Al Holland, a former Major League Baseball All-Star and MVP candidate who graduated from North Carolina A&T, died on the 4th of July, the university announced. He was 73 years old.
“Al Holland was a big-league star, both on and off the field,” Chancellor James Martin said in a statement. “He and his trademark phrase, ‘Give me the ball,’ personified the Aggie spirit of toughness, competitiveness and excellence that defines our university. He was one of a kind, and we will sorely miss him at North Carolina A&T.”
Holland excelled at football and baseball at A&T, leading the team in rushing in 1971 and pitched a no-hitter against rival North Carolina Central in 1972.
He was drafted in both the 1974 and 1975 January MLB drafts but decided to stay in school to finish his degree in Recreation.
Holland, affectionately nicknamed “Mr. T” by then-teammate Ed Farmer, pitched for 11 seasons in the major leagues, most notably as the closer for the 1983 National League champion Philadelphia Phillies where he finished sixth in the voting for the NL Cy Young award and ninth in NL MVP voting.
The Phillies are saddened to learn of the passing of Al Holland, who spent parts of three seasons with the club from 1983-85. As a dominant closer, Al was an integral part of the team’s winning the National League pennant in 1983 and was an All-Star in 1984. The club and fans are… pic.twitter.com/XG14iYwdSC
— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) July 6, 2026
He recorded an 8-4 record and 25 saves in 1983, including the series clinching save against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLCS. Holland did not allow a run in four postseason games, but the Phils fell 4 games to 1 in the World Series to the Baltimore Orioles.
Holland made the National League All-Star team the next year and collected 29 saves, good for 4th place in the league. All told, he pitched for the Pittsburgh Pirates, San Francisco Giants, Phillies, California Angels and New York Yankees between 1977 and 1987, posting a 34-30 record and 78 saves, 55 of which came with the Phillies.
He is one of only three North Carolina A&T athletes to have their jersey numbers retired, along with former NFL great Elvin Bethea and longtime NBA player/coach/general manager, the late Al Attles.
