time, Murray, who was 40 at the time, hit .323 during that magical season. His .891 OPS was the eighth highest off is 21-year big league career.

Murray was usually Mike Hargrove‘s designated hitter in that powerful 1995 lineup, but he did play some first, sharing the duties with Paul Sorrento.

Murray was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame with 85.3 percent of the vote. Considering that at the time he was one of three players in baseball history to record 3,000 hits and hit 500 homers, it’s a joke that Murray didn’t get 100 percent.

Next: This offseason the Indians last chance to extend Lindor?

But first ballot is first ballot, and Murray will be remembered as an All-Time great, just like his ‘stache.