Albert Belle

Do you know the name of the player who broke the $10 million per year barrier in the MLB?

Well, if you don’t, then there’s no need to worry because the man in question is none other than one of the best players in the history of MLB, Albert Belle.

Albert was not only one of the elite players during his era but also one of the highest-paid.

Thus, to say the least, Albert enjoyed one hell of a glorious career, which is reflected by his net worth of $30 million, along with his five appearances in the All-Star.

Thus, we here at playersbio have written this article to enlighten our dear readers about Belle’s early life and career.

Quick Facts:

Early life, family, and education of Albert Belle

It’s interesting to note that on August 25, 1966, Terry Belle and Albert Joujob Belle were born to parents Albert Belle Sr. and Carrie Belle.

Baseball and football were the only sports the two had ever wanted to play since they were young children. As was previously mentioned, their father, Albert Sr., coached sports at the high school level.

Albert Jr. subsequently advanced steadily to become one of the top high school prospects. Notably, Belle twice represented Huntington High School on the baseball All-State team.

After that, Louisiana State University offered Albert a full scholarship because he was one of the top players coming out of high school and was one of the best players overall.

As he was born in Louisiana, Belle enrolled in the university without any hesitation From 1985 to 1987, the Louisiana native remained with the LSU Tigers, and in those years, he was named to the First Team All-SEC in 1986 and 1987.

As a result, by the time Albert graduated from college, the majority of MLB teams were interested in hiring the Louisianna-born slugger.

Career & Trades | Albert Belle

In 1989, Albert signed a contract with the Cleveland Indians, the organization that had originally selected him in the 1987 draft. After that, Belle stayed with the team for an additional eight years, during which time he developed from a rookie prospect to a four-time All-Star.

Most notably, the Louisianna native led the league in RBIs, slugging percentage, and extra base hits three times. In addition, Belle would have won the 1995 MVP award if it weren’t for his negative image in the public and media.

After spending eight illustrious years with the Indians, Albert signed a free-agent contract with the Chicago White Sox in the winter of 1996.

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The Louisiana native became the highest-paid player at the time after agreeing to a five-year, $55 million contract. In addition, Belle made $10 million in one year for the first time in baseball history.

After that, Albert had two productive seasons with the White Sox, which included a career-high hitting streak of 27 games in 1997.

Additionally, the Louisianna native broke the franchise record for runs scored in a season with 152. Belle also participated in the All-Star game for the fifth time with the team.

However, a peculiar clause that required him to be one of the three highest-paid players in the MLB put an unfortunate end to his time with the Chicago-based team.

As a result of the White Sox’s decision not to raise his pay, Albert lost his job and became a free agent. Everyone in the league who had the money to do so scheduled meetings with the five-time All-Star in an effort to hire him. In the end, Albert received a contract from the Baltimore Orioles that he was unable to decline.

To clarify, he was given a five-year, $65 million contract by the Orioles (worth $99.7 million in today’s market). As a result, Belle earned the most money in MLB for the second time in his career.

After that, the Orioles left fielder had two fairly successful seasons before a degenerative hip injury forced him to retire.

Not to mention that on the day of his retirement, he was only 34 years old. However, because of a clause in his contract, Albert stayed on the 40-man roster for the entire five years of his deal.

The five-time All-Star retired as one of the greatest players to ever play in a baseball park, to sum up. Belle’s career was made even sweeter by the fact that he was also one of the highest earners of his time.

What is Albert Belle’s age? Height, age, and body measurements

Belle is currently 55 years old, having been born in the year 1966. It’s not that young that Albert began playing professionally at the age of 23, though. He continued to play in the MLB for an additional 11 years, finishing his career at age 34.

The five-time All-Star is also slightly shorter than the average height of an MLB player at 6 feet 1 inch. Nevertheless, despite his short stature, Albert could swing his arm more quickly than most other players.

For instance, in 1995, Belle became the first player ever to hit 50 doubles and 50 home runs in the same season.

Albert Belle | Disputes

Albert Belle underwent alcoholism treatment in 1990 and spent ten weeks at the Cleveland Clinics. He was a member of the Cleveland Indians at that time.

According to reports, Belle has a lengthy history for his infamous works and has been involved in a number of controversies to date.

Bat Corked and Fighting

After being discovered using corked bats while playing for the Cleveland Indians, Belle was given a seven-day suspension. He used a corked bat while involving his teammate Jason Grimsley, to elaborate.

They claimed at the time that Jason was instructed by Belle to break into the umpire’s locker room and switch the bat for the corked one.

Although they were joking around at first, they became serious once Omar Vizquel’s autobiography mentioned the incident.

In addition to that, he received a fine for kicking Brewers infielder Fernando Via during a game.

Journalists covering Belle

Belle hasn’t made a good impression on the reporters, in fact. Before his games, Albert Belle reportedly refused to participate in interviews and, when pressed, claimed that doing so wasn’t necessary.

“It wasn’t a big deal that people like Sandy Koufax, Joe DiMaggio, and Steve Carlton didn’t interview. They stayed silent. I am also reserved. I only want to think about baseball. Why is it that everyone wants to hear me speak?

However, the media started reporting on disputes involving him. Even after his injury, which ended his career, he received no sympathy from the media.

“Sorry, there’ll be no words of sympathy here for Albert Belle. He was a surly jerk before he got hurt, and now he’s a hurt surly jerk…He was no credit to the game.”
-New York Daily News columnist Bill Madden

“It was a taken in baseball circles that Albert Belle was nuts… The Indians billed him $10,000 a year for the damage he caused in clubhouses on the road and at home and tolerated his behavior only because he was an awesome slugger.” 

Highlights and awards

• 1986: 1st team All-SEC, 2nd team All-America, South 1 Regional Tournament MVP
• 1987: 1st team All-SEC, 3rd team All-America
• 5× All-Star
• 5× Silver Slugger Award
• 1995: AL home run leader, First player to ever hit 50 HR and 50 Doubles, The Sporting News Player of the Year, Baseball Digest Player of the Year
• 3× AL RBI leader
• Cleveland Indians Hall of Fame

Albert Belle’s earnings and net worth

With an impressive $30 million net worth as of 2022, Albert is primarily due to his 11-year MLB playing career. Nobody should be shocked by the 53-year-enormous old’s net worth given that he made over $97 million in salary alone.

Belle was also among the best players of his generation, and as a result, his teams paid him enormous sums of money. Albert actually became the first MLB player to make more than $10 million a year.

From the years 1997 till 2003, the five-time All-Star was consistently earning over $10 million per year, first with the Chicago White Fox then Baltimore Eagles.

In 1999, when he earned $11.9 million, Belle made history by becoming the MLB player with the highest salary.

On the Fangraphs website, you can find stats, a game log, a play log, graphs, and a lot more details about Albert Belle.

Albert Belle | Life & Family

In terms of his relationship with Melissa Belle, his wife, Albert is content. Likewise, the couple wed in 2005 after meeting through a mutual friend. The couple has been in a loving relationship ever since.

Belle, on the other hand, was romantically linked to Beth Myers back in the year 2000. Four daughters were born to the couple while they were still together, but the media is still unaware of them.

But that belongs in the past and should stay there. Right now, Albert and Mellisa are ecstatic in their marriage.

The two lovers actually have two children together. Unfortunately, we were unable to uncover any additional information on the subject.

Some of the extra facts on Albert Belle’s likes.

• Favorite actor: Danny Glover
• Most liked actress: Vanessa Williams
• Favorite movie: Lethal Weapon
• Favorite book: Malcom X
• Hobbies: Ping-Pong, golf, chess, reading, crossword puzzles, video games
• Favorite foods: Gumbo, red beans and rice, spaghetti, Italian
• The closest friend in baseball: Andre Thornton

Social Media Presence:

Cleveland Indians Instagram: 560k followers

Chicago White Sox Instagram: 396k followers

Baltimore Orioles Instagram: 417k followers

If you are interested in buying autographed items of Albert belle like his jersey, click the link to follow>>>

Some FAQs:

Is Albert Belle in the Hall of Fame?

Back in 2006, Albert Belle was eligible for the Hall of Fame; unfortunately, he only gained 7.7% of votes back then.

However, he was yet on the next year’s list, which ended unfortunately as the last year with only 19 votes (3.5%).

How much is an Albert Belle rookie card worth?

Albert Belle’s rookie baseball card price ranges from $0.99-$9.95.

What is Albert Belle’s batting average?

Albert Belle has an average batting of 0.295.

What ended Albert Belle’s career?

Albert Belle ended his professional baseball career due to a hip injury. Belle suffered a hip injury while playing for the Baltimore Orioles. It was a severe case of degenerative arthritis in his right hip.

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