Curtis Granderson

Early years

Granderson grew up in Blue Island and Lynwood, Illinois, south suburbs of Chicago. His father, Curtis Sr., was a dean and physical education teacher at Nathan Hale Elementary School; his mother, Mary, taught chemistry at Curie Metropolitan High School. As a child, he rooted for the Atlanta Braves rather than the hometown Chicago Cubs. He attended Thornton Fractional South High School in Lansing, Illinois, playing baseball and basketball. He batted .369 with 11 home runs and 88 RBIs in high school, earning All-State selection his senior year. He wore number 14 because his father wore it playing softball; the school retired his jersey in December 2011.

College career

Curtis Granderson picked the University of Illinois Chicago partly because they let him play both baseball and basketball, but he dropped basketball just two weeks into his first year to focus on baseball. In 2000, as a freshman, he led the UIC Flames in home runs (seven) and walks (45). As a sophomore, he hit .304 and topped the team in runs, home runs, and walks. That summer, he played for the Mankato Mashers in the Northwoods League, batting .328 over 44 games. His junior year, he hit .483, second in the nation behind Rickie Weeks Jr., and earned Second-Team All-American honors from Baseball America and USA Today's Baseball Weekly. He graduated with a double major in business administration and business marketing. UIC retired his number 28 on February 6, 2013.

Professional career

The Detroit Tigers picked Curtis Granderson in the third round of the 2002 draft and sent him to their Oneonta affiliate, where he hit .344 over 52 games. While playing, he finished his college degree at UIC through online courses. He moved up to Lakeland in 2003 and Erie in 2004, batting .303 with 21 homers and 93 RBIs for the SeaWolves. Baseball America named him the Tigers' top minor league player and prospect after 2004.

In 2005 spring training, he tried for the starting center field job but was sent to Triple-A Toledo, where he hit .290 with 15 homers, 65 RBIs, and 22 steals. Granderson first reached the majors in September 2004, debuting hitless against the Twins but throwing out a runner. He got a second call-up in July 2005, then a third in August, and stayed for good. That September, he hit his first inside-the-park homer, had a five-hit game, and delivered a walk-off homer against the White Sox.

He won the starting center field role in 2006, beating out Nook Logan, and started his career with a 151-game errorless streak, the longest by a position player since Dave Roberts. In the playoffs, he hit two homers in the AL Division Series and one in the AL Championship Series, but struggled in the World Series, batting .095 as the Cardinals beat the Tigers.

Personal life

Granderson is a fan of WWE and attended WrestleMania 23 in Detroit; his favorite wrestlers include the Ultimate Warrior, the Undertaker, Junkyard Dog, and "Macho Man" Randy Savage. He is an avid fan of college basketball and the Kansas Jayhawks. He has served as an ambassador for Major League Baseball International, traveling to England, Italy, the Netherlands, France, South Africa, China, New Zealand, South Korea, and Japan to promote baseball. Commissioner Bud Selig wrote a thank-you letter praising his representation of the sport.

He has promoted and assisted African-American baseball players and initiated dialogue about the lack of Black players. When signing endorsement deals with Nike, Louisville Slugger, and Rawlings, he asked them to donate to his foundation or equipment to inner-city programs. His foundation, the Grand Kids Foundation, raises money for inner-city children's educations. He wrote a children's book, All You Can Be: Dream It, Draw It, Become It!, published in August 2009.

In February 2010, he represented MLB at a White House function announcing Let's Move! He donated $5 million to help UIC build a new baseball stadium in 2013. He has been involved in the MLBPA since 2006 and won the Marvin Miller Man of the Year Award in 2009, 2016, 2018, and 2019. A 2011 Sports Illustrated poll of 290 players voted him one of the friendliest players. He wore his socks high to honor Negro league players.