1976 Profile: Rudy May

"Dude. He's a compulsive talker, but he makes sense, and is articulate and determined. A fallen Angel, he's happy to be a Yankee, but he must become more consistent.
Rudy was born in Coffeyville, Kansas, but soon moved to California and grew up there.
Purchased for $100,000 on June 15, 1974, he's 22-16 in a year-and-a-half for the Yankees.
'I knew I was leaving the Angels because they lost confidence in me and I lost confidence in them. Every time I pitched, I was looking over my shoulder to see if someone was warming up.' A hard thrower, his strikeouts-per-innings-pitched ratio (145 for 212) was best on the staff."

-Phil Pepe, The Complete Handbook of Baseball, 1976 Edition

"His teammates call him 'Dude,' and that's because Rudy May is now a blend of Southern California and the Big Apple, having spent his big league career in these two environments, doing his thing on the pitching mound.
When the Angels got him from Philadelphia for Bo Belinsky eleven years ago, Bo was the big man in the deal. Today, Rudy has long since surpassed the flashy Belinsky in achievement. In his Yankee career, he's won 22 games in a year and a half, and he's settled into a nice home on Long Island.
A key man in the Yankees' regular starting rotation, Rudy has the occasional bouts with wildness, frequent among fastball pitchers, but he's discovered an overall formula for winning since changing teams, and the Yankees are delighted with the results."

-The New York Yankees Official 1976 Yearbook

"Rudy has enjoyed his greatest major league success since joining the Yankees at the 1974 trading deadline. A lifetime 51-76 pitcher for the Angels, he's been 22-16 for New York, and his 14 victories last year represented a career high.
It was an odd season for 'The Dude,' for he began by splitting his first four decisions, then won five straight, lost four straight, won four straight, and finally won three of his last five. He allowed only nine home runs all season and has allowed an average of only seven hits per nine innings as a Yankee.
When the Yankees got him from California, he was the senior member of the team, having been obtained from the Phillies in a 1964 trade for Bo Belinsky. Rudy made his first major league start on April 18, 1965 and had a no-hitter against Detroit for 7.2 innings. He struck out 16 Minnesota Twins on August 10, 1972 and is still third on the all-time Angel strikeout list.
Rudy attended Castlemont High School in Oakland, California, where he was a teammate of Cincinnati's Joe Morgan, and later served in the National Guard."

-1976 New York Yankees Press/TV/Radio Guide