2-sport star, only man to pinch-hit for Ted Williams
HIGHLANDS RANCH, Colo. — Carroll Hardy, a multi-sport star best known as the only man ever to pinch-hit for Ted Williams, died Sunday at age 87.
Mr. Hardy was also known as the football executive who helped assemble the “Orange Crush” defense in Denver during the 1970s.
The University of Colorado, where Mr. Hardy was a three-sport star, said he died of complications from dementia. He is survived by his wife and three children.
Mr. Hardy went on to play professional baseball and football after starring in track, baseball and football at Colorado from 1951-55.
He earned a record 10 letters altogether in the early 1950s. An All-American honorable mention in 1953 and ’54, Mr. Hardy rushed for 1,999 career yards with a whopping 6.87yard average per carry. He led the nation in kickoff return average in 1952 and had six interceptions for the Buffaloes.
On the diamond, Mr. Hardy was CU’s alltime career batting average leader (.392) with 118 hits in 301 at-bats with 15 homers, 80 RBIs, 107 runs scored and 45 stolen bases.
Mr. Hardy was the 33rd overall pick in the 1955 NFL draft by the San Francisco 49ers and averaged 28.2 yards a catch as a rookie with 12 receptions for 338 yards and four touchdowns.
Before reporting to the 49ers camp, Mr. Hardy signed with the Cleveland Indians and played on their A-league team in Reading, Pennsylvania. In 1956, he was hitting .365 in 21 games with the Indians’ Triple-A team in Indianapolis when he was ordered to report to the U.S. Army.
He returned to the Indians after his twoyear tour of military duty, and his major league career spanned a decade from 1958-67 with stops in Cleveland, Boston, Houston and Minnesota.
Mr. Hardy was the only man ever to pinch-hit for Red Sox icons Williams and Carl Yastrzemski.
According to the Boston Globe, on Sept. 20, 1960, Williams fouled a ball off his foot in the first inning of a game, prompting Mr. Hardy’s pinch-hit appearance. He lined into a double play. It was Williams’ last season.
Mr. Hardy once told the Denver Post that “it’s not bad being remembered as the only man to ever pinch-hit for Ted Williams.”
While playing in the 1960s for the Minnesota Twins’ minor league affiliate in Denver, he began scouting part time for the Denver Broncos in the offseason.
That led to a 24-year stint with the Broncos in roles including assistant ticket manager, director of scouting, pro personnel director and assistant general manager.