Arlington, Texas—The Texas Rangers are saddened by the passing of one of the top sluggers in franchise history, outfielder-first baseman Frank Howard, who died this morning at the age of 87. He was the oldest living expansion Washington Senator at the time of his passing.
“Hondo” was arguably the top player in the history of the expansion Washington Senators and one of Major League Baseball’s top sluggers of the 1960’s. From 1965-71, he batted .279 with 237 homers and 670 RBI in 1077 games with Washington. He is the all-time expansion Senators (1961-71) leader in batting average, runs (516), hits (1071), doubles (146), homers, RBI, walks (533), on-base percentage (.368), and slugging (.513). He was an A.L. All-Star in four consecutive seasons from 1968-71.
Known for his titanic home runs, Mr. Howard led the American League with 44 homers in both 1968 and 1971 while hitting a career best 48 long balls in 1969. He also led the league with 126 RBI and 132 walks in 1970. It was only fitting that Mr. Howard hit the final homer in Senators’ history on September 30, 1971 against the New York Yankees at R.F.K. Stadium.
He was on the roster when the Senators moved to Arlington, Texas in the fall of 1971 and hit the first home run ever at Arlington Stadium on April 21, 1972. Mr. Howard batted .244 with 9 homers and 31 RBI for the Rangers before being traded to Detroit. After a 16-year Major League career in which he hit 382 homers and drove in 1119 runs, Mr. Howard was a long-time Major League coach and manager.
Frank Howard was a bigger than life personality who was very popular with his teammates and the fans in Washington and Texas. The Rangers extend their deepest condolences to Mr. Howard’s family and friends. He will be greatly missed.