Houston Hall-Of-Famer Monte Irvin Celebrates 96th Birthday

by Greg Lucas

In recent years many Houston SABR members have had a chance to talk baseball with a man who can go back to the days of Babe Ruth with first hand experiences. Hall of Famer Monte Irvin, noted as the first black player in New York Giants history and a member of Baseball’s Hall of Fame is that man

Having passed his 96th birthday in late February Monte resides in an assisted living facility under the watchful eye of one of his daughters who has been a Houston resident for years. Monte, a native of New Jersey and later resident of Florida, has only been in Houston for a few years after he decided his advancing age might require some adjustments in lifestyle. He has made the adjustment.

Thanks to his many contacts from his years as both a Negro league star and later key player on both the 1951 and 1954 New York Giants World Series teams his phone is often busy. One frequent caller is Willie Mays. Mays was just breaking in with the Giants when manager Leo Durocher asked Irvin to take him under his wing and show him how major leaguers needed to comport themselves. Both became frequent visitors to jazz clubs in the New York area. That was in part because they loved the music and became first name friends with such greats as Dizzy Gillespie, Louis Armstrong, Billie Holliday and countless others, but also because at one time Monte had thoughts of being a musician himself.

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