"He was a hero to me on and off the field. In fact, he took me to my first stage play ever in New York City. I'm really going to miss him. Not only was he a hero, but he was a mentor. He was a class act through and through."

-- Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson

LAKELAND, Fla. -- When I think of George Kell, he is sitting next to AL Kaline in the broadcast booth in Baltimore on a steamy summer night. They are wearing short-sleeve cotton shirts and ties, and looking into the camera as they begin recapping the game.

You could tell if the Detroit Tigers won or not before they uttered a word. They smiled and were relaxed if Detroit had won, and were uneasy and somber if the Tigers had lost. It wasn't because they were homers. It was because the Tigers were more to them than a team. They were family.

Now, one of the family has passed. Kell died Tuesday morning at his house in the town where he was born, Swifton, Ark. He was 86.

To Tigers fans, he was more than a Hall of Fame third baseman who did them proud. He was more than an announcer they cherished for four decades. George Clyde Kell was their friend.

"I think George's appeal was that he brought the field to the booth," said legendary Tigers broadcaster Ernie Harwell, a former Kell partner. "There was an authoritative ring to what he said. He was straight forward with a laid-back touch. It was nothing fancy. George just laid it out. And to the people who listened, they all thought he was a friend of theirs."

Kell, enshrined in Cooperstown in 1983, broadcast Tigers games for 37 years before retiring in 1996.

Detroit Hall of Fame manager Sparky Anderson came to value their friendship.

"I told people that what makes George Kell so great was that you could touch him," Anderson said. "They say, 'Touch him, what do you mean?' And I tell them, 'George never gets too high and never gets too low. He stays right on your level. You can touch him.' "

Kell was a career .306 hitter, amassing 2,054 hits and winning the batting title in 1949 for the Detroit Tigers by hitting .3429, edging future Boston Red Sox teammate Ted Williams by .0002.

His plaque at Cooperstown is inscribed: "Premier American League third baseman of the 1940s and 1950s. Solid hitter and sure-handed fielder with strong, accurate arm. Batted over .300 nine times."

He also was nominated for the Ford C. Frick Award, given annually to broadcasters, including Harwell in 1981, to bring Hall of Fame enshrinement.

You would never know Kell was special in meeting him. He was unassuming and always had a glad handshake and a kind word.

He had great compassion. Before the last game at Tiger Stadium, I spoke with Kell outside the clubhouse about an experience he had that week with the son of Ty Cobb.

"He wanted to go out onto the field his dad played on," Kell said. "I don't think they were very close, but you could see him connecting just by being on the field. It was something powerful."

There were tears in his eyes. This was about family.

Larry Osterman did Tigers TV games with Kell from 1967-74. They were great years. Detroit lost a pennant on the last day, won a World Series, came within one win of the 1972 pennant and chronicled Kaline's pursuit of 3,000 hits.

"You know," Osterman said, "I still run into Tigers fans who come up to me and say, 'Thank you, Larry, and good afternoon.' "

That was Kell's way of taking the handoff from Osterman after his introduction.

It was while injured in his final 1957 season with the Orioles that Harwell, then calling games in Baltimore, invited Kell to do one inning. Harwell said Kell's comments were well received, leading to a pregame show on CBS-TV before the national games handled by Dizzy Dean and Pee Wee Reese.

Kell began doing Tigers radio and TV broadcasts in 1959 and was instrumental in bringing Harwell to Detroit.

"George called and said, 'I recommended you and the Tigers asked me to get in touch with you,' " Harwell said. "I came, and that was it."

Kell and Harwell were a broadcast tag team. One would do the first half of the game on TV, and the other would do the radio. Then, they would switch in the fifth inning.

Kell had nine TV partners, but none longer than Kaline. They were together his last 21 years in the booth.

"George was a great friend and like a big brother to me," Kaline said. "I will miss him very much."