"Not much was made about the Yankees' 1985 late-season acquisition of left-handed relief pitcher Rod Scurry. After all, he had come to the Yankees from the last place Pittsburgh Pirates, where he had an 0-1 record and made only 30 appearances. Lost in the shuffle of the pennant race, the acquisition went almost unnoticed.
People soon began to take notice of Rod Scurry, who suddenly became a big part of the Yankees' drive for the division title. While he pitched in only 47-plus innings for the Pirates in 1985, Scurry had struck out an impressive 43 opposing batters. He then improved on that awesome ratio when he joined the Yankees. In his brief stint with the team last year he struck out 17 batters in only 12-plus innings. Scurry appeared in only 12 games in 1985, and the Yankees hope he can produce the same results over the course of an entire season in 1986.
Rod Scurry spells relief with a 'K' and he just might be the remedy needed to cure Yankees pennant fever."
-The New York Yankees Official 1986 Yearbook
"The left-hander's contract was purchased from Pittsburgh for an undisclosed amount of cash last September 13. Rod made five appearances while a Yankee, going 1-0 with a save and a 2.84 ERA. In his 12.2 innings pitched in New York, he struck out 17 and walked 10 (four walks came on September 25 against Detroit). His Yankee save came on September 29 (second game) against Baltimore, while his win came on October 4 at Toronto with Rod pitching 3.1 innings and allowing one run on two hits and two walks with four strikeouts.
Before coming to New York he was 0-1 with two saves and a 3.21 ERA for Pittsburgh in 30 games, all in relief. Scurry had a .236 batting average-against with the Pirates, and his only loss with the Pirates came in his final outing on September 1 at Cincinnati. His saves came on June 1 against Atlanta and August 22 against Cincinnati.
Scurry made two relief appearances in 1984 before going on the DL on April 7 when he entered a drug rehabilitation program. He was activated on May 13 and returned to action the same day at Atlanta, striking out the only batter he faced. He appeared in 27 games before returning to the DL on August 5 with a tender left elbow. Rod appeared in 14 games after coming off the DL on August 27, notching two wins and two saves. In those 14 games he allowed only two earned runs (15.1 innings pitched) for a 1.17 ERA- opposing batters compiled a mere .175 against him. He underwent arthroscopic surgery on both knees on October 1 to remove loose fragments.
In 1983 Scurry started the year strong, picking up two wins and save in his first three appearances, but struggled most of the season, his 5.56 ERA the highest in his major league career. In 1982, he was third in the National League in appearances (76) and his 1.74 ERA was the lowest of any major league pitcher with 20+ appearances. Rod set a Pirate team record for appearances by a left-hander.
Rod enjoyed a good minor league career as a starter- in 1979 he finished second on the Portland staff in starts and strikeouts and was third in appearances and innings pitched- but was moved to full-time relief when he joined the major league club in 1980. His rookie season was hampered after he suffered a groin pull in the second half of the season. In 1981, after being used mainly in relief in 1980, Rod earned his first major league win as a starter on April 19 at Houston.
Rod grew up in Auburn, California but later moved to Sparks, Nevada. He was AAA Player of the Year in baseball as a senior at Proctor High in Reno, NV. Rod enjoys playing golf."
-1986 New York Yankees Information Guide
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