HBCU and MLB Star Al Holland Passes Away

The North Carolina A&T family has a heavy heart this month, as they lost one of their greatest baseball players over the July 4^th weekend.

Al Holland passed away in Fort Mill, South Carolina on July 4^th with loved ones close by. He was 73 years old.

“Al Holland was a big-league star, both on and off the field. He and his trademark phrase, ‘Give me the ball,’, personified the Aggie spirit of toughness, competitiveness and excellence that defines our university,” said university Chancellor James R. Martin. “He was one of a kind, and we will sorely miss him at North Carolina A&T.”

A&T Mourns Baseball Legend Al Holland, Sr. (’75) https://t.co/dbkglYJ6ke

— N.C. A&T Athletics (@NCATAGGIES) July 6, 2026

Holland’s distinguished baseball career left him with many accolades. He was inducted into the College Baseball Hall of Fame in 2015, and the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Hall of Fame in 1993.

He is also a member of the North Carolina A&T Sports Hall of Fame, having been inducted in 1994.

It didn’t take long for Holland to show what he could do on the collegiate level, as he led the country in strikeouts and ERA as a freshman for the Aggies in 1972.

Midway through Holland’s college career, the Aggies moved from the NAIA to the NCAA, but it didn’t affect his performance. He posted a microscopic 0.95 ERA as a junior and an even stingier 0.26 ERA as a senior while North Carolina A&T was in the NCAA.

Holland still made time to impart knowledge and establish a relationship with the current North Carolina A&T baseball team.

“I was so fortunate to become close with him and his wife, Mary, and their whole family when we went through the process of retiring his No. 17 jersey,” said current Aggies head baseball coach Ben Hall. “His no-hitters were legendary, and his fastball was all the pitches he needed. I will miss his periodic visits with our team.”

Before his days at North Carolina A&T, Holland was a three-sport athlete from Roanoke, Virginia who dominated the court in basketball, the gridiron in football and the diamond in baseball at Addison High School.

Roland Lovelace was a teammate of Holland’s in all three sports, and recalled some of the prowess Holland displayed in high school.

“He would punt that ball about 50-60 yards in the air,” Lovelace said. “I saw him hit a guy (in baseball)… on the inside part of his knee and his knee was swollen up instantly. Fastball, that was his major ball. But he had a curve, too.”

After his days at Addison and North Carolina A&T, Holland went on to pitch parts of 10 seasons in MLB, with the majority of his professional baseball career taking place in San Francisco with the Giants.

RIP Al Holland, Giants reliever in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Played 10 seasons in majors, most appearances (162) came in San Francisco, where he posted a 2.56 ERA (1.75 as a rookie). Traded after ‘82 season to Philadelphia with Joe Morgan for Mike Krukow and Mark Davis.

— John Shea (@JohnSheaHey) July 7, 2026

His best seasons came in 1983 and 1984 with the Philadelphia Phillies, when he posted 25 and 29 saves, respectively. His one and only All-Star appearance came with the Phillies in 1984.

Holland got his Bachelor of Science degree in Recreation at North Carolina A&T, and planned to run youth recreation programs if it wasn’t for his professional MLB career.