"The hero of the Yankees' thrilling showdown victory over the Red Sox in the Eastern Division playoff and their World Series conquest of the Dodgers. Bucky won the World Series MVP award for his four-for-four, three-RBI performance in the decisive sixth game. Not bad for a guy who hits ninth in the batting order.
'Where else would I hit on this team?' He claims he likes hitting ninth because pitchers have a tendency to relax and let up when they get to him.
Born in Savannah, Georgia, Bucky came to the Yankees on the day before the '77 season opened. He's one of the best defensive shortstops in the game.
The first time he ever saw a major league game, he played in it."
-Phil Pepe and Jim Hawkins, The Complete Handbook of Baseball, 1979 Edition
"1978 was a distressing year for Bucky Dent ... until game #163 and beyond. Until that time, Bucky had been hampered by injuries for the first time in his career. In fact, he had missed only 17 games in his first four years as a major leaguer.
But Bucky Dent became a household name starting with the magnificent playoff game in Boston. As everyone knows, it was Bucky's three-run blast into the famous Fenway screen that gave the Yanks a lead they never relinquished. And that was just the start of things for the 27-year-old shortstop with the matinee idol looks.
In the American League Championship Series, Bucky was a key figure and finished second in RBIs to Jackson as the Yanks took the Royals in four games. Then came the World Series: .417 batting average, seven RBIs and his usual steady defense. Suddenly, Bucky was the World Series MVP and in demand for movies, talk shows and banquets. It was the stuff dreams are made from, but nobody knows better than Bucky Dent because it took hard work and determination to reach that high plateau."
-The New York Yankees Official 1979 Yearbook
"Dent capped off an injury plagued year with a super World Series, and was named the World Series MVP for his efforts. He batted .417 in the Series (10-24) with seven RBIs, and turned in a great job defensively against the Dodgers.
Bucky started his postseason heroics by hitting a three-run homer off Mike Torrez in the playoff game with Boston, bringing the Yankees from behind as they clinched the Eastern Division. It was one of the most publicized home runs in recent years.
Bucky suffered a pulled right hamstring in Anaheim on June 10, which bothered him on and off for the remainder of the year. He still managed to do a good job at the plate. Finishing strong, he had an 11-game hitting streak from September 2-12. He hit .350 (7-20) in the Yanks' four-game September sweep of the Red Sox, with seven RBIs.
He teams with Willie Randolph to give the Yankees one of the best young double-play combinations in the game. Bucky had a string of four straight years with over 150 games played snapped last year, yet his .981 fielding percentage was third among American League shortstops. He has been among the league leaders every year in total chances accepted.
Dent first came up with the White Sox in 1973. In his rookie year of 1974, he was the American League's runner-up in the Rookie of the Year voting to Texas' Mike Hargrove, yet was named shortstop on the major league All-Rookie team and led the A.L. with 23 sacrifice hits. Bucky tied for the league lead in double plays by a shortstop in 1974 with 108, and he led the league in 1975 with 105 twin-killings.
1975 has proved to Bucky's best year so far. In addition to the double plays, he was first in fielding (.981), putouts (279), assists (543) and total chances (838). He committed only 16 errors and was named to the American League's All-Star team.
Bucky hit .351 in 77 at-bats for Sarasota his first year in organized ball (1970). He won the Hustle Award in 1972 at Knoxville, where he hit .296 and made the Southern League All-Star team. He was a roommate of Rich Gossage when they were together in the White Sox organization. After hitting 10 home runs his first three full years in the majors, Bucky has hit 13 in the last two.
An all-around athlete, Dent was an All-State halfback at Hialeah (Fla.) High School. He played Little League, Babe Ruth and American Legion baseball in Hialeah. He attended Miami Dade North Junior College, where he was an All-American infielder. The first time Bucky ever saw a major league game, he played in it.
He became a movie star over the winter, appearing as a football player in a film about the Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders."
-New York Yankees 1979 Media Guide
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