TIL that Harvey Kuenn was only 52 years old in 1982. I thought he was in his 70's - especially since he died only 6 years later.

posted by u/AZAHole · 2026-10-25 17:39 UTC

## Top comments

1. u/AutoModerator · 2026-10-25 17:39 UTC

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2. u/COV3RTSM · 2026-10-25 17:41 UTC

Booze, cigarettes, and leaded gas

3. u/Ok-Word-2403 · 2026-10-25 18:24 UTC

And lots of day games without sunscreen

4. u/DesertWanderlust · 2026-10-25 19:01 UTC

This is it plus stress. Even 40-somethings looked like old men in the 70s.

5. u/epicswagdouchebag · 2026-10-25 20:35 UTC

Sparky Anderson looked like he was in his 70s for like 35 years

6. u/harveygoatmilk · 2026-10-25 18:10 UTC

Red meat three meals a day

7. u/Fun_Trick2172 · 2026-10-25 21:04 UTC

Not really. Modern eating habits including the sheer amount of meat eaten is a very recent thing. Smoking, heavy drinking, and of course his extensive abuse of other tobacco products have more to do with it.

8. u/Aware_Impression_736 · 2026-10-26 00:49 UTC

Chewing terbacky was huge among ballplayers.

9. u/gimmesomespace · 2026-10-25 21:15 UTC

10. u/JMWest_517 · 2026-10-25 18:19 UTC

29 years earlier, in 1953, Kuenn was Rookie of the Year playing for the Tigers. He was a lifetime .300 hitter, made 8 all-star teams, and was the last out in Sandy Koufax's 1965 perfect game.

11. u/Opening-Health-6484 · 2026-10-25 18:27 UTC

And famously traded for Rocky Colavito in a straight swap. Which some say cursed the Cleveland franchise.

12. u/brownszombie · 2026-10-25 23:54 UTC

A hamburger for a steak

13. u/Opening-Health-6484 · 2026-10-26 00:31 UTC

Yep. That's what Frank Lane said.

14. u/cheeker_sutherland · 2026-10-25 20:53 UTC

Two and two the count to Harvey Kuenn….

15. u/goaway2684 · 2026-10-25 17:49 UTC

Also had a wooden leg!

16. u/AmericanWasted · 2026-10-25 18:24 UTC

Damn he sounding cooler and cooler tbh

17. u/FirstPurple148 · 2026-10-25 23:35 UTC

😂

18. u/TKGB24 · 2026-10-26 00:26 UTC

So did Corporal Klegg

19. u/smailskid · 2026-10-25 18:09 UTC

I always thought these managers looked like elderly babies in their uniforms.

20. u/ToddPundley · 2026-10-25 18:32 UTC

Among 80s managers Ralph Houck, Sparky Anderson and John McNamara have Kuenn beat for looking decades older then they actually were