BILLY MARTIN (Manager)
"Brash Billy. Back with the Yankees, where he enjoyed his greatest success, he was Casey Stengel's favorite player.
Billy was born Alfred Manuel Martin in Berkley, California, and battled his way to the big leagues. He won the AL West as manager of the Twins, then was fired ... he took a Tiger team and won the AL East in his second year there, then was fired ... he took a rag-tag Ranger team and brought them in second place in his first full season there ... then was fired. Billy was hired by the Yankees on Old-Timers' Day, 1975.
'I didn't come here to lose,' he said. Under him, the Yanks were 30-26. Martin's philosophy of managing: 'I'm an unorthodox manager. I like to do the opposite of what the other team expects.'"
-Phil Pepe, The Complete Handbook of Baseball, 1976 Edition
"When Billy Martin patrolled second base for the Yankees during the 1950s, he was the man who made things happen. He was Casey Stengel's pride and joy, and a man who really proved what the magic of a Yankee uniform can do.
Now, two decades later, Billy is still the man who makes things happen. But now, he's in Casey's office, managing the team he once starred for. And what a perfect marriage it is!
Billy is a leader by inspiration as well as by reputation, for players consider him among the best in the running of a game. But it is not only as a tactician that he succeeds but also as an old fashioned, play-your-heart-out man who leads by example.
Billy's just an inspiring kind of guy. And he's going to give New Yorkers an inspiring kind of team."
-The New York Yankees Official 1976 Yearbook
"Billy returned to the Yankee organization on August 2, 1975 as manager, 18 years and six weeks after he was traded away.
He was a sparkplug second baseman who played in five World Series for the Yankees, and a classic example of a man who maximized his abilities just by wearing the Yankee uniform. After he was traded, he played in rapid succession for the Athletics, Tigers, Indians, Reds, Braves and Twins, and was only an ordinary performer.
Billy was a superstar in World Series play, with a lifetime .333 average. He made a famous catch of a short pop hit by Jackie Robinson to save the 1952 World Championship for the Yankees. A year later, he won the Babe Ruth Award by hitting .500 (12 for 24).
He was born Alfred Manuel Pesano in Berkley to Italian and Portuguese parents, but his father deserted when he was only eight months old. After graduating from Berkley High in 1946, the Oakland Oaks of the Pacific League signed him. He was farmed out to Phoenix of the Arizona-Texas League in 1947 and led the league in hitting (.392), hits (230), doubles (48) and runs batted in (174). Billy finished the year under Casey Stengel at Oakland and played for Casey again in 1948, the Oaks winning two pennants.
In 1950, he and Jackie Jensen were purchased by the Yankees, and after starting the season in Kansas City (American Association) Billy moved up to New York play in 34 games as a utility infielder. He served the same role in 1951, appearing in his first Series. Billy became a regular in 1952 and remained so until he was traded, with time out for military service for the entire 1954 season, and for most of 1955. Billy has been a close friend of Mickey Mantle and Whitey Ford ever since they played together with the Yankees.
After his playing career ended in 1961, he scouted for Minnesota (1962-64) and became a Twins' coach in 1965, the year they unseated New York as American League champions. He remained third base coach until May 28, 1968, when he went to Denver to begin his managing career, and returned to Minnesota in 1969 with the Twins' job, leading the club to the first Western Division title. Billy lost the Championship Series and his job, sat out the 1970 season, and got the Detroit Tigers' job in 1971, leading the club to the 1972 Eastern Division championship. He lost that job on September 1, 1973 but a week later was hired by the Texas Rangers, whom he led to a strong second-place finish in 1974. Billy was the A.P. and U.P.I. Manager of the Year that season. He was fired by Texas on July 21, 1975 with the club in fourth place, and took over the Yankees with the team's record at 53-51 in third place, ten games out.
Colorful, fiery and controversial, Billy enjoys working out with the team, or even taking the coaching lines at third base at times. He has a reputation for running a game and setting the tempo of a team more than most managers.
Billy's hobby is American history, with a special expertise on the Civil War."
-1976 New York Yankees Press/TV/Radio Guide
"The name's the same and the Stadium is still in the same place, but everything else seems to have changed.
Yankee Stadium, the House That Ruth Built and Lindsey Remodeled, is again the home of the Yankees. A mammoth controversial rebuilding program, started under the administration of former Mayor John Lindsey, has given the New York Yankees a new look to their old home in the Bronx.
But with all the changes, there's something that's going to be quite familiar to Yankee fans. Billy the Kid has come home.
Really, where else should Billy Martin be managing but at Yankee Stadium? It took him a few stops at places like Minnesota, Detroit and Texas. And when the Yankees finally did get a chance to hire him last season, they were playing on foreign turf at Shea Stadium- the home of the Mets.
But now the Yankees and Martin are both back home- two decades after the brash, cocky kid won the heart of Casey Stengel with his combative play before he finally outlasted his welcome and was shipped to Kansas City.
Martin, always a Yankee at heart, is bound to make the club a force to reckoned with in the coming American League season.
Martin came back to the Yankees last August 2 and, appropriately enough, it was on Old-Timers' Day. It was just 12 days after he had been fired by the Texas Rangers. 'For a year or two,' says one baseball executive, 'he's the best manager in baseball.'
But now Martin wants to prove he can be a winning manager over the long haul. His three major league managing jobs have spanned about five full years, less than two years per job.
Gabe Paul, the club president, has no doubts that Martin is the guy to get the Yankees back on the right track. 'We knew his background, knew his temperament, knew his pluses and minuses,' Paul says. 'If a guy can't learn from the experience of three jobs, then he's not very smart. I think Billy Martin is smart.'
Martin's problems with his past clubs usually have been differences over player personnel but that's because he had a big say in personnel. 'All my duties here are as a manager. I expect to have something to say on personnel but only as a consultant.' Gabe Paul is a strong-willed executive and it's obvious that he'll run the club.
Martin will admit he has made mistakes in the past, but says that his problems in the past have been due to promises broken by and misunderstandings with the front office. He says his superiors have been jealous of his popularity with the fans.
'Everybody's makes mistakes and I've been the perfect guy to be crucified,' he says.
If there was one indication of Martin's willingness to admit past mistakes, it came in his dealings with Elliott Maddox. The two parted bitterly when Maddox felt that Martin got rid of him in Detroit, promised him a shot at a regular job in Texas, failed to live up to that promise, and ordered Ranger pitchers to throw at him last spring.
But Martin made it obvious to Maddox that the past was the past. There was a telephone call. 'Hello, this is Billy Martin,' he said to Maddox. 'Maybe you've heard I'm the new Yankee manager.' Later, they had a talk in the Yankee clubhouse after Martin had gone out of his way to question him about the torn cartilage in his leg. 'He felt the things in the past should be forgotten,' Maddox said.
Maddox added, 'Actually, we never knew each other. I was never around long enough. I imagine things can be worked out now. We have a common goal now.'
Martin admitted he was wrong about Maddox with the Rangers. 'I planned on playing Lenny Randle in center field. I didn't think he (Maddox) could hit in the big leagues. He proved me wrong. He told me he wants the same thing I want, to win. That's enough for me.'
That's Billy Martin, a guy as fiery as ever but a guy willing to admit to his own goofs in the past. Now Martin has to prove he still has a future with the Yankees.
Martin is always fast with a quip. He once said the secret of managing is 'to keep the five players who hate you away from the four who are undecided.'
But there's a lot more to it than that in Martin's book. He claims a manager can change the result in anywhere from 20 to 50 games. That may be a bit inflated, but nobody ever said Martin isn't brash.
He backs up his claim. 'A manager can if he's the kind of guy I am, who handles everything himself. I'm not talking about the managers who just make out the lineup card. I call everything myself. Infield in, halfway, back; all the pitchouts; whether to throw through or not. I call a lot of pitches, too. There's someone out there looking at me before every pitch.'
But Martin is also the kind of guy who gets genuine satisfaction out of teaching the young players the ins and outs of the game. 'When I was a kid, I never understood what teachers got out of it. But now I know. Why, to see somebody do something you showed them, that's a wonderful feeling. You feel better than if you had done it yourself.'
He also still remembers fondly the old days on the Yankees. 'I was probably the proudest Yankee of them all. And I don't mean a false pride. When it's real on a team, it's a real love-pride. There's nothing greater in the world than when somebody on the team does something good, and everybody gathers around to pat him on the back. I really love the togetherness in baseball. That's a true love.'
Martin's goal is to bring back those days with the Yankees. Although the Yankees are going to have a tough task trying to beat out Boston and Baltimore in the American League Eastern Division, it's a challenge he's looking forward to.
He means to remake the team and he'll start with fundamentals. 'We're going to spend a lot of time working on fundamentals. This club is very poor on fundamentals- not hitting the cutoff man, throwing to the wrong base, and the bunting is poor. Very poor.' It's not likely to stay that way.
Martin says he doesn't think it will be 'that much of a problem' for the Yankees to win in 1976. 'I don't think we have to do that much. I think we can win with a healthy club, with Ron Blomberg and Elliott Maddox back. That's all it will take, really, just to have everybody healthy because I think we have the players who can win.'
The Yankees also made a pair of key deals over the winter that will help add a lot of speed and versatility to the lineup and give Martin more of a chance to do the kinds of things he likes to do.
First, they traded slugger Bobby Bonds to the California Angels for base stealing whiz Mickey Rivers and pitcher Ed Figueroa and then traded Doc Medich to the Pittsburgh Pirates for rookie Willie Randolph and pitchers Ken Brett and Dock Ellis.
The way Martin sees it, Rivers and Randolph will give the Yankees a lot more speed in the lineup. Rivers is the defending American League base stealing champion with 70 steals in 84 attempts. 'I think he'll steal 100 for us,' Martin insists. The Yankees hated to part with Bonds, who added more punch to the lineup, but they feel that Rivers' quickness will make up for the loss in power. And Figueroa replaces Medich in the rotation (they both won 16 last year) so the Yanks could afford to send Medich to Pittsburgh for Randolph, Brett and Ellis.
Randolph hasn't proven himself in the major leagues yet, but all the scouts say he is a sure-fire prospect at second base, and he is being counted on to plug a gap in the Yankee lineup that has existed ever since Bobby Richardson retired a decade ago. If Randolph is the kind of second baseman the Yankees think he is, the deal will be a big plus for them. The Pirates were willing to part with him only because they have Rennie Stennett set at second for years to come.
Brett, who has a history of arm trouble, and Ellis, who has had problems with his attitude, are both question mark pitchers, but both could help. If any manager can motivate the unpredictable Ellis, it would have to Martin. 'I'd love to play for Martin and I'd love to play in New York,' Ellis said as soon as the deal was made.
The Yanks, who also picked up Oscar Gamble from Cleveland for Pat Dobson, feel their new players are going to help a club that already has a solid nucleus with Blomberg, Maddox, Catfish Hunter, Thurman Munson, Roy White and Graig Nettles all in their prime.
And with Martin ready to turn the team loose, it's going to be an interesting season to say the least. But Martin has something to prove, too. He has to show he can do it over the long haul. It could be he's too intense. 'I can't ever get away from it,' he admits. 'I take it home with me. I take it to bed with me. I wake up with it. And what I feel inside, you never see on the outside.'
But Martin does think he has gotten a bad rap over the years. 'I've always been the toughest critic of myself. They talk about my temper. Well, I haven't seen a good racehorse yet who wasn't high-strung. And anyway, temper is a wonderful thing if you can control it and if it doesn't control you. The way I see it, my temper is a great ally. It is what has pushed Billy Martin.'
The question remains whether it has pushed him too far at times. He managed the Twins and Tigers to division championships but still was dismissed after hassles with the front office. He took a Texas team that had been going nowhere since it had moved to the Lone Star State and turned it into a solid contender. But again, Martin was fired.
It wasn't three strikes and out for Martin, though. Just 12 days after the Rangers got rid of him, the Yankees had brought him back home. But this might well be the last shot on the merry-go-round for Martin. If he fails with the Yankees, that would be four strikes and there would be no guarantee that he'd get another chance.
And he couldn't ask for a better opportunity. The Yankees will be moving into a remodeled stadium this year, they have a club that clearly has the potential to be a contender and they have the kind of club that Billy Martin likes to maneuver. It is a club that can run, take the extra base and get all those little extras that Billy Martin always likes to take advantage of.
There's no doubt Martin has the record behind him. He started as a manager in the minors with Denver in 1968 and took a club that was 8-22 and went 65-60 the rest of the way with it. He then moved to Minnesota and grabbed a team that finished 24 games out of first place and drove it to the division crown. In Detroit, he took a team that had finished 20 games out of it, and in two years led it to a division win. In Texas, he took a club that had been 37 games out and led it to within five games of the top.
Yet despite all that success, Martin has yet to last three full years as the manager with any single club.
Will things change? It's going to be interesting to find out.
But Martin, who hasn't been in a World Series in 20 years, since he was a Yankee back in 1956, would like to show that it will. There couldn't be a better way than to return to the World Series."
-Vito Stellino, Sports All-Stars 1976 Baseball
"Billy Martin is the 'Make Things Happen' manager in major league baseball. That spirit goes back to the days when he was the star second baseman of the Yankees, as much as part of the attack as were Mantle, Berra and Ford. Today, that youthful zest carries over to managerial leadership. Billy is considered among the best strategists in the game. His intense dedication to baseball, particularly during the games themselves, is healthfully contagious, creating a winning atmosphere among his men.
Somehow, it always seemed inevitable that Billy and the Yankees would be back together someday ... than uniform number one would be on Billy's back as it was during those grand days of the fifties when he would steal the show at World Series time. Billy is back ... and watch the Yankees ignite under his command."
-1976 New York Yankees Scorebook & Official Program
BOB LEMON (Coach)
"Bob Lemon is the newest Yankee coach - and with pride, the newest member of the Hall of Fame. Elected last winter on the basis of a brilliant career with the Cleveland Indians, 'Lem,' former Kansas City manager, becomes pitching coach this season. His presence on the distinguished staff gives New York two Hall of Fame coaches - quite a faculty."
-The New York Yankees Official 1976 Yearbook
"Bob was elected to the Hall of Fame on January 22, 1976, reaffirming him as one of the great American League pitchers of all time. He joins the Yankee organization in 1976, his 38th year in professional baseball. He was named Yankee pitching coach last December.
Bob was a seven-time 20-game winner with the Cleveland Indians, compiling a lifetime 207-128 record. He was also one of the best hitting pitchers of all time (37 lifetime home runs), as he began his career as a third baseman-outfielder. Bob was the Opening Day center fielder for the Indians in 1946 after three years in the Navy, but by season's end he was virtually a full-time pitcher. Named Pitcher of the Year by the Sporting News in 1948, 1950 and 1954, he was selected to seven All-Star teams and hurled in two World Series. Bob no-hit Detroit on June 30, 1948. He hurled 10 shutouts in 1948, and had 31 for his career.
After his playing career, Bob scouted and coached, and became manager of Kansas City in 1970. His second place finish that year brought him great acclaim. In 1974, he managed the Sacramento club that hit 305 home runs in its small park.
Bob was Minor League Manager of the Year in 1966."
-1976 New York Yankees Press/TV/Radio Guide
"Maybe it took a coaching job with the Yankees to get Bob Lemon the overdue recognition he deserved, but let's not think so, for this man pitched his way into the Hall of Fame during his brilliant career with the Indians. And 1976 turned out to be his year, as the Hall of Fame opened the gates and made him a baseball immortal, just like his coaching partner Yogi Berra. Lemon, the new Yankee pitching coach, is in his 38th consecutive year in pro baseball."
-1976 New York Yankees Scorebook & Official Program
1976 AMERICAN LEAGUE ALL-STAR TEAM CAPTAIN
"Bob Lemon well remembers the last time he was in Philadelphia for an All-Star Game. The date was July 8, 1952, the place was Shibe Park and it was a dreary, rainy day.
'That's one game I'll never forget,' says the newly elected Hall of Famer. 'I pitched two innings in a steady rain, and big Hank Sauer of the Cubs hit a two-run homer off me in the fourth inning that drove in the winning run in the National League's 3-2 win.'
The game was eventually called after five innings, the only All-Star Game ever cut short, and Lemon was saddled with the loss, his only decision in four All-Star appearances.
Nowadays you hear ballplayers say they'd rather have the three days off than appear in the annual mid-summer classic. Not so with Lemon, winner of 207 big league games, who says he has many fond memories of his All-Star appearances.
'They were all good times,' says the pitching coach of the 1976 New York Yankees. 'I enjoyed every one of them and was honored to be selected four times.'"
-1976 All-Star Game official program
YOGI BERRA (Coach)
"A warm welcome home to everyone's friend, Lawrence Peter 'Yogi' Berra, one of the most recognizable people in America. The three-time MVP and Hall of Famer, who hit more home runs than any catcher in history, is back with the Yankees this year after a lengthy stint as coach and manager of the Mets. Yogi starred for the Yanks from 1946 to 1963 and managed the club to the 1964 pennant."
-The New York Yankees Official 1976 Yearbook
"The Hall of Famer returned to the Yankees as a coach on December 3, 1975, 33 years after signing his Yankee first contract and 12 years after his last one.
A three-time Most Valuable Player (1951,1954,1955), his 313 home runs are the most ever hit by a catcher. Yogi twice hit 30 homers in one season, a catching record, and drove in over 100 runs five times.
He handled a record 950 consecutive chances without an error (1957-1959). Yogi also played the outfield for the Yankees.
A 15-time All-Star, Yogi played in a record 14 World Series, setting records for most championship clubs (10), most games (75), most at-bats (259), most hits (71), most singles (49) and most consecutive errorless games by a catcher (30).
Yogi was a player-coach in 1963 and Yankee manager in 1964, winning the club's last pennant. He joined the Mets' coaching staff in 1965 and became Met manager in 1972, leading the club to a pennant the following year. The Yankees retired his uniform number (and Bill Dickey's) in 1972, but bring it back for his new assignment.
His son Dale is a third baseman in the Pirate organization and his son Tim played football for the Baltimore Colts."
-1976 New York Yankees Press/TV/Radio Guide
"Is there a more familiar face in all America? Yogi is home, just as the Yankees themselves are this season. The greatest home run hitting catcher in history ... the holder of a host of World Series records ... the man with the gift for making the obvious sound so clever.
Lawrence Peter Berra serves this season as an aide in the dugout to manager Billy Martin."
-1976 New York Yankees Scorebook & Official Magazine
ELSTON HOWARD (Coach)
"One of the most popular players in Yankee history is Elston Howard, the last New Yorker to win an MVP award, the winner of the 1958 Babe Ruth Award, a .348 hitter during the great 1961 season, a nine-time All-Star selection, and a member of ten World Championship teams. Elston, the Yankees first base and batting coach, is in his eighth season as a Yankee coach."
-The New York Yankees Official 1976 Yearbook
"Now in his eighth season as Yankee first base and batting coach, Elston is one of the most popular men to ever wear the Yankee uniform.
He spent 13 years with the Yankees, playing on nine pennant winners (plus one with Boston). A nine-time All-Star, Elston was the last Yankee to win the MVP award (1963). A .348 hitter in 1961, he won the Babe Ruth Award for World Series heroics as a left fielder.
As a catcher, Elston led the league in fielding three times, winning Gold Gloves in 1963 and 1964, and set a Yankee record in 1964 by making only one error.
Elston was the first black player on the Yankees, the first black coach in the American League and was the inventor of the batting donut, used by almost every on-deck hitter. He has served on the Bergen County Board of Vocational and Technical Education."
-1976 New York Yankees Press/TV/Radio Guide
"Doesn't seem that long ago that Ellie Howard was a star Yankee catcher and outfielder. He won the Babe Ruth in the 1958 World Series for heroics in left field, but he's better remembered as a link in the grand catching tradition of Dickey-Berra-Howard-Munson the Yankees can claim.
Now in his 21st straight year in the major leagues, the personable Jerseyite is one of the most popular men to ever wear the Yankee uniform."
-1976 New York Yankees Scorebook & Official Magazine
DICK HOWSER (Coach)
"Youthful Dick Howser still hasn't reached his 40th birthday, yet he's already an eight-year veteran of the third base coaching lines for the Yankees. The former infielder for Kansas City, Cleveland and the Yankees was the Rookie of the Year in the American League in 1961 when he stole 37 bases for the A's. He still imparts the wisdom of infield play and baserunning to his charges, as well as directing traffic around the bases."
-The New York Yankees Official 1976 Yearbook
"Winner of the Sporting News' Rookie of the Year Award in 1961, Dick stole 37 bases that year and made the All-Star team. He played infield for Kansas City, Cleveland and New York before replacing Frank Crosetti as third base coach in 1969 at the age of 31. The Yankees got him on December 20, 1966 in a trade for Gil Downs.
He's a close friend of movie star Burt Reynolds, with whom he attended both high school and college.
Dick managed the Yankees' Instructional League team in Florida for two seasons."
-1976 New York Yankees Press/TV/Radio Guide
"Dick Howser is an eight-year veteran of the third base coaching lines for the Yankees, spanning a virtual turnover of players. He relays the signs from the dugout and makes the rabbit-quick Yankees motor around his base.
A one-time Rookie of the Year, Dick was quite a motorman himself, stealing 37 bases as a rookie.
Communication between Dick and the players couldn't be better. The read each other well, and transcribe his thoughts into runs."
-1976 New York Yankees Scorebook & Official Magazine
WHITEY FORD (Special Instructor)
"He's the winningest pitcher in Yankee history. With his longtime teammate, roommate and friend Mickey Mantle, Whitey entered the Hall of Fame in 1974. His uniform #16 was officially retired by the Yanks on Old-Timers' Day the same year.
Among pitchers with 200 career victories, Whitey has the highest lifetime winning percentage, .690. He is the all-time Yankee shutout leader with 45, and also tops in strikeouts with 1,956. He was the Cy Young Award winner in 1961 when he was 25-4. He hurled consecutive one-hitters in 1955.
Whitey played for eleven pennant winners and in six All-Star games. He holds World Series records for most victories (10) and most consecutive scoreless innings, 33, breaking a Babe Ruth record.
Raised in New York, he played on the City's sandlots. Whitey is considered one of the real 'money' pitchers in baseball history, and one of the most popular athletes in New York.
Circulation problems in his left arm brought his great career to a halt in 1967. He has served annually as a spring training instructor since then, and as first base coach in 1968. Whitey was pitching coach in 1974 and 1975, a position he held as a player-coach under Yogi Berra in 1964. He has also done Yankee broadcasting on TV as well as many commercials.
His oldest son Eddie was Boston's number one draft pick in 1974.
Whitey will serve on special assignments during the regular season."
-1976 New York Yankees Press/TV/Radio Guide
MICKEY MANTLE (Special Instructor)
"Mickey was only the seventh player in baseball history to be elected to the Hall of Fame the first time he was eligible. With sidekick and teammate Whitey Ford, they together became the 20th and 21st Yankees in the Hall of Fame in 1974.
Mickey has appeared annually since his retirement after the 1968 season as a special instructor in spring training and serves the Yankees as a goodwill ambassador throughout the year.
His 18-year career was one of the most dramatic in Yankee history. With injuries to both legs taking a heavy toll on his magnificent performances, Mickey played in more games as a Yankee (2,401) and had more at-bats (8,102).
The most powerful switch-hitter in the game's history, he ten times hit a home run from both sides of the plate in one game, a major league record. His 18 home runs in World Series played topped Babe Ruth's previous high of 15. The American League MVP in 1956, 1957 and 1962, Mickey won the Triple Crown in '56, and also won the Hickok Belt as the top professional athlete of the year in 1956.
Mickey ranks high in most offensive all-time Yankee categories: third in runs scored (1,677), third in hits (2,415), fourth in doubles (344), second in homers (536) and fourth in RBIs (1,509). His 1,734 walks are third on the all-time list and his 1,710 strikeouts are first.
Mickey is one of the most popular athletes in modern sports history."
-1976 New York Yankees Press/TV/Radio Guide
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