1970 AMERICAN LEAGUE ALL-STAR (Coach)
"He may not have had a winner in recent seasons, but Ralph Houk has something other managers would dearly love to have - the uncompromising respect and confidence of his players. Ralph exudes the image of a man's man, and he adds to that picture every year. His players will tell you he's tough, fair, patient, and knowledgeable.
Last year his patience may have been stretched to the maximum in his relationship with Joe Pepitone, and it is to Ralph's credit that he didn't throw Joe to the wolves when other managers would have. The kindest thing he could have done in the end is what he finally did - he traded Joe off the ball club.
It's also possible that losing has softened Ralph somewhat, or maybe his not being a winner has removed some of those pressures. But he's a tough man to match wits with in a tough ball game.
He goes into every season as the eternal optimist - 'I always start out feeling I can win the pennant,' he says. Given the proper talent, the chances are he will win again. The man knows his way, having guided the Yanks to three flags in a row in 1961, '62 and '63, winning the Series twice.
He spent the bulk of his playing days as a bullpen catcher with the Yankees. But this wasn't the first time he worked his way up through the ranks. In World War II he began as an enlisted man and wound up a major."
-Jack Zanger, Major League Baseball 1970
"Ralph's ability as a manager and leader was never more evident than in the recent lean years. Although he won pennants and two World Championships in 1961, 1962 and 1963 and was named Manager of the Year, Houk had his greatest achievement in 1968 when he brought the club from ninth to fifth place and had the team in third place in September. He did this despite a club batting average of .214, lowest in the league. Last year he sprung another surprise - speed. Four young Yankees - Clarke, Kenney, White and Murcer - burned up the base paths and came to be known as 'Ralph's Road Runners.' Clarke stole 33 - more than any Yankee in 25 years - Kenney took 25, and White 18. What's in store for Yankee fans this year? Ralph has been in baseball 32 years - all of them with the Yankees. He's a realist. Here's his own appraisal of the 1970 Yankees:
'I'm looking forward to the 1970 season. I believe the Yankees' chances for getting back into the thick of things are the best they have been since I came back on the field to manage the team in 1966. (Ralph was General Manager in 1964, 1965 and part of 1966.) Though we finished fifth in the American League East last year, I think we showed improvement. We had several fine youngsters in our regular lineup for the first time ... and our development program really took a giant step.
'I've always said that there's not much difference between winning and losing and I believe that our young players have matured and developed to the point where they are ready to help the Yankees make the jump back into pennant contention. These younger players have that added vital experience; and trades have brought us offensive strength and greater depth ... a combination that should make us contenders.
'We will be one of the youngest clubs - perhaps the youngest - in Yankee history, as well as one of the youngest in the American League. Players like Murcer, Kenney, Burbach and Munson plus one or two other prospects are the Yankees of today and tomorrow.
'As a team, we needed more offense. The addition of Curt Blefary, Danny Cater and Thurman Munson alone will add 85 to 110 runs over last year. When you consider that we lost 31 games by one run and 12 more by two runs, you can see what this could mean to our club. We also added a real power hitter in Pete Ward. He and Blefary have always have hit exceptionally well in Yankee Stadium. I'm sure Pete will see a lot of action with us.
'Competition is always good for the team and individual players. John Ellis (age 21), the big catcher-first baseman, will give someone a rough time. He will be a real power hitter for us. Jim Lyttle (23) and Frank Tepedino (22) both had fine years at Syracuse in '69 and 21-year-old Ronnie Blomberg had an outstanding year in AA baseball, winning Eastern League All-Star selection.
'While positions are never fully set at the start of the season, our outfield of American League All-Star Roy White, Bobby Murcer and Curt Blefary looks good to me, backed up by Lyttle, Tepedino, Robinson, Woods and Blomberg.
'The infield this year will be better, too. Jerry Kenney has had a year's experience at third base where he was just a point behind league leaders Brooks Robinson and Ken McMullen in fielding. Gene Michael had a fine year, developing into one of the premier shortstops in the American League. Clarke, coming off his best season, should be as consistent as ever at second. At first base, we have Cater, Ellis and Ward, all of whom can play other positions as well, giving us great maneuverability. Young players like McDonald, Baker and Solaita will make things lively, also in the infield.
'Our catching will be better, to say the least. Munson will be one of the best in the league, with capable Jake Gibbs to back him up. And Ellis is a catcher by trade, too. Our pitching was second in the American League last year (with only the championship Orioles surpassing us). This year Yankee pitching figures to be equally good ... and even better. We have a young staff built around Mel Stottlemyre and Fritz Peterson. I will believe Stan Bahnsen will bounce back and Bill Burbach should be much improved after a full year under his belt. Mike Kekich, who has the best arm on the squad, was pitching well at the end of last season and figures to continue improving in 1970. Fellows like Ron Klimkowski, the International League's leading pitcher; Joe Verbanic, who is enjoying a comeback; John Cumberland and several other young pitchers give us pitching depth we haven't had in several seasons. Our bullpen is experienced and did a fine job last year. Jack Aker, Lindy McDaniel and Steve Hamilton figure to be even more impressive this year with Aker available from the start of the campaign.
'And I'm fortunate to have the best coaches in baseball - Jim Turner, Jim Hegan, Elston Howard and Dick Howser.
'I'd like to thank all Yankee fans for sticking with us over the lean years. We're headed into better days. I know the players, the coaches and I think we can go all the way!'"
-The New York Yankees Official 1970 Yearbook
"His new three-year contract makes Ralph Houk the senior American League manager. Considered by many to be one of the best in the business, Houk led the Yanks to pennants in his first three years of managing in 1961, 1962 and 1963 and was named Manager of the Year by the Sporting News in '61.
Ralph has run the full cycle of jobs in baseball, all with the Yankee organization. He signed with them in 1939 and remained an active player until 1954. He became a minor league manager at Denver in 1955, then returned to the Yanks as first base coach in 1958.
He was named Yankee manager in 1961, then was elevated to General Manager in 1964; Ralph returned to the field, however, in May 1966.
Ralph was a war hero during World War II in the European Theatre, advancing to the rank of major in the 9th Armored Division. He is an avid fisherman."
-1970 New York Yankees Press-TV-Radio Guide
COACHES
"Although there had been rumors to the contrary, the entire Yankee coaching staff has been retained. Former catching star Elston Howard handles first base, Dick Howser takes care of the traffic at third base, while the elder statesman of the club, 66-year-old Jim Turner, cares for the pitchers, and Jim Hegan directs the bullpen."
-Jack Zanger, Major League Baseball 1970
JIM TURNER (Coach)
"Jim Turner, dean of Yankee coaches at 66, heads what Ralph Houk believes it the best coaching staff in baseball. Jim handled such great pitchers as Whitey Ford, Vic Raschi, Allie Reynolds and Eddie Lopat when the Yankees won five consecutive World Championships between 1949 and 1953.
The Yankee pitching staff was second in the American League last year, surpassed only by Baltimore in effectiveness.
Jim did not break into the majors himself until he was 33, but then had nine years in the big leagues and completed his active career with the Yanks.
In this, his sixteenth year as a Yankee coach, Jim has Ralph Houk's complete confidence."
-The New York Yankees Official 1970 Yearbook
"Turner first became pitching coach for the Yankees under Casey Stengel in 1949, [the start of] the Yankee era of five consecutive World Championships (1949-53), and stayed until 1959. Under Jim's tutelage were such Yankee pitching greats as Allie Reynolds, Vic Raschi, Whitey Ford and Eddie Lopat. Jim went to Cincinnati in 1961 and returned to the Yankees in 1966.
As a player, he spent 14 years in the minor leagues and didn't reach the majors until he was 33. Jim lasted nine years and concluded his active career with the Yankees. He's nicknamed 'Milkman' due to his off-season occupation in his early years."
-1970 New York Yankees Press-TV-Radio Guide
JIM HEGAN (Coach)
"Jim Hegan, the senior year member in consecutive years of service, begins his eleventh year as bullpen and catching coach.
Jim came to the Yankees in 1960 after 18 years behind the plate in the major leagues. Jim played in the World Series of 1948 and 1954 with the Cleveland Indians. He was named to the All-Star team in 1950 and 1951."
-The New York Yankees Official 1970 Yearbook
"Entering his 11th season as a Yankee coach, making him dean of the staff, Hegan was a classic receiver who played 18 years in the major leagues. He made the American League All-Star team twice, in 1950 and 1951. His son, Mike, plays for Seattle."
-1970 New York Yankees Press-TV-Radio Guide
ELSTON HOWARD (Coach)
"Elston Howard, the first base coach, returned to the Yankees last year and was warmly welcomed by the club. Ellie was the first black player on the club; he is the first Negro coach in the American League.
After an outstanding career as a Yankee, during which he starred as a catcher and outfielder, he went to the Red Sox in '67 and helped the Sox win the pennant. With the Yankees, Ellie won the Babe Ruth Award in the 1958 World Series and was American League MVP in 1963."
-The New York Yankees Official 1970 Yearbook
"An outstanding player with the Yankees for 13 seasons, Howard was MVP of the American League in 1963. Originally signed as an outfielder, he was converted to a catcher where he spent most of his time, although he played the outfield as well as first base.
Elston made the All-Star team nine times and played in ten World Series, nine with the Yankees and one with the Red Sox. He won the Babe Ruth Award (top World Series player) in 1958. A .274 lifetime hitter, Elston was regarded as one of the top receivers around and led American League catchers in fielding in 1962, 1963 and 1964. The Red Sox acquired him for their pennant drive of 1967.
Elston became the first black player on the Yankees and the first black coach in the American League."
-1970 New York Yankees Press-TV-Radio Guide
DICK HOWSER (Coach)
"Dick Howser, a fine young shortstop with great speed, was American League Rookie of the Year in 1961. After playing with Kansas City and Cleveland, he came to the Yankees in 1967. Injuries, including a broken arm, hampered his effectiveness, but he made a fine contribution in a utility role as a team player in the '67 and '68 seasons. When the job as third base coach opened up, Howser was the logical choice. As Ralph Houk predicted, Howser has done an outstanding job."
-The New York Yankees Official 1970 Yearbook
"Howser was named third base coach for the 1969 season by manager Ralph Houk after spending two years with the Yankees as a utility player and pinch hitter. Dick reached the major leagues as a shortstop with the Kansas City Athletics in 1961 and was named Rookie of the Year as well as being selected to the All-Star team. He was an outstanding baserunner."
-1970 New York Yankees Press-TV-Radio Guide
MICKEY MANTLE (Coach)
CAN MICKEY MANTLE MAKE IT AS AN ANNOUNCER?
It's A Whole New Ball Game As The Critics Offer A Scouting Report On Television's Newest Rookie
"When the National Broadcasting Company announced more than a year ago that it had added Mickey Mantle to its Game of the Week team, one question raced through my mind: Which Mickey Mantle did NBC hire?
As a baseball writer, I had known Mantle for eight years. I had traveled with the Yankees for four seasons. I had engaged in literally hundreds of casual conversations and interviews with the No. 1 baseball idol of his time. I discovered there was not one, but two Mickey Mantles. Not a righthanded Mickey Mantle and a lefthanded Mickey Mantle, but two diametrically opposed personalities in one.
The first Mickey Mantle was uncommunicative, aloof, sullen, rude and unapproachable.
The second Mickey Mantle was gregarious, charming, witty, cooperative, candid and interesting.
If NBC got the first Mickey Mantle, it would have a lot of dead air.
If it got the second Mickey Mantle, it would have a happy combination of Andy Griffith, Gary Cooper and Dizzy Dean.
When they finally put Mickey in front of the cameras, it was immediately obvious NBC had hired the second Mickey Mantle and the man's apparent schizophrenia as a player was suddenly understandable to even the most amateur of amateur psychiatrists.
As a player, Mantle was frequently given to moods. He could be forced into an inexplicable and impenetrable shell by any number of things- physical pain, a bad day at the plate, the boredom of the long season, constant traveling, the rapidly increasing gap that was separating him from his four growing boys and that the knowledge that young boys need the security of a father's constant supervision and, yes, discipline. Until last spring, he had never seen his oldest son, 17-year-old Mickey, Jr., play baseball.
Retirement from baseball brought out the best in Mickey Mantle. He has maturity, financial stability and the personal security of a regular home life. And, handled properly, he became a valuable asset to the NBC baseball team. He was no Red Barber or Mel Allen and he never will be. Nor is he a candidate for television rookie of the year against such other first-time-on-a-regular-series rookies as Glen Campbell (The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour) and Michael Parks (Then Came Bronson).
The Mantle wit, well known to his teammates but hidden from the public, popped up on television, ironically on ABC. Mick was on loan to the rival network, which was doing the Little League championship. One of the finalists was a team from Japan and there was something familiar about the Japanese pitcher.
'That kid reminds me a lot of Mel Stottlemyre,' Mantle said. Then he paused. 'I wonder if Mel was ever in Japan.'
It was no innocent slip of the tongue, Mantle insists. 'I meant to say that. I didn't think anybody would be offended. I'm sure everybody knew I was kidding.'
There was one embarrassing moment in which Mantle was not kidding.
'I was on a show with Tony Kubek and my old pal, Billy Martin,' Mick recalled. 'Tony asked me if I have ever considered managing. I told him I didn't think I would make a good manager. I said it seemed to me that when playing ball comes easy to someone, that person doesn't make a good manager for some reason.
' 'The best managers,' I said, 'are guys who were lousy players. Like Billy Martin and Ralph Houk.' And there was Billy standing right there.'
The original thought was that Mantle would make a minimum of 10 selected weekly appearances on NBC. Including the playoffs and World Series, he did 15 at a per-game price that was more than he got as a player.
At first it seemed like a shotgun wedding. NBC had more announcers in the booth than most teams have players on their bench and Mantle had always appeared shy, uncomfortable and reticent during television and radio interviews. There was a very good chance Mickey would fall flat on his face and the NBC peacock would be a sick bird.
In all candor, both NBC and Mantle admit they were motivated to go ahead with the deal by selfish interests. NBC was kidding nobody, least of all itself, that Mickey was a potential Emmy winner.
'His name is magic,' says Chet Simmons, the network's director of sports. 'When we go into a city for a game, there are always four or five writers around who want to sit down and talk with him. Let's face it, that's one reason we hired him and Mickey knew it. He's been very cooperative with the press. I used to hear and read about how difficult he was to interview when he was a player. Now he seems to enjoy it.'
With customary frankness, Mantle admits he has had his own fish to fry and it serves his purpose to be on television. He accepted the job, Mantle says, for a variety of reasons, one of which was to perpetuate his name. He is involved in several businesses, the success of which are dependent on his name.
'I wanted to keep my name in front of the public,' Mick says. 'I don't want people to forget me.'
His primary interests are a chain of men's clothing stores, 'Mickey Mantle's Men's Shops,' a chain of restaurants, 'Mickey Mantle's Country Cookin',' and an employment agency with football star Joe Namath, 'Mantle Men and Namath Girls.'
By the end of the season, Mickey expects there will be between 10 and 15 Mickey Mantle Men's Shops. And Mickey Mantle's Country Cookin' restaurants, opening at the rate of one a week, were in 20 cities by the first of the year.
There were other things that persuaded Mick to take his chances on the tube.
'The thing I knew I would miss most when I stopped playing ball,' he says, 'was being around the guys. I always enjoyed being with players on the road and in the clubhouse. I wanted to stay close to the game in some way and this seemed like the perfect thing. I'm still a good baseball fan. I enjoy watching the game.'
Once it had him, NBC had to decide the best way to use Mantle to gain the maximum use of his name, his knowledge and his boyish appeal. It was decided not to hide him in the booth, but to put him out there on the field where he could be seen. Mantle agreed with the decision.
'They already had Curt Gowdy and Tony doing the game and you don't really need three guys up there,' Mickey reasoned.
Instead, the idea was for Mickey to appear on the pre-game show talking baseball with Gowdy and Kubek and various players.
'We didn't want people to think of him as an announcer,' points out Carl Lindemann, President of NBC Sports. 'We wanted them to think of him as an expert. He was a great player. Before the All-Star Game, Mickey and Sandy Koufax did a show together in which they just talked, off the cuff. Here were two guys they're going to wheel right into the Hall of Fame when they're eligible. Who wouldn't be interested in what they had to say? And who would question any of their opinions?'
Whatever Mantle's shortcomings on the air, NBC was completely satisfied with him. It got what it wanted.
'He is exactly what I thought he would be,' says sports director Simmons, 'a shy, shuffling Oklahoma boy. When he started, I told him all I wanted him to do was talk about what he knows best ... baseball. I just wanted him to sit back, enjoy himself and talk about the game. At first I was skeptical, but I'm convinced now. His smile is incredible. He comes across ... well, the word that best fits how he comes across is believability. You believe what he tells you.'
A veteran Mantle watcher is Til Ferdenzi, who was covering the Yankees for the old Journal-American when Mickey came up as a green rookie in 1951 and is now Director of Public Relations for NBC Sports. Ferdenzi had seen the years and his exposure to the big city work their magic on the boy from the lead and zinc mines of Oklahoma. Ferdenzi remains in awe of the man.
'When he took the job, I knew he would be good at it,' Ferdenzi says. 'I know certain things Mickey Mantle can do and do well. He's very glib. I was with him in Atlanta and he was on a show with Willie Mays and Hank Aaron. Here were the three greatest home run hitters alive on the same show. It was a natural. The Louisville Bat Company had brought a bat that had been used by Wee Willie Keeler when he batted .400. Mantle, Mays and Aaron compared it with the bats hitters use today and they discussed techniques in hitting and the difference between the old-time hitter and the modern-day hitter. It was a fascinating show.
'I know he works hard at improving and he enjoyed the job. I think he likes it because he's adapted very well and I think that surprised him.'
Mantle admits he enjoyed his rookie year on TV more than he thought he would.
'The reason I enjoyed it is that everybody made things easy for me,' Mick says. 'They've been great to work with and I don't only mean Curt and Tony. I mean the directors and producers and cameramen, too.'
Mantle's on-the-job training has caused him to become aware of the great majority out there who may be silent, but who are listening to what he says. He has a letter to prove it.
'By mistake, I said 'Frisco' for San Francisco,' he recalls. 'I didn't mean anything by it. I never knew that people in San Francisco didn't like the word 'Frisco.' Now I know. I didn't realize they were so touchy. I got a letter from a guy who called me a dumb Okie for not knowing I shouldn't use the word 'Frisco.' He said I should go back to the sand hills where I came from.
'The letter was unsigned. It's too bad because I wanted to write back and tell him if I'm dumb because I used the word 'Frisco,' he's not so smart himself because we don't call them 'sand hills,' we call them 'chat piles.'
Simmons remembers the World Series and a trip from Baltimore to New York.
'We decided to go by bus,' Chet says. 'We had the bus waiting for us outside the park and we took off as soon as the second game ended. We had sandwiches and beer on board and somebody brought along a guitar and there were Tony and Mickey sitting with a group of guys in the back of the bus singing cowboy songs. Here's a guy who could charter his own plane and, heaven knows, he's made enough bus trips in his life. But when we got to New York, he said, 'That was fun. If we go back to Baltimore, I hope we go the same way.'
'During the Series he would tape his show in the morning. He could have taken off and not shown up until it was time to tape the next day's show. Instead, he came into the booth and watched every minute of every game. He even expressed a great deal of interest in the mechanics of the business. Frankly, some of us thought he might be a prima donna, but he was completely unaffected and great to work with.'
Having gained the approval of his bosses, Mantle presumably could have a long and successful career in television if he wants it. What's more important, Mick seems to have gained the approval of the viewers as well, and that may be the most important item of all.
'The mail has been generally good,' Lindemann reports. 'I don't want you to think we've been deluged by mail, but what we got is good. You have to understand that people don't usually write when they are pleased with something. They write when they are angry with something.'
Jerry Della Femina, president of Jerry Della Femina and Partners, a New York advertising agency, and a lifetime Yankee fan, wasn't quite sure.
'I don't think they're taking advantage of who he is,' Della Femina says. 'Yes, I'm always conscious I'm listening to Mickey Mantle because of his flat monotone. I know he knows more than he's letting out. It's the same with all former players on the air. I keep waiting for them to say something great, something inside, something they know or did when they playing. But it's as if they don't want to seem vain, so they suppress all that personal stuff that would spice up the show for me. With Mickey, I would like to hear more of what went on when he was playing. He's being toned down and I don't that's right. After all, he's Mickey Mantle and if he can't be a little boastful, who can?
'What I'm saying is that I don't need him to tell me what I saw. I want something extra from him. They should let him go, let him say whatever he wants. The jocks who scored big in that business were Dizzy Dean and Joe Garagiola and nobody suppressed them. That's what they do with Mantle. I'd like to hear [what] Mickey Mantle [and] Billy Martin knew in the clubhouse and in the Copacabana.'
As an advertising executive, Della Femina was asked if he would hire Mantle for a campaign.
'In a minute,' came the instant reply. 'He's still a big hero in this country. My criticism is that I don't think NBC is fully capitalizing on his image.'
It may all be academic because Mantle does not think of himself as an announcer and has no plans to make it his life's work. At the moment, his other interests preclude his considering a job as a full-time announcer. He likes the part-time setup of NBC and hopes to continue that association.
NBC executives deny they are suppressing Mick. They want him to express himself, to go out on the limb. They are willing to wait because they believe it will come in time.
'One of the greatest qualities he has,' says Simmons, 'is that he doesn't take himself seriously. When he expresses an opinion and it proves wrong, he puts himself down in a charming way. He predicted the Orioles would win the Series and that Buford would be the star. When things started going the other way, he refused to back down. Finally, when it was obvious that the Orioles and Buford were not going to do anything, he said, 'I'm some expert. I really blew that one.'
Mickey laughs when he thinks about his first try at expertise with the entire nation listening.
'I'm still getting mail about that one,' he chuckles. 'People write me and call me a traitor. 'You lived in New York 18 years, how can you turn against us like that?'
'My answer is simple. I said that when we lost the pennant to Cleveland in 1954, I went home and told the miners the Indians would sweep the Giants in four straight. So, the Giants won four straight. I picked the Colts to beat the Jets. I say I know I'm a kiss of death, so the reason I picked the Orioles was that I didn't want to jinx the Mets. I really wanted them to win.' "
-Phil Pepe, New York Daily News (Baseball 1970 Yearbook)
DID YOU KNOW THAT?
"On May 13, 1955 Mantle hit three home runs into the Stadium's center field bleachers (two batting left-handed and one right-handed) as the Yankees defeated the Tigers 5-2. This is the only time this feat has been accomplished.
Mantle twice came the closest to achieving the distinction of being the first to hit a fair ball out of Yankee Stadium, both times the ball hitting the facade of the upper deck in right field. The first occurrence was on May 30, 1956 off Washington's Pedro Ramos, the first game of a doubleheader. It struck at a point about 107 feet above the ground. The Yanks won 4-3. The second time was on May 22, 1963 off Bill Fischer of Kansas City in the 11th inning, the Yankees winning 8-7. This ball struck at a point measured to be about 106 feet above the ground. This homer is noted as the more prodigious clout as it struck the right-field roof facade while still on the rise. Mantle stated, 'It was the hardest ball I ever hit.'
Second only to Babe Ruth's 600-footer at Detroit in 1926, Mantle's longest home run was hit on April 17, 1953 off Washington's Chuck Stobbs at Griffith Stadium, traveling 565 feet (Mantle was batting right-handed). On August 12, 1964 Mantle hit the longest measured home run at Yankee Stadium- 502 feet, over the 22-foot screen, into the center field bleachers. The Chicago pitcher was Ray Herbert, the Yankees winning 7-3."
-1970 New York Yankees Press-TV-Radio Guide
Last year his patience may have been stretched to the maximum in his relationship with Joe Pepitone, and it is to Ralph's credit that he didn't throw Joe to the wolves when other managers would have. The kindest thing he could have done in the end is what he finally did - he traded Joe off the ball club.
It's also possible that losing has softened Ralph somewhat, or maybe his not being a winner has removed some of those pressures. But he's a tough man to match wits with in a tough ball game.
He goes into every season as the eternal optimist - 'I always start out feeling I can win the pennant,' he says. Given the proper talent, the chances are he will win again. The man knows his way, having guided the Yanks to three flags in a row in 1961, '62 and '63, winning the Series twice.
He spent the bulk of his playing days as a bullpen catcher with the Yankees. But this wasn't the first time he worked his way up through the ranks. In World War II he began as an enlisted man and wound up a major."
-Jack Zanger, Major League Baseball 1970
"Ralph's ability as a manager and leader was never more evident than in the recent lean years. Although he won pennants and two World Championships in 1961, 1962 and 1963 and was named Manager of the Year, Houk had his greatest achievement in 1968 when he brought the club from ninth to fifth place and had the team in third place in September. He did this despite a club batting average of .214, lowest in the league. Last year he sprung another surprise - speed. Four young Yankees - Clarke, Kenney, White and Murcer - burned up the base paths and came to be known as 'Ralph's Road Runners.' Clarke stole 33 - more than any Yankee in 25 years - Kenney took 25, and White 18. What's in store for Yankee fans this year? Ralph has been in baseball 32 years - all of them with the Yankees. He's a realist. Here's his own appraisal of the 1970 Yankees:
'I'm looking forward to the 1970 season. I believe the Yankees' chances for getting back into the thick of things are the best they have been since I came back on the field to manage the team in 1966. (Ralph was General Manager in 1964, 1965 and part of 1966.) Though we finished fifth in the American League East last year, I think we showed improvement. We had several fine youngsters in our regular lineup for the first time ... and our development program really took a giant step.
'I've always said that there's not much difference between winning and losing and I believe that our young players have matured and developed to the point where they are ready to help the Yankees make the jump back into pennant contention. These younger players have that added vital experience; and trades have brought us offensive strength and greater depth ... a combination that should make us contenders.
'We will be one of the youngest clubs - perhaps the youngest - in Yankee history, as well as one of the youngest in the American League. Players like Murcer, Kenney, Burbach and Munson plus one or two other prospects are the Yankees of today and tomorrow.
'As a team, we needed more offense. The addition of Curt Blefary, Danny Cater and Thurman Munson alone will add 85 to 110 runs over last year. When you consider that we lost 31 games by one run and 12 more by two runs, you can see what this could mean to our club. We also added a real power hitter in Pete Ward. He and Blefary have always have hit exceptionally well in Yankee Stadium. I'm sure Pete will see a lot of action with us.
'Competition is always good for the team and individual players. John Ellis (age 21), the big catcher-first baseman, will give someone a rough time. He will be a real power hitter for us. Jim Lyttle (23) and Frank Tepedino (22) both had fine years at Syracuse in '69 and 21-year-old Ronnie Blomberg had an outstanding year in AA baseball, winning Eastern League All-Star selection.
'While positions are never fully set at the start of the season, our outfield of American League All-Star Roy White, Bobby Murcer and Curt Blefary looks good to me, backed up by Lyttle, Tepedino, Robinson, Woods and Blomberg.
'The infield this year will be better, too. Jerry Kenney has had a year's experience at third base where he was just a point behind league leaders Brooks Robinson and Ken McMullen in fielding. Gene Michael had a fine year, developing into one of the premier shortstops in the American League. Clarke, coming off his best season, should be as consistent as ever at second. At first base, we have Cater, Ellis and Ward, all of whom can play other positions as well, giving us great maneuverability. Young players like McDonald, Baker and Solaita will make things lively, also in the infield.
'Our catching will be better, to say the least. Munson will be one of the best in the league, with capable Jake Gibbs to back him up. And Ellis is a catcher by trade, too. Our pitching was second in the American League last year (with only the championship Orioles surpassing us). This year Yankee pitching figures to be equally good ... and even better. We have a young staff built around Mel Stottlemyre and Fritz Peterson. I will believe Stan Bahnsen will bounce back and Bill Burbach should be much improved after a full year under his belt. Mike Kekich, who has the best arm on the squad, was pitching well at the end of last season and figures to continue improving in 1970. Fellows like Ron Klimkowski, the International League's leading pitcher; Joe Verbanic, who is enjoying a comeback; John Cumberland and several other young pitchers give us pitching depth we haven't had in several seasons. Our bullpen is experienced and did a fine job last year. Jack Aker, Lindy McDaniel and Steve Hamilton figure to be even more impressive this year with Aker available from the start of the campaign.
'And I'm fortunate to have the best coaches in baseball - Jim Turner, Jim Hegan, Elston Howard and Dick Howser.
'I'd like to thank all Yankee fans for sticking with us over the lean years. We're headed into better days. I know the players, the coaches and I think we can go all the way!'"
-The New York Yankees Official 1970 Yearbook
"His new three-year contract makes Ralph Houk the senior American League manager. Considered by many to be one of the best in the business, Houk led the Yanks to pennants in his first three years of managing in 1961, 1962 and 1963 and was named Manager of the Year by the Sporting News in '61.
Ralph has run the full cycle of jobs in baseball, all with the Yankee organization. He signed with them in 1939 and remained an active player until 1954. He became a minor league manager at Denver in 1955, then returned to the Yanks as first base coach in 1958.
He was named Yankee manager in 1961, then was elevated to General Manager in 1964; Ralph returned to the field, however, in May 1966.
Ralph was a war hero during World War II in the European Theatre, advancing to the rank of major in the 9th Armored Division. He is an avid fisherman."
-1970 New York Yankees Press-TV-Radio Guide
COACHES
"Although there had been rumors to the contrary, the entire Yankee coaching staff has been retained. Former catching star Elston Howard handles first base, Dick Howser takes care of the traffic at third base, while the elder statesman of the club, 66-year-old Jim Turner, cares for the pitchers, and Jim Hegan directs the bullpen."
-Jack Zanger, Major League Baseball 1970
JIM TURNER (Coach)
"Jim Turner, dean of Yankee coaches at 66, heads what Ralph Houk believes it the best coaching staff in baseball. Jim handled such great pitchers as Whitey Ford, Vic Raschi, Allie Reynolds and Eddie Lopat when the Yankees won five consecutive World Championships between 1949 and 1953.
The Yankee pitching staff was second in the American League last year, surpassed only by Baltimore in effectiveness.
Jim did not break into the majors himself until he was 33, but then had nine years in the big leagues and completed his active career with the Yanks.
In this, his sixteenth year as a Yankee coach, Jim has Ralph Houk's complete confidence."
-The New York Yankees Official 1970 Yearbook
"Turner first became pitching coach for the Yankees under Casey Stengel in 1949, [the start of] the Yankee era of five consecutive World Championships (1949-53), and stayed until 1959. Under Jim's tutelage were such Yankee pitching greats as Allie Reynolds, Vic Raschi, Whitey Ford and Eddie Lopat. Jim went to Cincinnati in 1961 and returned to the Yankees in 1966.
As a player, he spent 14 years in the minor leagues and didn't reach the majors until he was 33. Jim lasted nine years and concluded his active career with the Yankees. He's nicknamed 'Milkman' due to his off-season occupation in his early years."
-1970 New York Yankees Press-TV-Radio Guide
JIM HEGAN (Coach)
"Jim Hegan, the senior year member in consecutive years of service, begins his eleventh year as bullpen and catching coach.
Jim came to the Yankees in 1960 after 18 years behind the plate in the major leagues. Jim played in the World Series of 1948 and 1954 with the Cleveland Indians. He was named to the All-Star team in 1950 and 1951."
-The New York Yankees Official 1970 Yearbook
"Entering his 11th season as a Yankee coach, making him dean of the staff, Hegan was a classic receiver who played 18 years in the major leagues. He made the American League All-Star team twice, in 1950 and 1951. His son, Mike, plays for Seattle."
-1970 New York Yankees Press-TV-Radio Guide
ELSTON HOWARD (Coach)
"Elston Howard, the first base coach, returned to the Yankees last year and was warmly welcomed by the club. Ellie was the first black player on the club; he is the first Negro coach in the American League.
After an outstanding career as a Yankee, during which he starred as a catcher and outfielder, he went to the Red Sox in '67 and helped the Sox win the pennant. With the Yankees, Ellie won the Babe Ruth Award in the 1958 World Series and was American League MVP in 1963."
-The New York Yankees Official 1970 Yearbook
"An outstanding player with the Yankees for 13 seasons, Howard was MVP of the American League in 1963. Originally signed as an outfielder, he was converted to a catcher where he spent most of his time, although he played the outfield as well as first base.
Elston made the All-Star team nine times and played in ten World Series, nine with the Yankees and one with the Red Sox. He won the Babe Ruth Award (top World Series player) in 1958. A .274 lifetime hitter, Elston was regarded as one of the top receivers around and led American League catchers in fielding in 1962, 1963 and 1964. The Red Sox acquired him for their pennant drive of 1967.
Elston became the first black player on the Yankees and the first black coach in the American League."
-1970 New York Yankees Press-TV-Radio Guide
DICK HOWSER (Coach)
"Dick Howser, a fine young shortstop with great speed, was American League Rookie of the Year in 1961. After playing with Kansas City and Cleveland, he came to the Yankees in 1967. Injuries, including a broken arm, hampered his effectiveness, but he made a fine contribution in a utility role as a team player in the '67 and '68 seasons. When the job as third base coach opened up, Howser was the logical choice. As Ralph Houk predicted, Howser has done an outstanding job."
-The New York Yankees Official 1970 Yearbook
"Howser was named third base coach for the 1969 season by manager Ralph Houk after spending two years with the Yankees as a utility player and pinch hitter. Dick reached the major leagues as a shortstop with the Kansas City Athletics in 1961 and was named Rookie of the Year as well as being selected to the All-Star team. He was an outstanding baserunner."
-1970 New York Yankees Press-TV-Radio Guide
MICKEY MANTLE (Coach)
CAN MICKEY MANTLE MAKE IT AS AN ANNOUNCER?
It's A Whole New Ball Game As The Critics Offer A Scouting Report On Television's Newest Rookie
"When the National Broadcasting Company announced more than a year ago that it had added Mickey Mantle to its Game of the Week team, one question raced through my mind: Which Mickey Mantle did NBC hire?
As a baseball writer, I had known Mantle for eight years. I had traveled with the Yankees for four seasons. I had engaged in literally hundreds of casual conversations and interviews with the No. 1 baseball idol of his time. I discovered there was not one, but two Mickey Mantles. Not a righthanded Mickey Mantle and a lefthanded Mickey Mantle, but two diametrically opposed personalities in one.
The first Mickey Mantle was uncommunicative, aloof, sullen, rude and unapproachable.
The second Mickey Mantle was gregarious, charming, witty, cooperative, candid and interesting.
If NBC got the first Mickey Mantle, it would have a lot of dead air.
If it got the second Mickey Mantle, it would have a happy combination of Andy Griffith, Gary Cooper and Dizzy Dean.
When they finally put Mickey in front of the cameras, it was immediately obvious NBC had hired the second Mickey Mantle and the man's apparent schizophrenia as a player was suddenly understandable to even the most amateur of amateur psychiatrists.
As a player, Mantle was frequently given to moods. He could be forced into an inexplicable and impenetrable shell by any number of things- physical pain, a bad day at the plate, the boredom of the long season, constant traveling, the rapidly increasing gap that was separating him from his four growing boys and that the knowledge that young boys need the security of a father's constant supervision and, yes, discipline. Until last spring, he had never seen his oldest son, 17-year-old Mickey, Jr., play baseball.
Retirement from baseball brought out the best in Mickey Mantle. He has maturity, financial stability and the personal security of a regular home life. And, handled properly, he became a valuable asset to the NBC baseball team. He was no Red Barber or Mel Allen and he never will be. Nor is he a candidate for television rookie of the year against such other first-time-on-a-regular-series rookies as Glen Campbell (The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour) and Michael Parks (Then Came Bronson).
The Mantle wit, well known to his teammates but hidden from the public, popped up on television, ironically on ABC. Mick was on loan to the rival network, which was doing the Little League championship. One of the finalists was a team from Japan and there was something familiar about the Japanese pitcher.
'That kid reminds me a lot of Mel Stottlemyre,' Mantle said. Then he paused. 'I wonder if Mel was ever in Japan.'
It was no innocent slip of the tongue, Mantle insists. 'I meant to say that. I didn't think anybody would be offended. I'm sure everybody knew I was kidding.'
There was one embarrassing moment in which Mantle was not kidding.
'I was on a show with Tony Kubek and my old pal, Billy Martin,' Mick recalled. 'Tony asked me if I have ever considered managing. I told him I didn't think I would make a good manager. I said it seemed to me that when playing ball comes easy to someone, that person doesn't make a good manager for some reason.
' 'The best managers,' I said, 'are guys who were lousy players. Like Billy Martin and Ralph Houk.' And there was Billy standing right there.'
The original thought was that Mantle would make a minimum of 10 selected weekly appearances on NBC. Including the playoffs and World Series, he did 15 at a per-game price that was more than he got as a player.
At first it seemed like a shotgun wedding. NBC had more announcers in the booth than most teams have players on their bench and Mantle had always appeared shy, uncomfortable and reticent during television and radio interviews. There was a very good chance Mickey would fall flat on his face and the NBC peacock would be a sick bird.
In all candor, both NBC and Mantle admit they were motivated to go ahead with the deal by selfish interests. NBC was kidding nobody, least of all itself, that Mickey was a potential Emmy winner.
'His name is magic,' says Chet Simmons, the network's director of sports. 'When we go into a city for a game, there are always four or five writers around who want to sit down and talk with him. Let's face it, that's one reason we hired him and Mickey knew it. He's been very cooperative with the press. I used to hear and read about how difficult he was to interview when he was a player. Now he seems to enjoy it.'
With customary frankness, Mantle admits he has had his own fish to fry and it serves his purpose to be on television. He accepted the job, Mantle says, for a variety of reasons, one of which was to perpetuate his name. He is involved in several businesses, the success of which are dependent on his name.
'I wanted to keep my name in front of the public,' Mick says. 'I don't want people to forget me.'
His primary interests are a chain of men's clothing stores, 'Mickey Mantle's Men's Shops,' a chain of restaurants, 'Mickey Mantle's Country Cookin',' and an employment agency with football star Joe Namath, 'Mantle Men and Namath Girls.'
By the end of the season, Mickey expects there will be between 10 and 15 Mickey Mantle Men's Shops. And Mickey Mantle's Country Cookin' restaurants, opening at the rate of one a week, were in 20 cities by the first of the year.
There were other things that persuaded Mick to take his chances on the tube.
'The thing I knew I would miss most when I stopped playing ball,' he says, 'was being around the guys. I always enjoyed being with players on the road and in the clubhouse. I wanted to stay close to the game in some way and this seemed like the perfect thing. I'm still a good baseball fan. I enjoy watching the game.'
Once it had him, NBC had to decide the best way to use Mantle to gain the maximum use of his name, his knowledge and his boyish appeal. It was decided not to hide him in the booth, but to put him out there on the field where he could be seen. Mantle agreed with the decision.
'They already had Curt Gowdy and Tony doing the game and you don't really need three guys up there,' Mickey reasoned.
Instead, the idea was for Mickey to appear on the pre-game show talking baseball with Gowdy and Kubek and various players.
'We didn't want people to think of him as an announcer,' points out Carl Lindemann, President of NBC Sports. 'We wanted them to think of him as an expert. He was a great player. Before the All-Star Game, Mickey and Sandy Koufax did a show together in which they just talked, off the cuff. Here were two guys they're going to wheel right into the Hall of Fame when they're eligible. Who wouldn't be interested in what they had to say? And who would question any of their opinions?'
Whatever Mantle's shortcomings on the air, NBC was completely satisfied with him. It got what it wanted.
'He is exactly what I thought he would be,' says sports director Simmons, 'a shy, shuffling Oklahoma boy. When he started, I told him all I wanted him to do was talk about what he knows best ... baseball. I just wanted him to sit back, enjoy himself and talk about the game. At first I was skeptical, but I'm convinced now. His smile is incredible. He comes across ... well, the word that best fits how he comes across is believability. You believe what he tells you.'
A veteran Mantle watcher is Til Ferdenzi, who was covering the Yankees for the old Journal-American when Mickey came up as a green rookie in 1951 and is now Director of Public Relations for NBC Sports. Ferdenzi had seen the years and his exposure to the big city work their magic on the boy from the lead and zinc mines of Oklahoma. Ferdenzi remains in awe of the man.
'When he took the job, I knew he would be good at it,' Ferdenzi says. 'I know certain things Mickey Mantle can do and do well. He's very glib. I was with him in Atlanta and he was on a show with Willie Mays and Hank Aaron. Here were the three greatest home run hitters alive on the same show. It was a natural. The Louisville Bat Company had brought a bat that had been used by Wee Willie Keeler when he batted .400. Mantle, Mays and Aaron compared it with the bats hitters use today and they discussed techniques in hitting and the difference between the old-time hitter and the modern-day hitter. It was a fascinating show.
'I know he works hard at improving and he enjoyed the job. I think he likes it because he's adapted very well and I think that surprised him.'
Mantle admits he enjoyed his rookie year on TV more than he thought he would.
'The reason I enjoyed it is that everybody made things easy for me,' Mick says. 'They've been great to work with and I don't only mean Curt and Tony. I mean the directors and producers and cameramen, too.'
Mantle's on-the-job training has caused him to become aware of the great majority out there who may be silent, but who are listening to what he says. He has a letter to prove it.
'By mistake, I said 'Frisco' for San Francisco,' he recalls. 'I didn't mean anything by it. I never knew that people in San Francisco didn't like the word 'Frisco.' Now I know. I didn't realize they were so touchy. I got a letter from a guy who called me a dumb Okie for not knowing I shouldn't use the word 'Frisco.' He said I should go back to the sand hills where I came from.
'The letter was unsigned. It's too bad because I wanted to write back and tell him if I'm dumb because I used the word 'Frisco,' he's not so smart himself because we don't call them 'sand hills,' we call them 'chat piles.'
Simmons remembers the World Series and a trip from Baltimore to New York.
'We decided to go by bus,' Chet says. 'We had the bus waiting for us outside the park and we took off as soon as the second game ended. We had sandwiches and beer on board and somebody brought along a guitar and there were Tony and Mickey sitting with a group of guys in the back of the bus singing cowboy songs. Here's a guy who could charter his own plane and, heaven knows, he's made enough bus trips in his life. But when we got to New York, he said, 'That was fun. If we go back to Baltimore, I hope we go the same way.'
'During the Series he would tape his show in the morning. He could have taken off and not shown up until it was time to tape the next day's show. Instead, he came into the booth and watched every minute of every game. He even expressed a great deal of interest in the mechanics of the business. Frankly, some of us thought he might be a prima donna, but he was completely unaffected and great to work with.'
Having gained the approval of his bosses, Mantle presumably could have a long and successful career in television if he wants it. What's more important, Mick seems to have gained the approval of the viewers as well, and that may be the most important item of all.
'The mail has been generally good,' Lindemann reports. 'I don't want you to think we've been deluged by mail, but what we got is good. You have to understand that people don't usually write when they are pleased with something. They write when they are angry with something.'
Jerry Della Femina, president of Jerry Della Femina and Partners, a New York advertising agency, and a lifetime Yankee fan, wasn't quite sure.
'I don't think they're taking advantage of who he is,' Della Femina says. 'Yes, I'm always conscious I'm listening to Mickey Mantle because of his flat monotone. I know he knows more than he's letting out. It's the same with all former players on the air. I keep waiting for them to say something great, something inside, something they know or did when they playing. But it's as if they don't want to seem vain, so they suppress all that personal stuff that would spice up the show for me. With Mickey, I would like to hear more of what went on when he was playing. He's being toned down and I don't that's right. After all, he's Mickey Mantle and if he can't be a little boastful, who can?
'What I'm saying is that I don't need him to tell me what I saw. I want something extra from him. They should let him go, let him say whatever he wants. The jocks who scored big in that business were Dizzy Dean and Joe Garagiola and nobody suppressed them. That's what they do with Mantle. I'd like to hear [what] Mickey Mantle [and] Billy Martin knew in the clubhouse and in the Copacabana.'
As an advertising executive, Della Femina was asked if he would hire Mantle for a campaign.
'In a minute,' came the instant reply. 'He's still a big hero in this country. My criticism is that I don't think NBC is fully capitalizing on his image.'
It may all be academic because Mantle does not think of himself as an announcer and has no plans to make it his life's work. At the moment, his other interests preclude his considering a job as a full-time announcer. He likes the part-time setup of NBC and hopes to continue that association.
NBC executives deny they are suppressing Mick. They want him to express himself, to go out on the limb. They are willing to wait because they believe it will come in time.
'One of the greatest qualities he has,' says Simmons, 'is that he doesn't take himself seriously. When he expresses an opinion and it proves wrong, he puts himself down in a charming way. He predicted the Orioles would win the Series and that Buford would be the star. When things started going the other way, he refused to back down. Finally, when it was obvious that the Orioles and Buford were not going to do anything, he said, 'I'm some expert. I really blew that one.'
Mickey laughs when he thinks about his first try at expertise with the entire nation listening.
'I'm still getting mail about that one,' he chuckles. 'People write me and call me a traitor. 'You lived in New York 18 years, how can you turn against us like that?'
'My answer is simple. I said that when we lost the pennant to Cleveland in 1954, I went home and told the miners the Indians would sweep the Giants in four straight. So, the Giants won four straight. I picked the Colts to beat the Jets. I say I know I'm a kiss of death, so the reason I picked the Orioles was that I didn't want to jinx the Mets. I really wanted them to win.' "
-Phil Pepe, New York Daily News (Baseball 1970 Yearbook)
DID YOU KNOW THAT?
"On May 13, 1955 Mantle hit three home runs into the Stadium's center field bleachers (two batting left-handed and one right-handed) as the Yankees defeated the Tigers 5-2. This is the only time this feat has been accomplished.
Mantle twice came the closest to achieving the distinction of being the first to hit a fair ball out of Yankee Stadium, both times the ball hitting the facade of the upper deck in right field. The first occurrence was on May 30, 1956 off Washington's Pedro Ramos, the first game of a doubleheader. It struck at a point about 107 feet above the ground. The Yanks won 4-3. The second time was on May 22, 1963 off Bill Fischer of Kansas City in the 11th inning, the Yankees winning 8-7. This ball struck at a point measured to be about 106 feet above the ground. This homer is noted as the more prodigious clout as it struck the right-field roof facade while still on the rise. Mantle stated, 'It was the hardest ball I ever hit.'
Second only to Babe Ruth's 600-footer at Detroit in 1926, Mantle's longest home run was hit on April 17, 1953 off Washington's Chuck Stobbs at Griffith Stadium, traveling 565 feet (Mantle was batting right-handed). On August 12, 1964 Mantle hit the longest measured home run at Yankee Stadium- 502 feet, over the 22-foot screen, into the center field bleachers. The Chicago pitcher was Ray Herbert, the Yankees winning 7-3."
-1970 New York Yankees Press-TV-Radio Guide
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