Rookie of the Year: Tommie Agee, 1966

Outfielder, Chicago White Sox

Age:  24 (Aug. 9)

Bats – Right, Throws – Right

Height: 5’11” Weight: 195

Prior to 1966:

A native of Alabama, Agee starred in baseball and football in high school at Mobile County Training School. He went on to Grambling State University on a baseball scholarship and signed with the Cleveland Indians in 1961. He batted .261 with 15 home runs while playing for Dubuque of the Class D Midwest League in 1961 and followed up with a .258 average with Burlington in Class B in ’62, before being briefly promoted to the AAA Jacksonville Suns and for a brief late-season stint with the Indians in ’62. He moved between the minors and the parent club several times in 1963 and ’64 before being traded to the White Sox in 1965 along with LHP Tommy John and catcher John Romano. A broken hand in spring training hindered his progress, and he hit only .226 with Class AAA Indianapolis, but Agee benefited from winter action in the Florida Instructional League. With good speed and power potential with his bat, Agee took over the starting center field job from opening day in 1966.

1966 Season Summary

Appeared in 160 games

CF – 156, LF – 8, PR – 1

[Bracketed numbers indicate AL rank in Top 20]

Batting

Plate Appearances – 689 [4]

At Bats – 629 [2]

Runs – 98 [3, tied with Norm Cash]

Hits – 172 [4]

Doubles – 27 [10, tied with Harmon Killebrew & Mike Hershberger]

Triples – 8 [4, tied with four others]

Home Runs – 22 [19]

RBI – 86 [11]

Bases on Balls – 41

Int. BB – 3

Strikeouts – 127 [3]

Stolen Bases – 44 [3]

Caught Stealing – 18 [2]

Average - .273 [15]

OBP - .326 [19]

Slugging Pct. - .447 [13]

Total Bases – 281 [5]

GDP – 17 [6, tied with four others]

Hit by Pitches – 10 [2, tied with Frank Robinson & Fred Valentine]

Sac Hits – 5

Sac Flies – 4

Midseason snapshot: HR - 9, RBI – 38, AVG - .264, SB – 27, OBP - .321

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Most hits, game – 4 (in 6 AB) vs. Detroit 8/31

Longest hitting streak – 10 games

Most HR, game – 1 on 22 occasions

HR at home – 12

HR on road – 10

Multi-HR games – 0

Most RBIs, game – 5 vs. Baltimore 9/2

Pinch-hitting – No appearances

Fielding

Chances – 395

Put Outs – 376

Assists – 12

Errors – 7

DPs – 7

Pct. - .982

Awards & Honors:

AL Rookie of the Year: BBWAA

All-Star

8^th in AL MVP voting (63 points, 23% share)

  

AL ROY Voting:

Tommie Agee, ChiWS.: 16 of 20 votes, 80% share

Jim Nash, KC.: 2 votes, 10% share

Dave Johnson, Balt.: 1 vote, 5 % share

George Scott, Bos.: 1 vote, 5% share

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White Sox went 83-79 to finish fourth in the AL, 15 games behind the pennant-winning Baltimore Orioles while leading the league in stolen bases (153) and fielding errors (160).   

Aftermath of ‘66:

Agee’s hitting tailed off in 1967 as he sought to cut down on strikeouts (he ended up with two more than in ’66, a total of 129). Still a fine fielder, he was again an All-Star selection, but finished off the year with a .234 average and just 10 home runs. In the offseason Agee was traded to the New York Mets along with infielder Al Weis, where he was reunited with former high school teammate OF Cleon Jones. Following a poor 1968 season at the plate, as he hit just .217 for the ninth-place club, Agee became a key player as the Mets won the NL pennant and World Series in 1969, typically batting leadoff and hitting .271 with 26 home runs and playing a solid center field. He received a Gold Glove for his outfield play in 1970, a year in which he hit 24 home runs, knocked in 75 runs, stole 31 bases and batted .286. Knee problems hindered Agee’s performance in 1971 and ’72 and he was dealt to the Houston Astros for 1973. He was traded to St. Louis in August and he finished the year with 11 home runs, 22 RBIs, and a .222 batting average. Traded once again, this time to the Dodgers, he was released during spring training in 1974, thus ending his career.  Overall in the major leagues, Agee batted .255 with 130 home runs, 433 RBIs, and 167 stolen bases. Of that, 36 home runs, 141 RBIs, and 72 stolen bases came with the White Sox, where his average was .254 and he had his only two All-Star Game appearances. Agee was inducted into the New York Mets Hall of Fame in 2002, a year after his death at age 58 from a heart attack.

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Rookie of the Year Profiles feature players who were recipients of the Rookie of the Year Award by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (1947 to present). The award was presented to a single major league winner from its inception through 1948 and from 1949 on to one recipient from each major league.