He began his major league career on September 6, 1968, but did not have his first full year until 1970. In 1969, he suffered a severe injury while serving in the Marine Reserves, at Camp Pendleton in California. May was cleaning a mortar when it fired causing a partial amputation of his right thumb.[1] He won the Sporting News Rookie of the Year Award, but lost to Lou Piniella for the Major League Baseball Rookie of the Year Award. In 1970, as the White Sox' full-time left fielder, he had a good breakout season, batting .285 with 12 home runs and 68 RBIs. However, the White Sox had a miserable year, finishing 50 games under .500 and in last place in the American League, 42 games out of first place. In 1971 he batted .294 with 70 RBIs while playing regularly at first base for the only time in his career. He moved back to the outfield after an offseason trade brought superstar Dick Allen to the White Sox.[2]
Throughout the early 1970s, May continued to help the White Sox improve as a solid everyday starter for them. In 1972, he hit .308 and had 28 stolen bases, which would both end up his career-highs in the respective categories. That year, Chicago finished in 2nd place in the AL, behind only the Oakland Athletics. In 1973 he collected 20 home runs and 96 RBIs, which would end up his career highs in those categories.
May did get a crack at postseason play, but not with the White Sox. On May 18, 1976, he was traded to the Yankees for pitcherKen Brett and fellow outfielder Rich Coggins. The deal was made while the Yankees were in a heated pennant race. That year, he hit .278 and the Yankees went to the World Series. During the ALCS, May went 2-for-10 with a double and a walk. In the World Series against the Cincinnati Reds, he did not get a hit in 9 at bats and ended up with a .105 batting average in the postseason.
He was an All-Star in 1969 and 1972 and made the top 10 in batting average and stolen bases twice.
While playing for the White Sox he had the rare distinction of wearing his birthday on the back of his uniform, including his surname: "MAY 17."[3]
In a 10-year career, he hit .274 with 90 home runs and 536 RBIs in 1165 games. He had 85 career stolen bases and 545 runs scored. In 4120 at bats, he had 1127 career hits. In 2012, May joined the coaching staff of the Schaumburg Boomers baseball team, in the Frontier League.
Personal lifeedit
May worked for the United States Postal Service for 20 years as a mail carrier and clerk after playing baseball.[citation needed] He is currently a community relations representative for the White Sox. May is the younger brother of Lee May, who played in the major leagues for eighteen seasons. In 1969, they were the first brothers to play against each other in the All Star Game, with Carlos representing the American League (AL) and Lee representing the National League (NL).
May is the only player in MLB history to wear his birthday on the back of his jersey by wearing No.17, which including the name reads as "May 17", when he began his Major League career in the White Sox.
Career statistics and player information from Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors)
January 01, 1970
carlos, this, biography, living, person, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, adding, reliable, sources, contentious, material, about, living, persons, that, unsourced, poorly, sourced, must, removed, immediately, from, article, talk, page. This biography of a living person needs additional citations for verification Please help by adding reliable sources Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately from the article and its talk page especially if potentially libelous Find sources Carlos May news newspapers books scholar JSTOR April 2014 Learn how and when to remove this message Carlos May born May 17 1948 is an American former professional baseball player He played in Major League Baseball as an outfielder first baseman and designated hitter from 1968 to 1977 most prominently for the Chicago White Sox where he was a two time American League All Star player He also played for the New York Yankees and the California Angels After his major league career he played in the Nippon Professional Baseball league for the Nankai Hawks from 1978 to 1981 May is the younger brother of former professional baseball player Lee May Carlos MayLeft fielder Designated hitter First basemanBorn 1948 05 17 May 17 1948 age 75 Birmingham Alabama U S Batted LeftThrew RightProfessional debutMLB September 6 1968 for the Chicago White SoxNPB 1978 for the Nankai HawksLast appearanceMLB October 2 1977 for the California AngelsNPB 1981 for the Nankai HawksMLB statisticsBatting average 274Home runs90Runs batted in536NPB statisticsBatting average 309Home runs70Runs batted in252TeamsChicago White Sox 1968 1976 New York Yankees 1976 1977 California Angels 1977 Nankai Hawks 1978 1981 Career highlights and awards2 All Star 1969 1972 Contents 1 Early years 2 Major league career 3 Personal life 4 References 5 External linksEarly years editCarlos was born in Birmingham Alabama He attended A H Parker High School Major league career editHe began his major league career on September 6 1968 but did not have his first full year until 1970 In 1969 he suffered a severe injury while serving in the Marine Reserves at Camp Pendleton in California May was cleaning a mortar when it fired causing a partial amputation of his right thumb 1 He won the Sporting News Rookie of the Year Award but lost to Lou Piniella for the Major League Baseball Rookie of the Year Award In 1970 as the White Sox full time left fielder he had a good breakout season batting 285 with 12 home runs and 68 RBIs However the White Sox had a miserable year finishing 50 games under 500 and in last place in the American League 42 games out of first place In 1971 he batted 294 with 70 RBIs while playing regularly at first base for the only time in his career He moved back to the outfield after an offseason trade brought superstar Dick Allen to the White Sox 2 Throughout the early 1970s May continued to help the White Sox improve as a solid everyday starter for them In 1972 he hit 308 and had 28 stolen bases which would both end up his career highs in the respective categories That year Chicago finished in 2nd place in the AL behind only the Oakland Athletics In 1973 he collected 20 home runs and 96 RBIs which would end up his career highs in those categories May did get a crack at postseason play but not with the White Sox On May 18 1976 he was traded to the Yankees for pitcher Ken Brett and fellow outfielder Rich Coggins The deal was made while the Yankees were in a heated pennant race That year he hit 278 and the Yankees went to the World Series During the ALCS May went 2 for 10 with a double and a walk In the World Series against the Cincinnati Reds he did not get a hit in 9 at bats and ended up with a 105 batting average in the postseason He was an All Star in 1969 and 1972 and made the top 10 in batting average and stolen bases twice While playing for the White Sox he had the rare distinction of wearing his birthday on the back of his uniform including his surname MAY 17 3 In a 10 year career he hit 274 with 90 home runs and 536 RBIs in 1165 games He had 85 career stolen bases and 545 runs scored In 4120 at bats he had 1127 career hits In 2012 May joined the coaching staff of the Schaumburg Boomers baseball team in the Frontier League Personal life editMay worked for the United States Postal Service for 20 years as a mail carrier and clerk after playing baseball citation needed He is currently a community relations representative for the White Sox May is the younger brother of Lee May who played in the major leagues for eighteen seasons In 1969 they were the first brothers to play against each other in the All Star Game with Carlos representing the American League AL and Lee representing the National League NL May is the only player in MLB history to wear his birthday on the back of his jersey by wearing No 17 which including the name reads as May 17 when he began his Major League career in the White Sox References edit Chicago Tribune Historical Newspapers Improvement Not Easy For Chisox The Tuscaloosa News Associated Press 8 March 1972 p 10 Retrieved 26 January 2011 Carlos May Stats External links edit nbsp Biography portal Career statistics and player information from Baseball Reference or Fangraphs or Baseball Reference Minors Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Carlos May amp oldid 1189286565, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
