1969 Profile: Stan Bahnsen

"The best prospect since Stottlemyre for the Yankees. This fire baller can become a great one. He has all the tools to pitch winning baseball for the rejuvenated Yankees during the next dozen years"

-Robert Kalich, The Baseball Rating Handbook

"With little fanfare, Stan Bahnsen appeared on the New York scene in 1968 and emerged as a hot contender for Rookie of the Year honors. Winning four of his first five starts, the youthful righthander got a chance in the starting rotation after Al Downing's sore shoulder created an opening. He wound up with a 17-12 mark and an ERA of 2.06 in 37 starts, and led the New York staff with 162 strikeouts.
The Yankees' fourth selection in the 1965 free agent draft, Stan possesses an exceptional fastball and last year improved the control of his curve. Ralph Houk says he can win big as long as he can keep getting the ball over."

-Jack Zanger, Major League Baseball 1969

"The 1968 Yankee Yearbook said of Bahnsen:
'Young Stan Bahnsen can be the Yankees' surprise pitcher of the year.' He was. Selected as the American League's Rookie of the Year, Bahnsen was the overwhelming choice of the Baseball Writers' Association of America.
Stan also confirmed another Yearbook observation:
'When that terrific fastball is combined with poise and savvy, the Yankees may well have another Stottlemyre.' Stan started 34 games, second only to Mel Stottlemyre's 36, and pitched 267 innings compared with Mel's 279. He led the staff with 162 strikeouts to Stott's 140. Stan had a 2.06 ERA; Mel had a 2.45. Stott finished with a 21-12 record; Stan with 17-12.
The 24-year-old righthander was almost a 20-game winner. Four of his losses were incurred on weekends on leave from Ft. Dix while serving in the Army. A 10-inning no-decision in a 0-0 game and an 11-inning three-hitter which was no-decision for him didn't help.
Bahnsen broke into the majors in September, 1966 as a relief pitcher against Boston. He struck out the first four men in the top half of the batting order. Pressing too hard in spring training in '67, he lost his control and was optioned to Syracuse.
'I went to work to earn another chance,' he says.
'Stan made it himself,' says Ralph Houk, 'by staying in shape in the Army. When he reported, he was ready to pitch.'
One of the club's most eligible bachelors, Stan returned home to Council Bluffs, Iowa during the Christmas holidays and - surprise! It was Stan Bahnsen Day.
Prediction: that 17-12 W-L only indicates what's ahead for Stan Bahnsen."

-The New York Yankees Official 1969 Yearbook

"Stan reached the potential always expected of him last year when he won 17 games, was sixth among the ERA leaders with a 2.06 mark and was named the American League's Rookie of the Year. He led the Yankees in strikeouts last year. All this despite spending a good deal of his time attending Army Reserve meetings.
Three of his 12 losses came between July 1 and the 15th, while on two weeks active duty and pitching while on Army leave. Stan received credit for one win in two games which were probably his best performances of the year: on May 24 he hurled 10 scoreless innings against Chicago, the Yankees winning 1-0 in the 13th, and on June 17 held the Angels to one run and three hits in 11 innings, the Yankees losing 2-1 in the 12th.
Stan has one of the best fastballs in the league, labeled by Carl Yastrzemski as the fastest. He struck out the side in his major league debut on September 9, 1966 at Fenway Park, fanning Joe Foy, Yastrzemski and Tony Conigliaro.
He has hurled two no-hitters in Organized Baseball- July 17, 1966 with Toledo and the other a seven-inning perfect game on July 9, 1967 while with Syracuse. Stan was the Yankees' 4th selection in the 1965 Free Agent Draft."

-1969 New York Yankees Press-TV-Radio Guide

"Stan Bahnsen's main goal when he arrived at the Yankees' spring training camp last March was to avoid being shipped to the minors. But he surpassed that goal with plenty to spare. In fact, he was a runaway choice as the American League's Rookie of the Year. Bahnsen, a 6-2, 190-pound native of Council Bluffs, Iowa, received 17 of the 20 votes in the balloting. Del Unser, Washington's center fielder, was a distant second with just three votes.
There's no doubt Stan deserved the honor as he posted a 17-12 record and a 2.06 ERA. He might have reached the 20-game circle if it wasn't for his two weeks of Army Reserve duty during the summer. He lost three straight then while pitching on Army passes.
Bahnsen made 34 starts, completed 10, and struck out 162 batters while walking 68. 'He richly deserved the rookie honor,' manager Ralph Houk insists. 'I've never seen a fellow report in better shape. He came here with the idea of being a starting pitcher. If more players had that attitude, they'd be considerably better off.'
Bahnsen, who spent the 1967 season in Syracuse where he was 9-11, wasn't able to report to the Yankees until March 17 because he was serving a six-month active duty stint. 'I was really worried about making the team,' he confesses, 'but Ralph told me he had a spot for me if I could throw strikes. That was my problem in the past.'
The youngster (Stan is 24) didn't take long to prove himself. He hurled 10 scoreless innings against Chicago on May 24, with the Yankees eventually winning, 1-0, in 13 innings. And he held the California Angels to one run and three hits in 11 innings in Anaheim on July 17, although the Yankees lost, 2-1, in the 12th. Even though he didn't get a decision in either game, those performances- especially the one in Anaheim- convinced the New York skipper that Bahnsen, the Yanks' fourth selection in the 1965 free-agent draft, was in the majors to stay."

-Vito Stellino, Sports All-Stars 1969 Baseball