"Steve Balboni heard the boos before as a New York Yankee in the early '80s. The demanding New York fans became disenchanted when the power hitter could not produce a home run with each at-bat. His return to Pinstripes and his ensuing 1989 performance had the same diehards applauding his outstanding effort. Used primarily as a designated hitter, Balboni's .502 slugging percentage ranked him first among designated hitters.
'I think 1989 went pretty well,' he says. 'I had some home runs and RBI and would've been happier if I hit .250, but I'm pretty pleased with what I did.' And so are Yankee fans who have turned their boos to cheers."
-The New York Yankees Official 1990 Yearbook
"Balboni was acquired by the Yankees from Seattle on March 27, 1989 in exchange for pitcher Dana Ridenour. He spent the season platooning in the DH spot and at first base.
He started out slowly in 17 April games, hitting .154 (8-for-52) with a home run and eight RBIs, yet struck out only five times (1/10.4 AB) and four of his eight hits were for extra bases. He hit his first home run on April 14 against Minnesota, a grand slam off Frank Viola, the fourth of his career and first since September 20, 1985, also against the Twins, while playing for the Royals.
In May, Steve appeared in 18 games and hit .304 with four home runs and 11 RBIs, averaging an RBI every 4.2 at-bats, and six of his 14 hits were for extra bases. He raised his average 70 points to .224. On May 4 and 5 Steve homered in consecutive games in Texas (off Drew Hall) and in Chicago (off Donn Pall). He hit in three straight (5-for-11) from May 12-16 and in another three straight (3-for-8) from May 20-24.
Balboni had a strong June as he hit .302 with five home runs and 13 RBIs, raising his average another 28 points to .252. Seven of his 16 hits were for extra bases and he averaged an RBI every 4.1 at-bats. Steve hit in four straight games (6-for-10) from June 3-6 and through the All-Star break was hitting .247 with 10 home runs and 32 RBIs; 17 of his 42 hits were for extra bases and he averaged an RBI every 5.1 at-bats.
After the All-Star break, Steve hit in a season high five straight games (7-for-15) with seven RBIs, raising his batting average from .247 to a season high of .266 on July 22. He ended July by hitting in three straight (3-for-10) and for the month hit .255 with two home runs and 10 RBIs. He averaged an RBI every 4.7 at-bats and five of his 12 hits were for extra bases.
Balboni appeared in 13 games in August and hit .175 (7-for-40) with three homers and 10 RBIs; four of his seven hits came in two-hit games on August 11 and August 30. In the August 11 game against Minnesota, Balboni hit two home runs off Shane Rawley and tied his season high with four RBIs. On August 30 against Oakland, he also had four RBIs, including a home run off Mike Moore.
He played in 20 games in September and October and hit .226 (14-for-62) with two homers and seven RBIs; four times he hit in consecutive games but never in more than two straight. In the final game of the season, October 1 in New York, Steve hit his 17th homer off Detroit's Frank Tanana.
Steve signed a two-year contract in November 1989. The contract extends through the 1991 season.
Originally selected by the Yankees in the fourth round of the June 1978 free agent draft, he was the Florida State League MVP in 1979 after leading the circuit in home runs and RBIs. In 1980, Steve was advanced to the double-A level and was named Southern League Player of the Year. He set a league record with 122 RBIs.
Balboni began the 1981 campaign at triple-A Columbus before being recalled by the Yankees on April 21. He made his major league debut the next day against Detroit and tripled in his first at-bat. He was optioned back to Columbus on April 28 and finished the season as an International League All-Star. Balboni split the 1982 season between Columbus and New York and hit his first major league home run on May 13 off Oakland's Tom Underwood.
During his minor league career, Steve averaged 30 home runs and 96 RBIs per season. He was traded to the Kansas City Royals in December 1983 along with pitcher Roger Erickson for pitcher Mike Armstrong and catcher Duane Dewey.
1984 was Steve's first full season in the major leagues. He hit in a career high 13 straight games from September 10-23 (17-for-48, .354) and led the club in home runs and RBIs.
In 1985, Steve established career highs in almost every offensive category and also set a Kansas City record with 36 home runs. He was named American League Player of the Week for April 15-21 (.385, 3 HR, 8 RBI) and was the Royals' Player of the Month for April. Steve swiped the only stolen base of his career on July 23 against the Yankees. He hit .320 (8-for-25) in the World Series with three RBIs.
He led Kansas City in home runs for the third consecutive year in 1986 and his 88 RBIs ranked second on the club. He hit his 100th major league home run at Texas on September 5. Steve homered once in every 16.08 at-bats in 1987 and eight of his last 16 hits were home runs.
In 1988, Steve was released by the Royals on May 27 but led the Mariners in home runs (21) and finished third on the club in RBIs (61) despite not joining Seattle until June 1. He smashed a 442-foot home run in Seattle off Cleveland's John Farrell on July 5, becoming only the fifth player ever to reach the Kingdome's second deck in left field.
He had an 11-game hitting streak from July 1-15 (17-for-48, .354). He hit an 11th inning three-run homer off Dennis Eckersley to beat Oakland on July 29. Balboni batted .280 with 10 home runs and 25 RBIs in July and was named Seattle's Player of the Month. He finished the season strong, hitting .304 with 20 RBIs in September/October. He had a .994 fielding percentage with Seattle, committing just two errors in 40 games at first base.
Balboni was a three-sport standout at Memorial High in Manchester, New Hampshire where he was voted the school's Athlete of the Year his senior year. He attended Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Florida and was named their MVP in 1977 after leading them to a second place finish in the Division II College World Series. Balboni hit 26 home runs and collected 77 RBIs in just 43 games as a senior and was the only Division II player named to the Sporting News All-American squad (first team)."
-1990 New York Yankees Information Guide
Florida State League MVP, 1979.
Southern League Player of the Year, 1980.
Named to International League All-Star team, 1981.
-1990 New York Yankees Information Guide
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