Mickey Mantle:

A courageous Mickey Mantle achieved greatness despite an arrested case of osteomyelitis, numerous injuries and frequent surgery. The powerful New York Yankee baseball switch-hitter belted 536 homers (many of the tape-measure variety), won the American League home run and slugging titles four times, collected 2,415 hits, and batted .300 or more 10 times. The three-time MVP was named to 20 All-Star teams. He holds numerous World Series records, including most home runs (18).

Born in Oklahoma in 1931, he had some great Christian friends, not the least of which was teammate, Bobby Richardson. Mantle was a party person and drinker who ended up needing a liver transplant; Bobby was "lily white" Christian.

That friendship led to what Richardson calls the "most humbling experience of my life."

"I was in Dallas, Texas, for the All-Star game and Mickey had just had a liver transplant and was back in the hospital," Richardson recalls. "The phone rang that morning at 5:00. I answered the phone and it was Mickey. He said, 'Let me speak to Bobby. I want him to pray for me. I'm really hurting.' We talked on the phone that morning and had prayer later that day with Mickey and his wife."

As they talked, Mantle reminded Richardson of the funeral of teammate Roger Maris. 

"Mickey was a pallbearer and I had a part in the funeral," Richardson said. "Mickey came up to me and said, 'I want you to handle my funeral.'"

After the visit, Richardson and his wife returned to Sumter. Two weeks later, he received a phone call that his friend, Mickey Mantle, had taken a turn for the worst.

"Immediately we were on a plane flying for Dallas," he said. "I walked into the medical center and (Mantle) had a smile on his face. He said, 'I can't wait to tell you this. I've accepted Christ as my savior.'" 

Richardson was stunned. He recalled sharing his love of God with Mantle over the years, but he knew at the time that Mantle just wasn't ready. "I said, 'Mickey lets go over this and make sure you understand.'"

When Richardson shared the information with his wife, she had a similar response. They returned to see Mantle, and they talked about Christ and prayed. Mantle quoted John 3:16 and talked about what he had found.

Mantle died soon after that in 1995 in Dallas, Texas.

"I had the humbling experience of conducting Mickey's funeral on national television," Richardson said.