NY Yankees - Baseball Hall of Fame
Babe Ruth (1936)
George Herman "Babe" Ruth, perhaps the greatest
baseball player ever, had a 25 year career in major
league baseball. He ended his career in 1935, leading
baseball records for the number of home runs in a
season (60) and career home runs (714). Ruth was
inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1936, one
year after he retired.
Ruth entered professional baseball in 1914 when Jack
Dunn signed him to the Baltimore Orioles, a minor
league team at the time. Because of his young age (19)
and looks, he was called Dunn's babe and his new name
became Babe Ruth to the baseball world. In July, 1914,
Ruth was traded to the Boston Red Sox and his major
league baseball career began.
Ruth began his career with the Red Sox as a pitcher
and, although he had strong numbers as a pitcher, he
was switched to the outfield in 1918. He still pitched
20 games that year, ending the season with a 13-7
win-loss record and an ERA of 2.22. He also led the
American League in home runs with 11 in 317 at bats.
The following year, Ruth hit 29 home runs.
At the end of December, 1919, the Red Sox made a fatal
mistake for the team - they sold Ruth to the New York
Yankees. In his first year with the Yankees, Ruth had a
.376 batting average with 54 home runs. His following
season was even better, with a .378 batting average and
59 home runs. Ruth's highest batting average of .393
came in 1923. He continued posting impressive numbers
until almost the end of his baseball career.
Ruth was traded by the Yankees to the Boston Braves in
1935. However, Ruth would soon retire as his body gave
out and his performance deteriorated. In his last
season, Ruth had a .181 batting average with six home
runs in 72 at bats. He retired with a career batting
average of .342, 714 home runs, 2,217 RBIs, and 2,874
hits in 8,398 at bats.
Source for Information
Wikipedia - Babe
Ruth
Lou Gehrig (1939)
Lou
Gehrig was one of baseball's greatest hitters, playing
for 17 years for the New York Yankees. One can only
imagine the statistics Gehrig might have posted if he
had not been strickened by a fatal illness at the age
of only 35. When his career was tragically ended, he
had a .340 batting average with 493 career home runs.
In 1939, two years before his death, Gehrig had a 2,130
consecutive game streak that was not broken until 1995
when Cal Ripken, Jr. surpassed Gehrig. He still holds
the major league baseball record for the most grand
slams with 23.
Gehrig began his major league baseball career with the
New York Yankees in 1923 at the age of just 20. He
spent much of his first two years on the bench, playing
primarily as a pinch hitter. Gehrig's talent was
displayed in 1925, his first full season with the
Yankees:
- batting average of .295
- 20 home runs
- 68 RBIs
The following year, Gehrig's statistics were even better:
- batting average of .313
- 47 doubles
- 20 triples (most in the American League)
- 16 home runs
- 112 RBIs
Gehrig began to challenge baseball records in 1927. He almost matched Babe Ruth's record of 119 extra base hits by coming in a close second with 117. Some of Gehrig's accomplishments in 1927 were:
- batting average of .373
- 52 doubles
- 18 triples
- 47 home runs
In his 14 full seasons with the New York Yankees, Gehrig posted impressive statistics:
- 12 seasons with a batting average of .300 or greater; 6 seasons with an average over .350
- 13 seasons with 20 or more home runs; 10 seasons with 30 or more home runs; 5 seasons with more than 40 home runs
- 12 seasons with over 30 doubles; 7 seasons with 40 or more doubles
- 4 seasons with 15 or more triples
- 13 seasons with over 100 RBIs; 7 seasons with over 150 RBIs
- hit 4 home runs in one game in 1932
Gehrig was a two-time
American League MVP (1927, 1936) and the Triple Crown
winner in 1934, with a .363 batting average, 49 home
runs and 165 RBIs.
Gehrig became ill in 1939 with amyotrophic lateral
sclerosis (ALS, now often referred to as Lou Gehrig's
disease) and he died two years later from the disease.
After retiring from baseball in 1939, Gehrig was
inducted into the Baseball Hall of
Fame.
Sources for Information
Wikipedia - Lou
Gehrig
ESPN Sports - Lou
Gehrig
Yogi Berra (1972)
Yogi Berra, catcher for 18 years for the New York
Yankees, was also a successful manager for both the
Yankees and the New York Mets. Berra was inducted into
the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972 as a player.
Berra made his first major league appearance as a
catcher with the New York Yankees in 1946. As a Yankee,
Berra played in 14 World Series, 10 of which were won
by the Yankees. Some of Berra's accomplishments as a
batter were:
- three-time AL MVP (1951, 1954, 1955)
- 15 time All-Star (1948-1962)
- Yankees leader in RBI for seven consecutive seasons
Berra also achieved records as a catcher. In eight
seasons, he led the American League in the number of
games played by a catcher. In one game in June, 1962,
Berra caught a complete 22-inning, seven hour
game.
Berra followed his career as a baseball player with a
long second career as a coach and manager. He started
as a player-coach with the Yankees in 1963. The next
year, he managed the team and led them to the World
Series, but after the Yankees lost the series, Berra
was fired.
From 1965 to 1972, Berra was a coach for the New York
Mets. He became their manager in 1972 and led them to
the World Series in 1973. He stayed in that position
until 1975 and then, in 1976, went back to the Yankees
as a coach. In 1983, Berra again became the Yankees
manager and he led the team for two years. Berra ended
his career, from 1986 to 1989, as a Houston Astros
coach.
Source for Information
Wikipedia - Yogi
Berra
Whitey Ford (1974)
Whitey Ford, who spent 16 years with the New York
Yankees, pitched for the championship team in six World
Series. He ended his career in 1967 with a 236-106
record, 2.75 ERA and 1,956 strikeouts.
Ford was signed by the New York Yankees in 1947, but he
did not take his place on the mound for the Yankees
until 1950. He had a strong first year, winning 9 games
and finishing with a 2.81 ERA and 59 strikeouts.
However, Ford only played for a year and then spent the
next season in the US army, serving in the Korean War.
Ford returned to the Yankees in time for the 1953
season.
Some of Ford's accomplishments in his career with the
New York Yankees were:
- Cy Young award winner (1961)
- World Series MVP (1961)
- led American League in complete games (1955)
- led American League in wins (1955, 1961, 1963)
- led American League in ERA (1958)
- pitched 45 shutout games
- 12 seasons with an ERA of 3.00 or lower
- 14 winning seasons; 2 seasons with over 20 wins
- 5 seasons with 160 or more strikeouts, with a high of 209 in 1961
Source for Information
Wikipedia - Whitey
Ford
ESPN Sports - Whitey
Ford
Mickey Mantle (1974)
Mickey Mantle, like Whitey Ford, was a member of the
powerhouse New York Yankees of the 1950s and early
1960s and he played in seven World Series with them.
Mantle finished his 18 year career with the Yankees
with a .298 batting average, 536 home runs and 1,509
RBIs.
Mantle was signed by the New York Yankees in 1949 and
he first appeared in a Yankees uniform in 1951. He
struggled in his early at-bats with the Yankees and was
sent back to the minor leagues for a short time. He
finished the 1951 season with a batting average of
.267, 13 home runs and 65 RBIs in 341 at-bats.
Mantle, a switch-hitter, had impressive batting
statistics over his 18 year career, including:
- 10 seasons with a batting average of .300 or greater, with a high of .365 in 1957
- 9 seasons with 30 or more home runs, with a high of 54 in 1961
- 4 seasons with over 100 RBIs, with a high of 130 in 1956
- 8 seasons with over 20 doubles, with a high of 37 in 1952
Awards received and records set by Mantle include:
- winner of Gold Glove award (1962)
- American League MVP (1956, 1957, 1962)
- winner of American League Triple Crown (1956)
- led American League in home runs (1955, 1956, 1958, 1960)
- led American League in triples (1955)
- led American League in batting average with .353 in 1956
- led American League in RBIs with 130 in 1956
Source for Information
Wikipedia - Mickey
Mantle
ESPN Sports -
Mickey Mantle
Reggie Jackson (1993)
Reggie Jackson, who played well for nine full seasons
with the Oakland A's, also had successful five year
stints with the New York Yankees and with the
California Angels and one good year, in the middle of
his career, with the Baltimore Orioles. Jackson was
nicknamed "Mister October" because of all the
off-season games in which he played. He had the good
fortune to play with five World Series winners - three
times with the Oakland A's (1972-1974) and twice with
the New York Yankees (1977, 1978).
Jackson, the son of a professional baseball player, was
drafted in 1966 by the Kansas City Athletics. One year
later, he made his first appearance with the team. He
played in only 35 games with the Athletics in 1967 and
he had 1 home run, 4 doubles and 4 triples in 118
at-bats. Jackson stayed with the A's until he was
traded to the Baltimore Orioles at the start of the
1976 season. He returned to the A's 11 years later to
finish out his career.
Statistics for Jackson in his nine full seasons
(1968-1975; 1987) with the Athletics include:
- 9 seasons with over 20 home runs; 4 seasons with over 30 home runs; a high of 47 in 1969
- 7 seasons with over 20 doubles; 2 seasons with over 30 doubles; a high of 39 in 1975
- 3 seasons with over 100 RBIs
- 4 seasons with 150 or more hits
- 3 seasons with over 20 stolen bases
While with the A's, Jackson received the American
League MVP award (1973). He also won the World Series
MVP award in 1973.
Jackson stayed with Baltimore for just one year (1976)
after his trade. During that season, he hit 27 home
runs and 27 doubles, had 91 RBIs and 28 stolen bases.
He became a free agent after the season and he signed a
five-year contract with the New York Yankees.
Jackson had four strong years with the Yankees but he
struggled in the fifth year (1981) and he played in
only 94 games that season. Statistics for Jackson with
the New York Yankees include:
- 4 seasons with over 25 home runs, with a high of 41 in 1980
- 3 seasons with over 20 doubles, with a high of 39 in 1977
- 2 seasons with over 100 RBIs
- 2 seasons with 150 or more hits
In 1977, Jackson won his second World Series MVP award.
Three years later, he won his first Silver Slugger
award.
Jackson became a free agent again after the 1981 season
and he signed a five-year contract with the California
Angels. He played well in his first year with the
Angels, hitting 39 home runs and driving in 101 runs.
Jackson won his second Gold Glove award that year.
However, the next four years were not nearly as good
and by the time he left the Angels, he was batting only
.241 with 18 home runs and only 12 doubles for the 1986
season.
Jackson's career statistics include:
- 2,820 games played
- 9, 864 at-bats
- 563 home runs
- 463 doubles
- 2,584 hits
- 1,702 RBIs
- 228 stolen bases
Jackson retired after the 1987 season. He was inducted
into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1993.
Source for Information
Wikipedia - Reggie
Jackson
ESPN Sports -
Reggie Jackson