Interview: Willie Horton

Interview: Willie Horton

By Scott Bolohan

Willie Horton’s statue in Detroit rivals anyone’s.

In his career, he made four All-Star Games and hit 325 home runs. But his greatness can’t be measured by the numbers alone. Born and raised in the city’s Jeffries Projects, he debuted with the Tigers in 1963 at age 20 and made himself into the city’s first Black star on a team that was the second to last to integrate. In 1967 during the riots in Detroit, Horton drove in uniform down to the heart of the violence and pleaded with the people to stop to no avail. A year later in the 1968 World Series, his throw to beat the standing-up Lou Brock at the plate is a legendary moment.

After his eighteen-year career playing for Detroit, Texas, Cleveland, Oakland, Toronto, and Seattle, he would go on to coach for the White Sox and Yankees. He was brought back to the Tigers as a special assistant, where he remains a vital part of the Detroit community. His retired number 23 sits below a statue of him in left field of Comerica Park, the only one for a player who didn’t make the Hall of Fame.

When we spoke to Horton a week after his 80th birthday and days before the start of the 2022 World Series, he seemed in a reflective mood but just as sharp and kind as ever. His new book, Willie Horton: 23, details his career and life as one of the most fascinating players in the game’s history.

What did playing in the World Series mean to you?

I don’t even have the words right today for my own feelings about the World Series. I just sent Nick Castellanos a text about it. I used to tell him he’ll get to the World Series. Now he sees how I feel when I don’t have a word for it. But it’s something that you think about, all the great Hall of Famers that never got to the World Series, and you’re one of the fortunate guys that played in the World Series. Nobody can ever take that from you.

You take your hat off to the players and coaches who make it, especially Dusty Baker. I remember when he first came up with the Atlanta Braves in 1968 when we won the World Series. And then he went on to be one of the great managers in baseball. I told him a couple of days ago how grateful I am to him. He picked me to be his honorary coach at the All-Star Game this year.

I was going to ask you about that. In the book you talk about Rocky Colavito helping you out, and then you helping out Steve Kemp, looking out for the next generation. What were you passing on to the All-Stars?

Dusty had me talk to the young players and, and maybe an hour after I talked to them, maybe 99% of them came up to him and told me, “Pops, we appreciate the words that you gave us.” That makes you feel like you gave back to the game. Baseball is a brotherhood that you belong to. And that’s why we love everything from the minor leagues to the big leagues. That’s why my uniform shirt has never been on the floor. I had that pride in that uniform. The clubhouse manager around Major League Baseball knew that my uniform should never go on the floor.

I was overwhelmed by the amount of kindness in your book.

You know, from the walk I had in Lakeland, Florida when I didn’t understand racial problems. When I got off the bus in Lakeland, I had to take a cab to Tiger Town. Well, it’s three to five miles I had to walk to Tiger Town because I couldn’t ride a taxi. But it’s the best walk I had because it took me beyond the field and around people. It made me understand and appreciate Judge Keith who came in my life when I was 13 years old. My mom and dad put me in his hand and he became my legal guardian. Then people like Gates Brown and Earl Wilson, Al Kaline, and so many others. Hank Greenberg made me understand the racial problem when I first came up with the Tigers because they treated Jews worse and they treated Blacks. But he’s the one that got me to really understand all about Jackie Robinson because him and Jackie Robinson were very close friends. I go up by that old bus station now and I think about that walk. That part of the country is like our second home now.

You tell the story about going down and trying to help during the 1967 riots and about going AWOL in 1969 when you were hoping to get more African Americans on the team. We’ve seen a lot of protests lately. Do you think there needs to be more activism in sports?

I appreciate the young generation and what they’re doing now. We all God’s children. I think we got a long way to go in sports. A long, long way to go. I’ve been very fortunate through the Illitches, who got me back involved in the last 20 years. But the Illitches, Jerry Reinsdorf, and George Steinbrenner, they gave me an opportunity to work and to speak my opinion without having to worry about getting fired. I’ve been blessed. My wife and I are both at that age where we are thankful for life. And we’ve been blessed with 48 grandkids.

The strength of Willie Horton’s life has always been my wife. She has been my backbone. She told me when I came out of retirement that she didn’t know why I retired. [Laughs] It’s been a blessing. It’s been a good journey, going back to Jefferies Projects, going to Northwestern High School and having the coaches and teachers I had. I’ve been blessed.

I wanted to go back to that ’68 team. Well, the thing that really struck me about this in the book, they seem like they were a lot of fun to be around and you were close. How important was that?

What is surprising about that team is maybe 90 percent all came through Tiger Town. For a couple of years, we were in a dorm having pillow fights and stuff like that. And we all raised up together and we came up through the minor leagues and we all came up together. Being on a good team that makes the World Series, you have to learn how to get in each other’s faces. But we all had respect for each other, and if they see me doing things wrong, someone would tell me. They won’t let me get in that hole. I think this way life should be and that’s how we raised our children.

The moment that I think everyone talks about in the ’68 World Series is your throw to get Lou Brock at the plate where he famously doesn’t slide. But the thing that really struck me about reading your book is it wasn’t just the great throw, it was the work that went into it before.

You do your own work. I get embarrassed when I see these kids look in their pockets for notes now. You should know your job before you leave your home. But it took having the right makeup, and you still have to learn it. We learned how to read reports. And what made that play in the World Series, it was like two plays in one. I knew who was pitching. I was in the right position to come in on the ball, and who was running but Lou Brock. We picked up in the reports from the All-Star break on, he’d be at first base, and he used to go around second and drift into third. And he did the same thing when he was at second, go around third and drift into home plate. Bill Freehan, one of the greatest catchers I’ve ever known in my career—I think he should be in the Hall of Fame—he knows the same thing. The score of the game was 3-2 so it was a do-or-die play. I didn’t think about Lou Brock’s name per se, all I’m thinking about is coming in and getting the ball hitting Coyote (third baseman Don Wert) in the nose. Freehan noticed that Brock broke his stride and he let the ball come through. That’s what made the play. But if he didn’t break his stride, we had to keep the man on second and it would have been cut. I tell people, it’s very important to study and always study your reports and follow the direction. Now they talk about all the technology and technology has always been there. But you add with common sense.

I coach the Detroit Tigers summer kids camp and we get to go down to Comerica Park, and I get to show the kids around the park. And we go out to the statues and I talk about all of the players. What would you want me to say about you?

It stands for the youth of Detroit, the people of Detroit, and the whole state of Michigan. Through education, you can be anything you want to be in life, and I came from the Jefferies Projects. Don’t let anybody take your dream away from you. That’s what that statue stands for.

Willie Horton played in the majors for 18 seasons. His latest book, Willie Horton: 23, is available here.

Scott Bolohan is the founder of The Twin Bill. He once wrote (and didn’t publish) a novel that Willie Horton had a central role in.

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