Carl Michael Yastrzemski (; nicknamed
"Yaz"; born August 22, 1939) is an
American former
Major League Baseball player. He was elected to the
Baseball Hall of Fame in
1989. Yastrzemski played his entire 23-year baseball career with the
Boston Red Sox (1961–1983). He was primarily a
left fielder, but also played 33 games as a third baseman and mostly was a
first baseman and
designated hitter later in his career. Yastrzemski is an 18-time
All-Star, the possessor of seven
Gold Gloves, a member of the
3000 hit club, and the first
American League player in that club to also accumulate over 400
home runs. He is second on the all-time list for games played, and third for total at-bats. He is the Red Sox' all-time leader in career
RBIs, runs, hits, singles, doubles, total bases, and games played, and is second on the team's list for home runs behind
Ted Williams . In , Yastrzemski achieved a peak in his career, leading the Red Sox to the American League
pennant for the first time in over two decades, in that season being voted the
American League MVP, and was the last winner of the
Triple Crown for batters in the Major Leagues until
Miguel Cabrera achieved the feat in 2012.