1968 Profile: Tom Tresh

"Speaking of bad luck, one must wonder if Tom Tresh hasn't already been dealt a full portion. Tom never completely recovered from a knee injury that began bothering him last year in spring training. Hobbled all season, he finished with a .219 mark in 130 games, hitting 14 homers and driving in 53 runs. It was the second poor year in a row for Tom, who hit .233 with 27 homers in 1966.
Only a couple of years back, he was the brightest of all of the young Yankees; now he must show signs of a healthy comeback if he wants to hold on to his regular status."

-Jack Zanger, Major League Baseball 1968

"'I know what Mickey Mantle has gone through all these years and the trouble I had with my knee last year makes me wonder how he has done it,' says Tom. 'It was the most frustrating year of my life. I've written it off; I'll just concentrate on the year ahead.'
When Tommy came up in 1962, he was American League Rookie of the Year with a .286 batting average, 20 home runs and 93 RBIs. In 1966 he set a personal high mark of 27 home runs. Last year he injured his right knee in spring training.
'I could use my knee for an alibi,' says Tommy. 'I don't know if that's the whole story, but the knee was the beginning of it all. It hampered my throwing. I threw unnaturally to compensate for the lack of support on the back leg. Throwing that way made my shoulder hurt and that affected my hitting.'
At the end of the 1967 season, Tom had the cartilage removed from his right knee. Then he went home to Mt. Pleasant, Michigan to welcome his third child and second daughter, Heidi, and to teach school. He is working toward a degree in education.
Now fully recovered, Tom started the season 'with a free mind. Now I can give it everything I have every time I'm on the field.'
That's nothing less than the best. There isn't a better left fielder in the league or a better clutch hitter. Tom, who's the son of the late White Sox catcher Mike Tresh, started as a Little Leaguer and also played American Legion ball."

-The New York Yankees Official 1968 Yearbook

"Beset with an injury right from the start of 1967, Tresh had his poorest season as a Yankee. In the second game of spring training on March 11, he strained ligaments and cartilage in his right knee. He eventually underwent surgery on September 19 to have cartilage on the outside of his knee removed.
Tom came to the Yankees as a shortstop in 1962. He won the James P. Dawson Award (top rookie in spring training) and proceeded to become the American League Rookie of the Year, also making the All-Star squad. He switched to the outfield [in August of 1962] when Tony Kubek returned from military service, and again was an All-Star in 1963.
A good hitter with power, Tresh has averaged over 21 homers per season since coming to the Yanks. A switch-hitter, he has hit a home run right-handed and left-handed in the same game three times, and hit three homers in one game on June 6, 1965.
Tom is the son of the former major league catcher Mike Tresh. He attends Central Michigan U. during the off-season."

-1968 New York Yankees Press-Radio-TV Guide