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Rays' McRae familiar with sudden aging

© St. Petersburg Times
published February 22, 2002

ST. PETERSBURG -- There have been several recent reports about players from the Dominican Republic who falsified their birthdates and lied about their ages.

The practice is not new. It has been done for years by all kinds of players. It was done years ago by Rays manager Hal McRae.

At the suggestion of a scout, McRae "adjusted" his age so the Reds would think he was nearly 19, rather than nearly 20, when they drafted him in June 1965. He fessed up in the mid 1980s, when he was finishing his playing career with Kansas City. Royals reliever Dan Quisenberry reportedly admitted to the same tactic.

"When I was drafted I was told the older players would be released first, and to put my age back so if I didn't show well early on hopefully they would keep me around," McRae said Thursday. "It was just survival. I didn't know what kind of ability I had. All I knew was that I wanted to play, I wanted to stay around."

McRae stuck with the earlier age until nearly the end of his 18-plus season major-league career. In the 1986 Royals media guide, his birthday is listed as July 10, 1946. In the 1987 guide, it is listed correctly as July 10, 1945.

"I put my age back one year and I didn't tell the truth until it was time for me to almost draw my pension, so I said, "Hey, wait a minute,' " McRae said. "I did it early on. You tell a good lie and you kind of stick to it. ... I was mainly trying to stay in camp. It was mainly survival."

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