"If there was one consistently solid player in the Yankees' everyday lineup in 1985, it had to be Bobby Meacham. True, Meacham's .218 batting average didn't excite anyone, but his range and powerful arm at shortstop certainly kept the Yankees in many a ballgame.
It's only fair to point out that the switch-hitting Meacham played the last half of the season with a dislocated tendon in his left hand, which had a lot to do with his dramatic tailing off at the plate. But it was his first full year in the bigs and he leaned to contribute in other ways. He moved baserunners along with his league leading 23 sacrifices and played 156 games, the most by a Yankee shortstop since 1977.
He has shaken his inconsistencies in the field to become one of the brightest young infielders in baseball. They say you have to be strong up the middle if you want to win a pennant and if that's so, the least of the Yankees' worries will be at shortstop."
-The New York Yankees Official 1986 Yearbook
"Despite an injury plagued season, Bobby played a consistent shortstop. He played 155 games at shortstop, most by a Yankee since Bucky Dent played 157 in 1977. His .963 fielding percentage was seventh best among AL shortstops with at least 100 games, and he was fourth among shortstops in games and double plays (103). Bobby led the majors with 23 sacrifice hits and set new career highs for hits (105) and RBIs (47) and stolen bases (25).
He was hitting .273 through May 29 when he suffered a slight hamstring pull, missed the next three games and went 2-for-44 from June 2-16, dropping his average to .222. He suffered a dislocated tendon in his left hand on July 28 at Texas- the condition was corrected with postseason surgery. The injury hampered his left-handed swing, forcing him to bat right-handed against right-handed pitchers on a number of occasions.
Meacham had two career high three-RBI games, May 26 at Oakland and August 21 at California, and went 4-for-4 on April 13 at Cleveland and on May 26 at Oakland. He hit .264 with 32 RBIs on the road but .169 with 15 RBIs at home. Meacham's only home run came on August 23- a solo shot off California's Ron Romanick; he hit a would-be homer on April 29 at Texas off Frank Tanana, but passed Willie Randolph near first base and was called out, yet both Randolph and Butch Wynegar scored.
In 1984 he appeared in 96 games at shortstop after being called up from Columbus on June 15. Bobby began the 1983 season at Columbus after a fine showing in spring training. He was brought up to the Yankees on June 29 when Willie Randolph was disabled. Bobby played shortstop as a defensive replacement on June 30 at Yankee Stadium against Baltimore in his major league debut. He was sent back to Columbus on July 12 and recalled to the Yankees on July 16, but returned to Columbus later the same day when the Yankees purchased Larry Milbourne from Philadelphia. Bobby was recalled from Columbus on August 19 when Andre Robertson was disabled and returned to Columbus on August 20 when Bert Campaneris was activated off the disabled list. He was recalled to the Yankees on September 2, had his first major league at-bat on September 3 at Seattle and had his first major league hit and RBI at Cleveland on September 18.
He was the top draft pick of St. Louis in 1981, playing two seasons at Class A before his trade to the Yankees. Meacham was named South Atlantic League All-Star shortstop in 1981 and Florida State League All-Star shortstop in 1982.
Meacham graduated from Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana, CA in 1978. He was All-Orange County and All-State in baseball and All-League in basketball and football. Bobby attended San Diego State for three years, majoring in business finance, and was named an All-American in baseball. He was signed to his first pro contract by Marty Keough (Cardinals).
Bobby enjoys music, golf and reading the Bible."
-1986 New York Yankees Information Guide
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