November 23rd - November 29th
November 23rd
1940 - Former Yankees P Louis Tiant (1979-80) was born. Louie went 21-17 in 55 games as a Yankee. His best Yankees season was in 1979, when he went 13-8.
1947 - Former Yankees 1B/OF Frank Tepedino (1967, 1969-71, 1971-72) was born. On November 28, 1966, Frank was drafted by the Yankees from the Orioles in the 1966 1st-year player draft. He appeared in 58 games, hitting .286 with the Yankees during his various visits. His player nickname should been “Suitcase.” On June 7, 1971 he was traded by the Yankees along with OF Bobby Mitchell to the Brewers for OF Danny Walton. On March 31, 1972, Frank was purchased by the Yankees from the Brewers. On June 7, 1973, Frank was traded by the Yankees along with players to be named later and OF Wayne Nordhagen to the Braves for starter Pat Dobson. The Yankees would send minor league hurlers Dave Cheadle and Al Closter to the Braves to complete the trade.
1951 - The Yankees send young C Clint “Scraps” Courtney to the Browns for P Jim McDonald. Courtney was the 1st MLB catcher to wear eyeglasses; he appeared in 1 game for the Yankees. He was one of many young Yankees catchers traded away in the 1950’s because of the presence of Yogi Berra starting behind the plate.
1971 - Former Yankees P Aaron Small (2005-6) was born. Aaron went 10-0 as a Yankee in 15 games during the 2005 AL season. In 2006 he was injured, Aaron went 0-3 in 11 games. Aaron Small retired from MLB in 2007.
1977 - The Yankees signed free agent relief P Rich Gossage to a 6-yr, 2.75 million dollar contract. Gossage had 26 saves and a 1.26 ERA for the Pirates last season. He will join Sparky Lyle in the Yankees bullpen.
1977 - The Yankees lose free agent starter Mike Torrez to the Red Sox.
1988 - After leaving the1988 World Champion Dodgers, free agent 2B Steve Sax signs a 3-year deal with the Yankees. Meanwhile former Yankees 2B Willie Randolph will sign with the Dodgers.
November 24th
1930 - Former Yankees P Robert “Warrior” Friend (1966) was born. On December 10, 1965, Bob was traded by the Pirates to the Yankees for P Pete Mikkelsen and cash. It was another great over the hill veteran for youth trade by Yankees GM Ralph Houk. Bob went 1-4 in 12 games for the Yankees, before being dumped to the Mets in June of 1967. Meanwhile Pete Mikkelsen would have 5 good seasons pitching in the NL.
1942 - Former Yankees P Fred Beene (1972-74) was born. On January 19, 1972, Fred was traded by the Orioles to the Yankees for a player to be named later. The Yankees sent minor league player Dale Spier on April 10, 1972 to the Orioles to complete the trade. Fred would go 7-3 for the Yankees in 54 games before arm injuries finished him in 1973. On April 26,1974, Fred was traded by the Yankees with along with pitchers Tom Buskey, Steve Kline, and Fritz Peterson to the Indians for 1B Chris Chambliss, P Richard Tidrow, and reliever Cecil Upshaw.
1962 - Former Yankees INF Randy Velarde (1987-1995, 2001) was born. On January 5, 1987, Randy was traded by the White Sox along with P Pete Filson to the Yankees for Pitchers Scott Nielsen and Mike Soper (minors). Randy hit .272 in 121 games in 1992 and .286 in 111 games in 1995. In the fall of 1995, he signed as free agent with the Angels. On August 31, 2001, Randy was traded by the Rangers to the Yankees for players to be named later. The Yankees would send minor league players Randy Flores and Rosman Garcia on October 11, 2001 to the Rangers to complete the trade. Randy only appeared in 15 games for the Yankees the rest of the 2001 AL season. He did get his chance to play in a World Series for the Yankees appearing in 1 game against the D-Backs, going 0 for 3.
1972 - The Yankees acquired veteran OF Matty Alou from the A’s for P Rob Gardner and INF Rich McKinley. It is the 2nd time the Yankees have traded Rob Gardner to the A’s for an Alou brother. Last year, it was for older brother Felipe Alou. Matty was a major disappointment for the Yankees.
1986 - In yet another unwise trade of young prospects for aging veterans, the Yankees deal pitchers Brian Fisher, Doug Drabek and Logan Easley to the Pirates for pitchers Rick Rhoden, Cecilio Guante and Pat Clements. Doug Drabek will win the NL Cy Young Award in 1990.
November 25th
1903 - Former Yankees P Jim “Big Jim” Weaver (1931) was born. On November 28, 1930, Jim was traded by the Baltimore Orioles (International League) along with Thomas Patten (minors) to the Yankees for Ken Holloway, Jack Hopkins (minors), and cash. Jim went 2-1 in 17 games for the Yankees. On September 10, 1933, Jim was purchased by the Browns from the Yankees. He would be returned to the Yankees by Browns in 1934, the Yankees would sell him to the Cubs for the waiver price of $12,400.
1914 - Future Hall of Fame Yankees CF Joe DiMaggio is born in Martinez, California (1914 - 1999). The son of Italian immigrants, DiMaggio will make his MLB debut in 1936, hitting .323 in 138 games. Joe would win the AL MVP Award 3 times (1939, 1941, and 1947). He will finish his Yankee career with a lifetime BA of .325 with 361 MLB career HRs. Joe reached the .300 BA mark, 11 seasons of the 13 seasons in his Yankees career, with his .381 BA in 1939 as being his best year. In 1955, Joe will be elected to Baseball’s HOF.
1923 - Former Yankees OF Archie Wilson (1951-52) was born (1923-2007). The Yankees signed Archie as an amateur free agent in 1947. Archie appeared in only 7 games for the Yankees before being traded on May 3,1952, along with OF Jackie Jensen, P Spec Shea, and INF Jerry Snyder to the Senators for Outfielders Irv Noren and Tom Upton. Archie passed away in April of 2007.
1949 - Red Sox OF Ted Williams, who lost the AL Triple Crown when his batting average was .0002 below that of George Kell, who wins the AL MVP Award vote in a landslide. The Yankees shortstop Phil Rizzuto and Closer Joe Page finished 2nd and 3rd in the AL MVP voting. Phil Rizzuto will win the 1950 AL MVP award, beating out Yankees teammate Yogi Berra.
1951 - Former Yankees shortstop and Manager Russell Earl “Bucky” Dent (1977-1982) was born. The Yankees obtained the 1978 AL play-off hero Bucky Dent on April 5,1977, from the White Sox for OF/DH Oscar Gamble, minor league hurlers La Marr Hoyt and Bob Polinsky and $200,000. His HR in the 1978 AL Playoff game against the Red Sox is considered to be one of the most dramatic HRs in Yankees history. In 1978, he won the AL Babe Ruth Award and the World Series MVP for his .417 BA. Dent will be the AL All Star team shortstop in 1980-81. In 1982, with the arrival of Roy Smalley from the Twins and struggling with his batting average, Bucky lost his starting job as Yankees shortstop. On August 8, 1982, he was traded by the Yankees to the Rangers for OF Lee Mazzilli. After retiring as a MLB player, he will return to the Yankees organization as coach, then manager at Columbus, before managing the Yankees in 1988-89, going 36-53 in 89 games.
1966 - Former Yankees OF Mark Whitten (1997) was born. On January 9, 1997, Mark was signed as a free agent with the Yankees. Mark hit .265 in 69 games for the Yankees, before being released in August of 1997.
1970 - Yankees rookie C Thurman Munson receives 23 of the 24 1st-place votes and is named the 1970 AL Rookie of the Year. Munson batted .302 during the regular 1970 AL season. The Indians OF Roy Foster is also named on a 1st place ballot.
1973 - Former Yankees P Octavio Dotel (2006) was born. On January 4, 2006 he was signed as a free agent with the Yankees. He was recovering from arm injury in 2006, which limited his play to only 14 games during the 2006 AL season. He will leave the Yankees and will sign as a free agent with Royals in 2007.
1980 - Former Yankees shortstop Gene Michael becomes the 25th manager in Yankees club history, replacing a resigning Manage Richard Howser. Under Michael, the Yankees will win the AL pennant in 1981, but lose the 1981 World Series to the Dodgers.
November 26th
1878 - Former Yankees P Thomas “Long Tom” Hughes (1904) was born. On December 20, 1903, Tom was traded by the Americans to the Highlanders for P Jesse Tannehill. Tom went 7-11 in 19 games before being traded on July 20, 1904 by the Yankees along with Barney Wolfe to the Senators for P Al Orth.
1908 - Former Yankees HOF P Veron “Lefty" Gomez (1930-1942) was born. (1908-1989) On August 17, 1929, Lefty was purchased by the Yankees from the San Francisco Seals (PCL). Lefty would go 189-101 with a WP of .637 in 357 games in his Yankee career. Also Lefty would finish with 1,468 strikeouts with 173 complete games and 26 shutouts, Lefty appeared on 7 AL All Star teams including the very 1st team in 1933. His AL All Star record was 3-1 in 5 games. His World Series record as a Yankee starter was 5-0 in 7 games. On January 25, 1943, Lefty was purchased by the Braves from the Yankees. The Braves would release Lefty, and then he was picked up by Senators, going 0-1 in only1 game before retiring in July of 1943. He would be elected to Baseball’s HOF in 1972. He was one of the most colorful players to wear the Yankees pinstripes.
1941 - Former Yankees MLB coach Jeff Torborg (1975-1976) was born. Jeff was Yankees MLB Coach from 1975-1976, before leaving to take the manager’s job at Cleveland. As a MLB player, he played with the Dodgers and Angels, after being a College All American Catcher at Rutgers University.
1947 - Former Yankees P Larry Gura (1974-76) was born. On May 7, 1974, Larry was traded by the Rangers with cash to the Yankees for C/DH/1B Duke Sims. Larry posted a 12-9 record in 34 games with the Yankees. After being in Billy Martin’s doghouse, Larry was traded by the Yankees to the Royals for backup C Fran Healy on May 16, 1976. As a Royals starter, he would give the Yankees trouble.
1955 - Former Yankees P Jay Howell (1982-84) was born. On August 2, 1982, Jay was sent by the Cubs to the Yankees to complete an earlier deal made on August 19, 1981. The Cubs sent players to be named later to the Yankees for INF Pat Tabler. The Cubs would send P Bill Caudill on April 1, 1982 and P Jay Howell on August 2, 1982 to the Yankees to complete the trade. Jay went 12-12 in 66 games with 7 saves. His best Yankees season was in 1984, when he went 9-4 in 41 games with 7 saves. On December 5, 1984, Jay was traded by the Yankees with along P Tim Birtsas, OF Stan Javier, pitchers Eric Plunk and Jose Rijo to the A’s for All Star OF Rickey Henderson, P Bert Bradley, and cash.
1962 - The Dodgers traded starter Stan Williams (14-12, 4.46 ERA) for Yankees 1B Bill “Moose” Skowron (.270 BA, 23 HRs, 80 RBIs). Skowron will hit a HR against his former teammates in Game 2 of the 1963 World Series. Yankees rookie 1B/OF Joe Pepitone will take over the regular duties at 1st base. Bill Skowron leaves the Yankees with a lifetime BA of .296 in 12 seasons with the Yankees (1954-1962). Stan Williams would go 9-8 with 2 saves in 1963 for the Yankees.
1969 - Former Yankees P Sam Mititello (1992-93) was born. The Yankees in the 6th Round of the 1990 MLB amateur player draft selected Sam Militello. He made his debut in 1990, with the Oneonta Yankees, and led the Short-Season New York-Penn League with 119 strikeouts and his 1.22 ERA was 2nd in the league. At the MLB level, Sam went 4-4 in 12 games with Yankees.
November 27th
1892 - Former Yankees P Leslie “Bullet Joe” Bush (1922-24) was born. On December 20, 1921, Joe was traded by the Red Sox along with P Sam Jones and INF Everett Scott to the Yankees for INF Roger Peckinpaugh, P Jack Quinn, Rip Collins, and Bill Piercy. Bullet Joe would go 62-38 in 115 games with 61 complete games and 6 shutouts for the Yankees, before he was traded on December 17, 1924, along with pitchers Milt Gaston and Joe Giard to the Browns for starter Urban Shocker.
1920 - Former Yankees P John”Bear Tracks“Schmitz (1952-53) was born. On August 1, 1952, he was selected off waivers by the Yankees from the Dodgers. John went 1-1 in 8 games with 2 saves for the Yankees during the 1952-53 AL seasons. On August 28, 1952, Johnny was traded by the Yankees along with Jim Greengrass, Bob Marquis, Ernie Nevel, and $35,000 to the Reds for veteran P Ewell “The Whip” Blackwell. On February 16, 1953, John was purchased by the Yankees from the Reds. After appearing in 3 games with 1 save with a 0-0 record, John was selected off waivers by the Senators from the Yankees on May 12, 1953.
1937 - Former Yankees P William “Bill” Short (1960) was born. Before the 1955 AL Season, the Yankees signed Bill as an amateur free agent. In 1960, Bill went 3-5 in 10 starts for the Yankees. On November 27, 1961, the Orioles drafted Bill from the Yankees in the 1961 Rule 5 player draft.
1941 - Yankees CF Joe DiMaggio is named 1941 AL MVP. His 56-game hitting streak edges out Ted Williams and his .406 BA for the MVP award (votes: 291 for Joe DiMaggio and 254 for Ted Williams).
1947 - AL Triple Crown winner Red Sox OF Ted Williams (.343 BA, 32 HRS, 162 RBIs) is edged out by Yankees CF Joe DiMaggio (.315 BA, 20 HRS, 97 RBIs) for the AL MVP Award by 1 point. One BBWAA member, Mel Webb, fails to include Ted Williams, anywhere on his 1947 AL MVP players voting ballot.
1972 - The Yankees make one of their best trades in the team’s history, acquiring 3B Graig Nettles from the Indians for C John Ellis, INF Jerry Kenney, and outfielders Charlie Spikes and Rusty Torres. Also the Yankees received C Jerry Moses from the Tigers. Nettles will help the Yankees win the World Series in 1977 and 1978. The Yankees 3B problem will finally be solve 6 years after the trade of Clete Boyer to the Braves. Johnny Ellis couldn’t beat Munson behind the plate, Kennedy, Spikes and Torres were supposed to be the next generation of young Yankees stars, but they weren’t.
1974 - MLB Commissioner Bowie Kuhn suspends Yankees owner George Steinbrenner for 2 yrs as a result of Steinbrenner's conviction for illegal campaign contributions to Richard Nixon and others. His suspension will be reduced to 1 year.
1984 - Yankees All Star starter Ron Guidry is named to the 1984 AL Golden Glove team. He is the only Yankee player to be named to the squad.
November 28th
1884 - Former Yankees INF/OF Wilbur “Roxy” Roach (1910-11) was born. Roxy hit .232 in 83 games for the Yankees before on June 15, 1911, being purchased by the Jersey City (Eastern League).
1927 - The Yankees released veteran hurlers Bob Shawkey and Dutch Ruether, who both have retired from MLB. Bob Shawkey finished his Yankees pitching career with a record of 168-131, a 4-time 20 game winner (1915-1927) after being obtained from the A’s for $85,000 in 1915. Bob will manage the Yankees in 1930 to 86-68 record before being replaced by veteran NL manager Joe McCarthy. Dutch Ruether finished out his long MLB career by going 12-6 with the Yankees after being obtained from the Senators, during the 1927 AL season.
1953 - The Yankees lose minor league OF Jerry Lynch to the Pirates in the Rule 5 player draft. Jerry would later become a successful pinch-hitter with the Reds in the 1950-60’s.
1977 - Former Yankees OF star Bob Meusel dies at the age of 81. Bob Meusel batted over .300 seven times, including a MLB career-high mark of .337 in 1927. He also participated in 6 World Series with the Yankees. Bob had a lifetime BA of .311, with 146 HRS, 1005 RBIs with the Yankees (1920-1929). He finished his MLB career with Reds in 1930 hitting .289 in 113 games. His older brother Irish Meusel played in NL (1914-1927).
November 29th
1924 - Former Yankees All Star OF Irv Noren (1952-56) was born. Irv had 3 good out of 4 seasons with the Yankees, including hitting .314 in 1954, despite being plague with bad knees. He appeared in 3 World Series with the Bombers with the 1952 World Series being his best, hitting .300 against the Dodgers. Irv was on the 1954 AL All Star team. On May 3, 1952, Irv was traded by the Senators along with OF Tom Upton to the Yankees for OF Jackie Jensen, P Spec Shea, INF Jerry Snyder, and OF Archie Wilson. On February 12,1957, after hitting just .216 in 1956, Irv was traded by the Yankees along with a player to be named later, P Rip Coleman, INF Milt Graff, INF Billy Hunter, Pitchers Mickey McDermott, and Tom Morgan to the A’s for players to be named later, Pitchers Art Ditmar, Bobby Shantz, Jack McMahan, and INF Wayne Belardi. The Yankees would send P Jack Urban on April 5, 1957 to the A’s to complete the trade. The A’s would send P Curt Roberts on April 4, 1957 and INF Clete Boyer on June 4, 1957 to the Yankees to complete the trade.
1950 - Former Yankees DH/OF/1B Otto Velez (1973-76) was born. The Yankees signed Otto as an amateur free agent in 1969. Otto appeared in a total of 105 games with the Yankees He hit .266 in 49 games in 1976 AL season playing 1B, OF and DH. Otto appeared in the 1976 AL Playoffs and World Series with 4 at bats with no hits. On November 5, 1976, Otto was drafted by the Blue Jays from the Yankees as the 53rd pick in the 1976 AL Player Expansion draft (Blue Jays and Mariners).
1966 - The Yankees traded veteran 3B Clete Boyer to the Braves for rookie OF Bill Robinson and 39-year-old P Chi Chi Olivo. The trade of Clete Boyer will leaves a defensive gap at 3B for the Yankees, which will not be solved until the arrival of Graig Nettles from the Indians in winter of 1972. Rookie OF Bill Robinson was a failure for the Yankees, but later he would reappeared in the NL with a successful seasons with the Pirates and Phillies, meanwhile Clete Boyer would have 5 more good MLB seasons with the Braves, before going to Japan to play baseball.
1969 - Current Yankees Closer Mariano “Mo” Rivera (1995-current) was born. Mo is the greatest Yankee closer in the team and MLB history (1903-2008). Mo Rivera Yankees career stats are currently at 68-49 record with 2.29 ERA in 851 games with 482 saves. Mario’s AL All Star record is 0-0 in 7 games with 3 saves. His AL Divisional series record is 2-0 in 38 games 0.38 ERA. His ALCS record is 4-0 with 0.93 ERA in 25 games with 10 saves. His World Series record is 2-1, with a 1.16 ERA in 20 games with 9 saves.
1976 - The Yankees signed All Star free-agent Reggie Jackson to 5-year, $3.5 million dollar contract. During "Mr. October's" tenure, the Yankees will win 4 AL East divisions, 3-AL pennants and 2 World Series Championships, before leaving in 1981, as a free agent signing with the Angels.
1979 - MLB Commissioner Bowie Kuhn lets Billy Martin off with a warning, following the October 23rd incident in which he is involved in a barroom altercation with Joseph Cooper, a Minnesota marshmallow salesman. Cooper requires 15 stitches to close a gash in his lip.
1982 - Former Yankees P Al Cicotte (1957) passed away (1929-1982). Before the 1948 AL season, the Yankees signed Al as an amateur free agent. Al went 2-2 in 20 games with 2 saves in 1957. On May 14, 1958, Al was purchased by the Senators from the Yankees.
1995 - Former Yankees 3B Charlie Smith, the player traded to Yankees from the Cardinals for former AL MVP and All Star OF Roger Maris in 1966, dies at age of 57. Charley hit .224 (1967) and .229 (1968) for the Yankees before being traded to the Giants. While Roger Maris hit .261 and .255 for the Cardinals and playing in the 1967-68 World Series, while the Yankees finished 9th and 5th place in the AL.
1998 - Former Yankees reliever and long time MLB Pitching Coach Jim “The Milkman” Turner passed away. (1903-1998). Jim went 11-9 in 88 games with 19 saves, for the Yankees. He led the AL in 1945 with 10 saves. He would be Casey Stengel’s pitching coach during the 1949-1959 dynasty team seasons. He was replaced by former Yankees teammate Eddie Lopat after the team’s 1959 3rd place AL finish. Jim would work with the Reds organization from 1960-1965. He would return to the Yankees in 1966, being the Yankees pitching coach until 1973, under Manager Ralph Houk.
2005 - Former Yankees minor league 1B Vic Power died (1927-2005). Before the 1951 AL Season, Vic was purchased by the Yankees from the Drummondville (Provincial). On December 16,1953, Vic was traded by the Yankees along with INF Don Bollweg, 3B Jim Finigan, P Johnny Gray, OF Bill Renna, and C Jim Robertson to the A’s for P Harry Byrd, 1B Eddie Robinson, outfielders Tom Hamilton and Carmen Mauro, and INF Loren Babe. Vic Power was considered to be too flashy by Yankees GM George Weiss to be the 1st black Yankees MLB player. He traded away the black players in the Yankees farm system, keeping only C Elston Howard. Vic Power was a better 1B than Bill “Moose” Skowron, who admitted that Vic was the best 1B that he had ever played against in his MLB career. Vic won AL Golden Glove 1B Award in the AL from 1958-1964.
2006 - Former Yankees P Pete Mikkelsen (1964-65) passed away (1939-2006). Before the 1958 AL Season, Pete was signed by the Yankees as an amateur free agent. Primarily used as a reliever by Manager Yogi Berra, he reached the World Series in 1964, his rookie season with the Yankees. His rookie season bullpen work for the Bronx Bombers was instrumental in helping the team squeeze out an AL pennant, the last for the old Yankee dynasty (1949-1964). In 1964, He went 7-4 in 50 games with 12 saves. In 1965, he slipped to a 4-9 mark with 41 games with only 1 save. On December 10,1965, Pete was traded by the Yankees to the Pirates and cash for veteran starter Bob Friend. His trade was another bad deal done by the Yankees front office along with the deals of Clete Boyer and Roger Maris, which in all truth were salary dumps made by CBS management.
2007 - Yankees officially announced that All Star Catcher Jorge Posada's four-year, $52.4-million deal that will most likely keep him in pinstripes for the remainder of his MLB baseball career or at least through the 2011 MLB season.
(As always I'd like to thank Fw57Clipper51 for his great contribution.)
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