Rocco Domenico "Rocky" Colavito Jr. (August 10, 1933 – December 10, 2024) was an American professional baseball player, coach, and television sports commentator.

He played in Major League Baseball as an outfielder from 1955 to 1968, most prominently as a member of the Cleveland Indians, with whom he established himself as a fan favorite for his powerful hitting and his strong throwing arm.

[1] Colavito also played for the Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Athletics, Chicago White Sox, Los Angeles Dodgers, and New York Yankees.

In 2001, Colavito was voted one of the 100 greatest players in Cleveland Indians' history by a panel of veteran baseball writers, executives and historians.

The Cleveland Indians did take interest in his strong throwing arm (Indians scout Mike McNally had watched him try out in Yankee Stadium)[1] and signed him at age 17 as an undrafted amateur free agent on January 1, 1951,[5] with two-thirds of his signing bonus deferred until he progressed in their system.

In 1954, Colavito hit 38 home runs and drove in 116 RBIs for the minor league baseball team, Indianapolis Indians.

[7] In 1956, he started the season playing in the Pacific Coast League, once showing off his throwing arm by hurling a ball over the center-field wall, 436 feet (133 m) from home plate.

He finished the season batting .276 with 21 home runs, and was tied for runner-up in the AL Rookie of the Year voting.

He led the AL that season in slugging with a .620 average (the highest by an Indians right-handed hitter until Albert Belle in 1994), and finished third in the MVP balloting.

Another time when Colavito was in a batting slump and the Tigers fans started razzing him for it, he threw a ball he barely caught in left field over the right-field light tower and roof.

[22] Colavito ($35,000 in 1961)[7] drew Detroit fans' criticism by holding out for a higher 1962 salary ($54,000)[23] than established team star Al Kaline ($39,000 to $49,000).

[citation needed] Colavito was dealt along with Bob Anderson and $50,000 from the Tigers to the Kansas City Athletics for Jerry Lumpe, Dave Wickersham and Ed Rakow on November 18, 1963.

Cleveland traded pitcher Tommy John (who would win 286 games after the trade and play until 1989), outfielder Tommie Agee (1966 AL Rookie of the Year and the New York Mets' top hitter in 1969 as they won their first pennant), and catcher John Romano, to the Chicago White Sox.

The White Sox sent catcher Cam Carreon to Cleveland, and outfielder Mike Hershberger, center fielder Jim Landis, and pitcher Fred Talbot (February) to Kansas City.

Colavito played in all of Cleveland's 162 games without committing an error (274 chances),[27] but did not win one of the three AL Gold Glove Awards for an outfielder.

[7] In late July 1967, Colavito (hitting .241 with 5 home runs and 21 RBI) was traded by the Indians to the Chicago White Sox, who finished three games out of first that season.

[citation needed] On July 15, 1968, Colavito was signed as a free agent by the New York Yankees,[5] the last team and season of his 14-year MLB playing career.

On August 25, Colavito (uniform #29),[7] who was now 35 years old, became the last position player until Brent Mayne in 2000 to be credited as the winning pitcher in a game.

[30] Not only did he face down Al Kaline and Willie Horton, he further vexed the Tigers by scoring the winning run for the Yanks in the eighth inning.

[32][35][36] In 1982, Colavito and Kansas City Royals Manager Dick Howser, a former shortstop for the Indians, were involved in a traffic accident and struggle with police.

Pluto wrote a sequel, Burying the Curse, in 1995, after the Cleveland Indians won their first American League Championship in 41 years that season.

In 1997, the Indians won the AL pennant again, but lost the World Series 4–3 to the Florida Marlins after needing just two more outs in Game 7 to win.