"'I think I'll just leave it up to Lou.'
So declared Yankee manager Yogi Berra when asked about his 1984 plans for 'Sweet' Lou Piniella.
Hasn't it always been that way when the Yankees need a clutch hit? Don't they always seem to 'leave it up to Lou?' This 40-year-old man of pride never does anything gracefully- except get hits that count and take the extra base that is needed and catch the line drive that must be caught. His .295 average (10 years) with the Yankees makes him one of the top Yankee hitters of all time.
Shoulder problems and a recurrence of an inner ear infection plagued him in 1983, a year that saw him play and act as hitting instructor. This year, he is expected to do the same. As Berra so wisely said, it will be up to Sweet Lou to decide if he can help the team in the field, at bat, or as a hitting instructor.
But deep down, this man whose ancestors once ruled the seas and explored most of the known world has a burning desire to end his playing career on a championship team.
'There seems to be no secret about that,' he says, his Spanish eyes retaining the gleam of a gunfighter ready for yet another challenger. 'I've had so many fond memories, and I think to the day I die I'll never forget that playoff game in 1978. That game seemed to reflect life and death itself. It had everything. I don't know if I'd like to have another playoff game this year, but I sure would like to go out a winner.'
Heck, the guy IS a winner. In August, in every single year of the five Eastern titles, the call went out: 'Hey Lou, we need your bat in the lineup.'
And Sweet Lou Piniella has never failed his teammates and the fans ... so let's 'leave it up to Lou' in 1984."
-The New York Yankees Official 1984 Yearbook
"Piniella began the 1984 season on the disabled list with a sore left shoulder and was activated on April 22. He hit his 100th major league homer on May 6 in Minnesota off Jack O'Connor. His pinch-hit single on June 8 beat Cleveland and on June 19 against Milwaukee he had three hits and five RBI. Lou kept his batting average over .300 for most of the season. He suffered dizzy spells in the second half of the season and played his final game of '83 on September 9, yet continued aiding his teammates in his dual role as player and batting instructor.
A consistent player, recognized as one of baseball's 'most professional hitters,' Lou has always been extremely tough for the Yankees in the clutch. His .295 lifetime batting average with the Yankees ranks him in the top 10 all-time as a Yankee.
In November 1980 Lou was admitted to a Tampa hospital complaining of chest pain and congestion. Doctors described his condition as 'simple fatigue' and released him several days later. Lou showed no after effects in 1981. He missed most of 1975 with an inner ear problem that required mid-season surgery. Lou returned to regular duty in 1976 and was runner-up to teammate Dock Ellis for Comeback Player of the Year.
Originally signed by Cleveland scout and former Yankee Spud Chandler, Lou has always been an excellent postseason performer. In '77 he hit safely in all five ALCS games and in '78 hit safely in all six World Series games. Lou hit safely in the first three games of the 1981 World Series to extend his personal World Series hitting streak to nine games; he led all Yankee hitters with a .438 average in the '81 World Series.
In 1981 he led all American League designated hitters (50 or more games as a DH) in batting average (.344) and was second in the league as a pinch hitter (25 or more at-bats) with a .360 average. On August 24 Lou was asked to help the Yankee coaching staff as a batting instructor, working with his teammates on the fine art of hitting.
Lou is always one of the Yankees' most exciting players and fans welcome each of his at-bats with chants of 'Lou, Lou.' He's a lifetime native of the Tampa, Florida area and is of Spanish ancestry. He enjoys the stock market and has opened two restaurants in the New York metropolitan area."
-1984 New York Yankees Information Guide
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