Charles Richard Lau (April 12, 1933 – March 18, 1984) was an American professional baseball player and a highly influential hitting coach. [1] During his playing career in Major League Baseball, Lau appeared in 527 games as a catcher and pinch hitter over all or portions of 11 seasons for four clubs.

Check out the latest Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Rookie Status & More of Charley Lau. Get info about his position, age, height, weight, draft status, bats, throws, school and more on Baseball-reference.com.

After working as a highly respected Minor League hitting instructor, Charley Lau Jr. began his quest to resolve the myths and misunderstandings on how to hit a baseball in the most effective way possible.

Mar 19, 1984 · Charley Lau, the batting coach of the Chicago White Sox who was considered one of the finest batting instructors in the major leagues, died today of cancer of the colon at his home....

May 18, 2012 · The first celebrity hitting coach I recall was Charley Lau. During the late 1970s and 1980s, he was regarded as the game’s elite batting instructor, so revered in some circles that his...

Aug 31, 2014 · Charley Lau has had a profound effect on baseball making better hitters out of George Brett, Reggie Jackson, Hal McCrae and scores of other brilliant players.

Feb 29, 2024 · Charley Lau was a catcher who shuttled between AAA and the Majors for most of his 11-year career. Afterwards, he became much more famous as a thoughtful hitting coach . While in the minors, Lau missed the 1953 and 1954 seasons due to military service at the time of the Korean War .

On March 18, 1984, famed batting coach Charley Lau dies from cancer at the age of 50. Lau, whose major league career batting average was .255, earned his fame as the Kansas City Royals batting coach from 1971 to 1978, where his star pupil was George Brett.