On August 17, 1980, Al Kaline became the first Detroit Tiger to have his uniform number (6) retired.
Two weeks earlier, Kaline was inducted into the baseball Hall of Fame, one of the few players to get elected on the first ballot.
The outfielder played all 22 of his seasons with the Tigers, a record matched only by Ty Cobb, and was selected for 18 All-Star Games. His record is exemplary — 3,007 hits (the 3,000th was in his hometown of Baltimore), 399 home runs, a .297 batting average and 10 Gold Gloves.
Source : Detroit Historical Society Facebook Page
For more information, see Zlati Meyer, “This week in Michigan history: The Tigers retire Kaline’s No. 6”, Detroit Free Press, August 17, 2014.
Update : Al Kaline died on April 6, 2020.