Mark Henry Belanger

B: Jun 8, 1944, Pittsfield, MA — D: Oct 6, 1998, New York, NY

A defensive standout for the Orioles, Belanger won eight Gold Glove Awards and retired with the highest career fielding average by an AL shortstop. After his playing years, he became an official with the Major League Baseball Players Association. A notoriously weak hitter, Belanger was nonetheless named to an AL All-Star in 1976 for his glove work. In 1969, Mark hit a rare home run in the first American League Championship Series game ever played. Known for his intelligence, Belanger embodied the Orioles’ style in the 1970s: a team that won by perfecting the game’s basics without necessarily having the highest level of pure talent. Belanger contracted lung cancer and died at the age of 54.

AB	R	H	HR	RBI	AVG
5784	676	1316	20	389	.228