This Week in Yankees History
February 21st - February 27th
February 21st
February 21st - February 27th
February 21st
1919 - Yankees purchased P John Quinn from Veron for P Joe Finneran, 1B Zinn Beck and other considerations. Jack spent 2 tours with the Yankees (1909-1912) and (1919-1921) going 83-67, before being sent to the Red Sox.
1945 - Former Yankees reserve OF Tom Shopay (1967, 1969) was born. The Yankees in the 34th round of the 1965 MLB amateur player draft drafted Tom Shopay. He appeared in only 36 games for the Yankees, hitting just .189. On December 1, 1969, he was drafted by the Orioles from the Yankees organization in the 1969 MLB Rule 5 player draft. Tom Shopay would play in the Orioles organization until 1977. He saw parts of 1971-1972, 1975-1977 AL seasons with the Orioles. His final MLB career totals were .201 BA with 3 HRs and 20 RBIs.
1947 - Former Yankees P Terry Ley (1971) was born. Terry Ley was drafted by the Yankees in the 3rd round of the 1967 MLB amateur player draft (Secondary Phase). He appeared in 6 games for the 1971 Yankees with no record. On December 2, 1971, he was traded by the Yankees along with P Gary Jones to the Rangers for veteran INF Bernie Allen.
1961 - Former Yankees C Joel Skinner (1986-1988) was born. On July 30, 1986, Joel was traded by the White Sox along with OF/1B/DH Ron Kittle and INF Wayne Tolleson to the Yankees for a player to be named later, C/1B/DH Ron Hassey and INF/OF Carlos Martinez. The Yankees would send minor league C Bill Lindsey on December 24, 1986 to the White Sox to complete the trade. He was a good defensive catcher, but with a weak bat. Joel would only hit .214 in 208 games for the Yankees. On March 19, 1989, Joel was traded by the Yankees along with minor league OF Turner Ward to the Indians for OF/DH Mel Hall. Joel was the son of former MLB player and Manager Bob Skinner.
1982 - The Yankees signed OF Roberto Kelly as an MLB amateur free agent. He would play for the Yankees from 1987-1992 and again in 2000. On November 3, 1992, Roberto was traded by the Yankees to the Reds for minor league OF Joe DeBerry and OF Paul O'Neill. He had refused to move from CF to RF to make way for rookie OF Bernie Williams.
1985 - Former Yankees OF Oscar Azocar (1990) was born. In 1983, the Yankees signed Oscar Azocar as an MLB amateur free agent. He hit .248 in 65 games for the Yankees, before being traded to Padres for OF Mike Humphrey. Oscar was a real “free swinger” at the plate.
1991 - The Yankees signed veteran MLB reliever Steve Howe as a free agent. Steve Howe would go 3-1 in 37 games with 3 saves for the 1991 Yankees.
2005 - The Yankees signed OF Mike Vento as MLB free agent. He would spend the 2005 season at Columbus (AAA). The Yankees in the 40th round of the 1997 MLB amateur player draft originally drafted Mike Vento. He appeared in only 2 games with no hits with the Yankees during the 2005 AL season.
2006 - Former Yankees P Mark Freeman (1959) passed away (1930-2006). In 1952 the Yankees signed Mark Freeman as an MLB amateur free agent. He began his professional career in 1952, pitching for the Binghamton Triplets, going 7-5 with a 4.10 ERA in 17 games (14 starts). In 1953 with the Triplets again, he posted a 6-7 mark with a 2.94 ERA in 28 games (10 starts). Next he pitched for the Birmingham Barons in 1954, going 5-5 with a 3.20 ERA in 13 games (12 starts). He did not play professional baseball in 1955. From 1956-1958, Mark pitched for the Denver Bears (AAA), going 10-14 with a 4.87 ERA in 30 games (29 starts) in 1956. In 1957, he went 12-6 with a 3.46 ERA in 24 starts. Then in 1958, he went 13-10 with a 4.77 ERA in 33 games (32 starts). On April 8,1959, he was traded by the Yankees to the A’s for P Jack Urban. He made his MLB debut with the A’s on April 18th against the Indians, pitching 3 innings of relief, allowing 4 hits and 2 earned runs. Also in 1959, Freeman spent 26 games (23 starts) with the Seattle Rainiers (AAA), going 13-9 with a 3.42 ERA. He would be sent back to the Yankees by the A’s on May 8, 1960. Mark would make 1 appearance for the 1960 Yankees, pitching 7 innings and allowing 2 earned runs. In total, he made 4 MLB appearances and posted a 5.06 ERA. On May 19, 1960, Mark Freeman was traded to the Cubs for P Art Ceccarelli. With the 1960 Cubs, he made 30 appearances, with 22 of them coming in relief. He went 3-3 with a 5.63 ERA. Earlier that season, Mark had made 5 appearances for the Yankees AAA team, the Richmond Virginians (IL) as well. He posted a 2-1 record with a 3.00 ERA for Richmond. In 8 minor league seasons, Mark went 68-57 with a 3.95 ERA in 176 games (148 starts).
February 22nd
1903 - Former Yankees P Edward “Peck” Monroe (1917-1918) was born. Ed posted a 1-0 record in 10 games for the Yankees. He had 1 complete game and 1 save in his Yankees pitching career.
1919 - Former Yankees reserve 2B John Lucadello (1947) was born. On March 1, 1947, John was selected off waivers by the Yankees from the Browns. John only appeared in 12 games with the 1947 Yankees, hitting just .083. His brother Tony Lucadello was a long-time MLB scout, who had signed over 50 players including HOF players Mike Schmidt and Ferguson Jenkins both for the Phillies. He also signed Mike Marshall, Toby Harrah, Alex Johnson, and Jim Brosnan that made it to the majors, including his brother Johnny.
1920 - Former Yankees P Karl Drews (1946-1948) was born. Before the 1939 AL season, P Karl Drews was signed by the Yankees as an MLB amateur free agent. Karl would spend 1939 with the Butler Yankees (D). The 19-year old right-hander would appear in 31 games and go 16-5 for a 3.66 ERA. Karl would spend time in the Yankees minor league system until 1946, before getting a look at the major leagues, after a posting 19-9 record for the Newark Bears with a 2.70 ERA in 1945. For the 1946 season, Drew went 14-9 with the Kansas City Blues (AAA). In 1946, the Yankees would have him up for a late season look, where he got into only 3 games. Karl was back with the Yankees in 1947, posting a 6-6 record in 30 games. Karl made a couple of relief appearances against the Dodgers in the 1947 World Series. He would go 2-3 for the 1948 Yankees. His final Yankees pitching career record was 8-10 in 52 games. On August 9, 1948 he was purchased by the Browns. He would go 7-14 for the Browns during the rest of the 1948-1949 AL seasons. In 1950, Karl would find himself back in the minors with the Baltimore Orioles (AAA). Drews would post a 6-2 mark for the 1950 Orioles. In 1951, he would improve to 17 wins for the Orioles. He would find himself back in the majors after being traded to the Phillies in 1951. Acquired by the Phillies late that season, he handed the Dodgers a critical loss in the final week in their battle with the Giants for 1st place in NL. He then had his best MLB season in 1952, with 14 wins, including 5 shutouts, while posting an excellent 2.72 ERA. In 1954, Karl would finish his MLB career with the Reds, with a 44-53 record with a 4.76 ERA. Drews would spend the rest of his pro baseball career in the minor leagues, finishing up in 1960 at age 40 with the Mexico City Diablos Rojos in the Mexican League. Karl would spend 21 active seasons in pro baseball from 1939 through 1960. Statistics show that he appeared in 423 games, posting a 146-112 record, pitching 2,204 innings, giving up 2,100 base hits along with 1,050 walks for a career 4.25 ERA. In 1947, Karl's son, Ron had been born on the day he pitched in his 1st World Series game for the Yankees. Karl put away his Yankees cap from that game for him. In 1994, Ron Drews gave the Yankees cap to his son, Karl's grandson Matt, on the day Matt Drews was selected as the Yankees number 1 selection in the 1993 MLB amateur player draft. Matt never pitched for the Yankees at the MLB level. During the 1996, he was traded by the Yankees to the Tigers for 1B/DH Cecil Fielder. After his baseball career was over, Karl, who was a Director for the Hollywood, FL Recreation Department, was tragically killed on August 15, 1963, at age 43, when he was hit by an intoxicated driver after his car had stalled on a highway in Dania, FL.
1929 - Former Yankees Closer Ryne Duren (1958-1961) was born. Before the start of the AL 1949 Season, Ryne Duren was signed by the Browns as an MLB amateur free agent. On September 21, 1956, Ryne was sent by the Orioles to the A’s to complete an earlier deal made on September 17, 1956. The Orioles sent a player to be named later and OF Jim Pisoni to the A’s for players to be named later. Ryne Duren was frightening to bat against because he only intermittently had control of his prodigious fastball. Thick "Coke bottle" glasses, a reputation for heavy drinking, and a tendency to throw warm-up pitches against the backstop only heightened batters' unease. Yankees veteran OF Hank Bauer told the Yankees management to “trade for him or ban him from the AL.” On June 15,1957, Ryne was traded by the A’s along with outfielders Jim Pisoni and Harry “Suitcase” Simpson to the Yankees for OF/INF Woodie Held, INF Billy Martin, OF Bob Martyn and P Ralph Terry.
In 1958, he led the AL in saves with 20, while posting a 6-4 record for the Yankees. Ryne appeared in 2 games in the 1958 World Series against the Braves, going 1-1 with 1 save with 14 K’s, while posting a 1.93 ERA. Ryne was wild and fast, also he was an alcoholic. He made the AL All Star team in 1958-1959. In 1959, despite a losing record of 3-6 with 14 saves, Ryne had an ERA of 1.88. Ryne Duren was a showman in those days the Yankees bullpen was a part of the short-porch RF and only a low chain link fence served as the boundary. When called upon by Yankees Manager Casey Stengel to relieve, he wouldn’t use the gate, but would rather hop that fence with one hand and begin a slow walk to the mound with his blue Yankees warm-up jacket covering his pitching arm; even in the hottest days. When he finally took the ball from Casey and began his warm-ups, the 1st pitch was always a blazing fastball 20 feet over the catcher’s head. The 2nd warm-up pitch was a bit lower (but not slower) until on his 5th warm-up Ryne would finally find the plate.
By the start of the 1961 AL season, his best days as a Yankees closer were over, Louis Arroyo had replaced him as the Yankees closer. On May 8, 1961, he was traded by the Yankees along with P Johnny James and OF Lee Thomas to the Angels for veteran reliever Tex Clevenger and OF Bob Cerv. He would make the 1961 AL All Star team. Ryne would play for the Angels, Phillies and the Senators before retiring from MLB. Following his MLB playing career, Ryne Duren spent many years involved in Alcoholics Anonymous and the recovery movement. He would later write a book on his fight with alcoholism during his 10 year MLB career, titled “The Comeback.” This was one of the reasons that Ryne Duren had stayed away from Yankees Old Timer’s Day events until the 1980’s. In 1983, Duren was presented with the Yankees Family Award for his conquering alcoholism, and for service as an alcohol abuse educator. In 2003, Ryne Duren and author Tom Sabellico wrote the book, "I Can See Clearly Now". Duren talks from the heart about life, baseball and alcohol. The foreword was written by former MLB pitcher Jim "Mudcat" Grant
1938 - Former Yankees P Steve Barber (1967-1968) was born. On July 4, 1967, Steve was traded by the Orioles to the Yankees for players to be named later, 1B Ray “Buddy” Barker, and cash. The Yankees would send minor league players INF Chet Trail and OF Joe Brady to the Orioles in December of 1967 to complete the trade. Steve went 12-14 in 37 games for the Yankees before being drafted by the Seattle Pilots in the1968 AL player expansion draft. Steve was battling arm problems when he came to the Yankees, never recovering the form that made him a great starter for the Orioles during the early 1960’s.
1956 - Former Yankees reserve OF Joe Lefebvre (1980) was born. The Yankees in the 3rd round of the 1977 MLB amateur player draft drafted Joe Lefebvre. Joe batted .227 in 74 games as a reserve outfielder. On March 31, 1981, Joe was traded by the Yankees along with OF Ruppert Jones, pitchers Tim Lollar, and Chris Welsh to the Padres for OF Jerry Mumphrey and P John Pacella.
1973 - Former Yankees reserve INF Russ Johnson (2005) was born. Russ appeared in 22 games for the 2005 Yankees, with a .222 BA as a reserve INF. He spent most of the season playing at Columbus (AAA).
2000 - A Florida Department of Corrections report says Yankees OF/DH Darryl Strawberry tested positive for cocaine on January 19th.
2005 - San Diego Padres broadcaster Jerry Coleman is selected as the recipient of this year's Hall of Fame Ford C. Frick Award. The 80-year old play-by-play man, who was the MVP of the 1950 World Series for the Yankees, has spent 41 years in the booth working for the Yankees (1958-1967), Angels and the Padres. He served as a Marine fighter pilot during World War II and the Korean War.
February 23rd
1903 - Former Yankees OF Roy Johnson (1936-1937) was born. On January 17, 1936, Roy was traded by the Senators along with P Bump Hadley to the Yankees for P Jimmie DeShong and OF Jesse Hill. Roy appeared in 75 games for the Yankees, hitting .278 before being picked up by Boston Bees ( aka the Braves).
1918 - Former Yankees reserve OF Ed “Truck” Kearse (1942) was born. Ed appeared in only 11 games for the 1942 Yankees, batting only .192.
1929 - Former Yankees MVP All Star C/OF (1955-1967) and MLB Coach Elston Howard (1968-1980) was born. Elston Howard played the OF in the Negro Leagues for 3 years, switched to catcher in 3 seasons in the minors, and caught for 14 years for the Yankees and Red Sox. In 1955, he became the 1st black MLB player for the Yankees. He hit a HR in his 1st World Series at bat in 1955. Howard tied the following World Series records: most hits, inning, 1960, (2); most long hits, 5 game series, 1961 (4); most passed balls, game, 1964 (2). He established AL catcher's records for PO (939) and TCA (1006) in 1964. In 1958, Howard won the Babe Ruth Award. Ellie was an AL All Star team member 9 times during his MLB career. In 1963, he won the AL MVP award hitting .287 with 28 HRs and 85 RBIs. Howard won the AL Golden Glove Award for catchers in 1963-1964. During the 1967 AL season Ellie was traded to Red Sox. He helped the Red Sox pitching staff capture the AL flag. That season, he appeared in his last World Series against the Cardinals. Ellie would stay with the Red Sox for one more season. Upon his retirement as a MLB player in September of 1968, he became the 1st black MLB Yankee coach. He held this position until his premature death in 1980 at age 51 from heart failure.
1954 - The Cardinals purchased starter Vic “The Springfield Rifle” Raschi from the Yankees for $85,000.Yankees General Manager George Weiss did this deal to show other Yankee veterans what would happen to them, if they were going to stage a MLB contract holdout. Raschi did one before the start of 1953 AL season. He leaves the Yankees (1945-1953) with a career mark of 120-53 .706 WP, 3.47 ERA with 99 complete games with 24 shutouts. In the World Series, Vic went 5-3, .625 WP, 3 complete games with 1 shutout in 11 games for the Yankees. He would never be an effective starting pitcher in the MLB again splitting the 1954-1955 MLB seasons between the Cardinals and A’s.
1969 - Former Yankees reserve C Bubbles Hargrave (1930) passed away. In 1930, the Yankees used Hargrave as a backup catcher to Bill Dickey. Bubbles hit .278 on a Yankees team whose batting average was .309.
1972 - Former Yankees OF/DH Rondell White (2002) was born. Rondell White was signed as a MLB free agent. He was injured most of the 2002 AL season with the Yankees. He only hit .240 in 126 games. On March 19, 2003, Rondell was traded by the Yankees to the Padres for OF Bubba Trammell, minor league player Mark Phillips and cash.
February 24th
1875 - Former Yankees C/1B Henry “Monte” Beville (1903-1904) was born. Henry appeared in 91 games for the Yankees, hitting just .200. On August 3, 1904, he was loaned to the Tigers by the Highlanders. He never returned to the Highlanders.
1877 - Former Yankees INF James “Champ” Osteen (1904) was born. In January of 1904, James was purchased by the Highlanders from the Senators. He appeared in only 28 games, hitting just .196.
1927 - Former Yankees reserve OF/3B Robert “Suitcase Bob” Seeds (1936) was born. On August 22, 1936, Bob was traded by the Montreal Royals (International League) to the Yankees for players to be named later. The Yankees would send minor league players Marv Duke and Norm Kies on November 30, 1936 to the Montreal Royals to complete the trade. Bob only appeared in 13 games for the Yankees, hitting .262. On June 24, 1938, Bob was purchased by the Giants from the Yankees.
1948 - The White Sox traded P Ed Lopat to the Yankees for C Aaron Robinson, pitchers Bill Wight and Fred Bradley. Eddie Lopat will star for 7 seasons in pinstripes, winning 21 in 1951 and going 16-4 in 1953. Aaron Robinson would play for the White Sox for 1 season before being traded to the Tigers for P Billy Pierce. Eddie Lopat would be part of the Yankees starting rotation of Reynolds, Raschi and later Ford that won 5th straight World Championships (1949-1953). After retiring as active MLB player, Ed managed in the Yankees minor league system. In 1960, he was Casey Stengel’s last MLB pitching coach. He would leave the Yankees in the winter of 1960 for the Kansas City A’s being a coach, then a MLB Manager, working in the A’s front office as a General Manager until their move to Oakland. Later he worked in the front office with the Montreal Expos organization.
1974 - Former Yankees INF Mike Lowell (1998) was born. The Yankees in the 20th round of the 1995 MLB amateur player draft drafted Mike Lowell. Mike appeared in 8 games for the 1998 Yankees batting .267. With Scott Borias starting at 3B, Mike became expendable. On February 1, 1999, Mike was traded by the Yankees to the Marlins for pitchers Mark J. Johnson, Ed Yarnall, and Todd Noel. He would go on to play 3B for the Marlins and then he played for the Red Sox.
1976 - Former Yankees P Randy Keisler (2000-2001) was born. Randy was drafted by the Yankees in the 2nd round of the 1998 MLB amateur player draft. Randy went 2-2 in 14 games before being released by the Yankees. He criticized the Yankees management in the media for their handling of young pitchers.
1976 - The Yankees signed former NL Batting Champ OF/DH Tommy Davis as a MLB free agent. Tommy Davis despite having a good spring camp, the Yankees at the end of the 1976 spring training camp will cut him.
February 25th
1929 - Former Yankees minor league player Sid Thrift was born. Syd Thrift was a former pitcher in the Yankees system, as he signed with them in 1949. He went 4-2 with a 3.67 ERA for the LaGrange Troupers and hit .306 with 4 HRs and 27 RBI. He had no decisions in 1950 for the Amsterdam Rugmakers. In 1953, Thrift had no decisions for the West Palm Beach Indians and was 3-4, 4.43 with the Leesburg Lakers, hitting .231 as their most-used 1st baseman (65 games there). After finishing as a player, he was involved in scouting and went into baseball management working with the Pirates, A’s, Cubs and Royals organizations. He later became the General Manager for the Pirates (1986-1988) and Orioles (2000-2002).
1940 - Former Yankees 1B/3B /OF Danny Cater (1970-1971) was born. As a Yankee, he hit .301 and .276, after coming from the A’s in the Al Downing trade. He was traded to the Red Sox for P Sparky Lyle in March of 1972.
1941 - The Yankees sell 1st B Ellsworth “Babe” Dahlgren (1937-1940) to the Braves for undisclosed amount of cash. On February 17, 1937, Babe was purchased by the Yankees from the Red Sox. Babe replaced the ailing Lou Gehrig at 1st base when his famous consecutive games played streak ended during the 1939 AL season at Detroit. He appeared in 4 games of the 1939 World Series for the Yankees, hitting .214 with 1 HR and 2 RBIs. Overall Babe appeared in 327 games for the Yankees, hitting .248 with 27 HRs with 163 RBIs.
1942 - The Yankees signed MLB free agent OF George “Tuck” Stainback after his release by the Tigers. He would last 4 years as a reserve OF for the Yankees. George would appear in 211 games for the Yankees, hitting .243. On April 26, 1946, George was released by the Yankees. He would later become a MLB coach after retiring as an active player in 1946.
1944 - Former Yankees Manager (1990-1991) and MLB Coach (1985) Stump Merrill was born. Stump Merrill was the catcher on the 1964 University of Maine team that won 3 games in the College World Series. He was selected by the Twins in the 23rd round of the 1965 MLB amateur draft, by the Orioles in the 2nd Round (26th overall) of the January 1966 MLB amateur player draft, and finally the Phillies in the 2nd round in June, 1966. He was an assistant Coach for the University of Maine during the 1976 season, and the school's trip to the College World Series. He was the MLB 1st base coach for the Yankees, when Yogi Berra was manager at the start of the 1985 AL season, but was replaced when Billy Martin took over the team from Berra. Merrill was a successful Yankees minor league manager (1978-1990), winning 5 league titles, and finishing with the best record in the league his 1st 5 years and 6 of his 1st 7 (with a 2nd place the other year). He replaced Bucky Dent as Yankees manager in 1990. He went 49-74 in 1990. Then he posted a 71-91 mark in 1991. In 1992, he was replaced as Yankees Manager by Buck Showalter. From 1993-2004, Stump was once again was a Yankees minor league manager. In 2009, he was elected to the International League Hall of Fame.
1956 - Former Yankees minor league P Kevin Hickey was born. On August 13, 1984, Kevin was sent by the White Sox to the Yankees to complete an earlier deal made on July 18, 1984. The White Sox sent players to be named later to the Yankees for INF Roy Smalley. Kevin never appears with the Yankees at the MLB level. On May 25, 1985, Kevin was released by the Yankees.
1963 - Former Yankees All Star OF Paul O’Neill (1993-2001) was born. On November 3, 1992, Paul was traded by the Reds along with minor league OF Joe DeBerry to the Yankees for OF Roberto Kelly. He was a member of the AL All Star team 4 times. He appeared in 4 World Series with the Yankees. His best Yankees season was in 1994, when he won the AL Batting Crown with a .354 BA.
1988 - The Yankees signed OF Jose Cruz as a MLB free agent. Jose will appear in only 38 games for the 1988 Yankees, hitting .200 before being released on July 22, 1988 by the team.
1994 - The Veterans Committee elects former Yankees long-time shortstop Phil Rizzuto (1941-1942,1946-1956) to Baseball’s Hall Of Fame. Phil won the 1950 AL MVP award and the 1951 Babe Ruth Award. Long-time Red Sox rival HOF Ted Williams said that Phil could beat you with his glove or bat. That he was the key to the great Yankee AL championship teams.
2004 - The Yankees signed free agent P Nerio Rodriguez. He does not appear with the team at the MLB level. On June 15, 2004, he was sent to the Cardinals by the Yankees as part of a conditional deal.
February 26th
1872 - Former Yankees reserve C Louis Criger (1910) was born. On December 16, 1909, Louis was traded by the Browns to the Highlanders for P Joe Lake and OF Ray Demmitt. He appeared in only 27 games for the 1910 Yankees, hitting just .188.
1896 - Former Yankees P Rip Collins (1920-1921) was born. He went 25-13 in 64 games for the Yankees before being traded to Red Sox in 1921.
1933 - Former Yankees reserve 1B/OF/C John Blanchard (1955, 1959-1965) was born (1933-2009). In 1951, the Yankees signed him, as an MLB amateur free agent. He was originally signed as an OF, who would be converted into a catcher in the minors. His best Yankees career season was in 1961, when he hit .305 with 21 HRs, 54 RBIs in 243 at bats fewer than 100 games. During July of 1961, Johnny hit 4 HRs in 4 consecutive appearances during a 3 game series. He appeared in 5 World Series with the Yankees hitting .345. On May 3, 1965, John was traded by the Yankees along with P Rolland Sheldon to the A’s for C Doc Edwards. John would finish his MLB career with the Braves. John passed away in 2009.
1935 - The Yankees released longtime AL All Star OF/P Babe Ruth (1920-1934), freeing him to sign a $20,000 contract with the Braves of the NL. In 1934, Ruth had endured one of his worst seasons with the Yankees-at least by his lofty standards-with a .288 BA with only 22 HRs and 84 RBIs.
1941 - Former Yankees minor league 1B George Kopacz was born. On February 28, 1973, George was traded by the Pirates to the Yankees for minor league 1B Tony Solaita. George never appears with the Yankees at the MLB level.
1968 - Former Yankees 1B J. T. Snow (1992) was born. The Yankees in the 5th round of the 1989 MLB amateur player draft drafted J. T. Snow. He appeared in only 7 games for the Yankees, batting just .143. He refused the Yankees request to learn how to play the outfield, since AL All Star Don Mattingly was at 1B. This rejection by Snow to switch positions resulted in him being put into a player trade package to the Angels for starter Jim Abbott.
1971 - Former Yankees reserve OF Matt Luke (1996) was born. Matt was drafted by the Yankees in the 8th round of the 1992 MLB amateur player draft. He appeared in only 1 game with Yankees with no at bats before being picked up on waivers in 1997 by the Dodgers.
1977 - Former Yankees P Josh Towers (2009) was born. Josh was picked up the Yankees during the 2009 AL season. He spent most the 2009 season with Scranton (AAA). He appeared in 2 games for the 2009 Yankees with no record. After the 2009 World Series, Josh became MLB free agent rather than accept an assignment to Scranton (AAA).
1991 - Bill Veeck, the colorful MLB owner of the Browns, Indians and White Sox (twice) and the Yankees great 2B Tony Lazzeri are elected to the Hall Of Fame by the Veterans Committee. The AL All Star 2B Tony Lazzeri played for the Yankees from 1926 to 1937, finishing with a lifetime BA of .293 with 169 HRs and 1,154 RBIs in 1,659 games.
1991 - Former Yankees minor league manager Jimmy Zinn passed away. Jimmy Zinn managed the 1937-1938 El Paso Texans in the Yankees farm system.
February 27th
1896 - Former Yankees reserve catcher (1931) and MLB Coach (1932) Cy Perkins was born. Cy was a veteran catcher picked up by the Yankees from the A’s. He batted .255 for the 1931 Yankees. He would become a Yankees MLB Coach on the 1932 World Championship team.
1907 - The Yankees acquired C Branch Rickey from the Browns in exchange for INF Joe Yeager. As noted by baseball writer Lyle Spatz, Branch Rickey will not play on Sundays, while new C Fritz Buelow will. Rickey will go on to have a more successful MLB career as a baseball executive than as a player. He was the man responsible for creating MLB farm system concept with the Cardinals and breaking the MLB player color barrier with Jackie Robinson and the Dodgers in 1947. He will be elected to Hall of Fame as a baseball executive in 1967.
1912 - The New York Yankees announced that, they would begin to wear pinstriped uniforms for the 1912 AL season.
1935 - Former Yankees slugger Babe Ruth signs a $20,000 MLB player contract with the Boston Braves. Ruth's new contract with the Braves also gives him a share of the team's profits. Released by the New York Yankees only one day earlier, Babe Ruth will serve the Braves as a player, coach, and team vice-president. In 1935, he will play just only 28 games for the Braves, before announcing his retirement on June 2nd at the age of 40. Ruth will hit the final 3 HRs of his MLB career on May 25,1935 against the Pirates at Forbes Field, giving him a final MLB HR career total of 714. His last HR will clear the right field grandstand at Forbes Field and will travel an estimated 600 feet.
1948 - Newly elected to the Hall Of Fame, are former MLB stars, Yankees starter Herb Pennock and Pirates 3B Pie Traynor. Needing 91 votes for selection, Herb Pennock, who died a month before, gets 94 votes, as Pie Traynor gets 93 votes. Just missing in the Hall Of Fame voting are former A’s slugger Al Simmons, Tigers 2B Charlie Gehringer and Giants player/manager Bill Terry. Herb Pennock was the General Manager for the Phillies at the time of his death, a position he had held since 1944. He was helping the new Phillies ownership rebuilt the team. He had suffered a fatal heart attack.
1953 - Former Yankees C/DH/1B Ron Hassey (1985-1986) was born.
On December 4, 1984, Ron was traded by the Cubs along with pitchers Porfi Altamirano, Rich Bordi and OF Henry Cotto to the Yankees for INF/OF Brian Dayett and P Ray Fontenot. In 1985, he hit .296 for the Yankees in 92 games. On December 12, 1985, Ron was traded by the Yankees along with P Joe Cowley to the White Sox for minor league players Glen Braxton, Mike Soper and MLB starter Britt Burns. On February 13, 1986, Ron was traded by the White Sox along with minor league players Chris Alvarez, Eric Schmidt and Matt Winters to the Yankees for Glen Braxton (minors), P Neil Allen, C Scott Bradley and cash.
On July 30, 1986 Ron was traded by the Yankees along with a player to be named later and INF/OF Carlos Martinez to the White Sox for OF/1B/DH Ron Kittle, C Joel Skinner and INF Wayne Tolleson. The Yankees would send minor league C Bill Lindsey on December 24, 1986 to the White Sox to complete the trade. Ron hit .298 in 64 games for the 1986 Yankees.
1953 - Former Yankees P Barney Wolfe (1903-1904) passed away. Barney appeared in 27 games with the Yankees, posting a 6-12 record in 27 games. On July 20, 1904, Barney was traded by the Yankees along with P Tom Hughes to the Senators for starter Al Orth.
1956 - The Piedmont League (Class B) disbands after 37 years in operation. The Yankees had a farm club in the league, the Norfolk Tars from 1935-1955. The Tars had been league champions from 1951-1954. The Norfolk Tars had won 7 league championships with 2 Tars teams finishing as runner-up to the league championship team.
1962 - Former Yankees P Greg Cadaret (1989-1992) was born. Greg Cadaret came to the Yankees from the A’s in the Rickey Henderson trade. He went 22-23 with 7 saves as a Yankees pitcher, before being sold to the Reds.
1969 - Former Yankees P Willie Banks (1997-1998) was born. The Yankees signed Willie Banks as a MLB free agent. He was a former New Jersey All State HS Pitching star (St. Anthony’s HS in Jersey City), who had been originally been signed by the Twins. He went 4-1 in 14 games with the Yankees, before being traded to D-Backs during the 1998 AL season.
1985 - Veteran INF Toby Harrah, an original Texas Rangers member is traded by the Yankees back to the Rangers for OF/DH Billy Sample and a player to be named later. Harrah was a major disappointment with the bat for the Yankees after coming to the team in a trade with the Indians in 1984.
1988 - Former Yankees MLB Coach (1984-1985) and Minor League Manager Doug Homquist passed away. Doug Holmquist managed for the Yankees in their minor league system from 1978 to 1983. As the Yankees awarded World Series rings to their minor league managers as well, they gave Doug Holmquist one. While managing in the minors, he worked with future MLB players such as Willie McGee, Pat Tabler and Steve Balboni.
(As always I'd like to thank Fw57Clipper51 for his great contribution.)
