"Comes off record-setting rookie campaign. After his June 28 recall, Maas needed the fewest at-bats (77) in major league history to reach 10 home runs. He tied Dave Hostetler's major league mark for most homers in 100 at-bats with 12. Maas connected as a major leaguer for the first time on July 4th, off Kansas City's Bret Saberhagen. Of his total of 21 homers, 14 were solo shots.
His progress was slowed in August of 1989 when he needed arthroscopic surgery to repair ligament damage in his right knee. Maas was the Yankees' Minor League Player of the Year in 1988, when he collected 28 home runs and 90 RBIs in stops at Prince William (A) and Albany (AA).
Born in Castro Valley, California, Maas was selected by the Yankees in the 22nd round of the 1986 draft."
-John Shea and Tom Pedulla, The Complete Handbook of Baseball, 1991 Edition
"It's a funny thing about comparisons. Almost everyone agrees how unfair it is to compare a young player with a former one, yet it's done all the time. Take the case of lefty slugger Kevin Maas. After he became the fastest player in baseball history to hit 10 home runs (77 at-bats) and 15 home runs (133 at-bats) people started comparing him to Babe Ruth. Talk about unfair.
'I've seen most of the great Yankee hitters,' says coach Mike Ferraro, 'and this kid has a chance to be one of them.'
Maas does have a swing well-suited to Yankee Stadium. His quick and explosive bat evokes images of former Yankee power hitters who ignited droves of fans [sic] in years past.
So what if comparisons aren't fair. They sure are fun. Almost as much fun as watching Kevin Maas swing the bat."
-The New York Yankees Official 1991 Yearbook
"Maas established his mark as having a swing built for Yankee Stadium. In 1990 he finished a brilliant rookie season with a .252 batting average, 21 home runs and 41 RBIs.
He started the season in Tampa on injury rehabilitation for 1989 knee surgery, then reported to Columbus on April 29. Maas was with the Clippers until he had his contract purchased by the Yankees on June 28. At the time of his promotion he was hitting .284 with 15 doubles, 13 home runs and 38 RBIs. He had a .390 on-base percentage and a .582 slugging average.
Kevin was thrown into the lineup immediately, making his debut as a starter (designated hitter) on June 29 at Chicago. He went 1-for-3 getting his first major league hit, a single off Jack McDowell in the 4th inning. He hit safely in his first three games (3-for-10) and hit his first home run on July 4th at Kansas City off Bret Saberhagen. Kevin hit home runs in three consecutive games (July 23-25 at Texas) to become the first Yankee rookie to do so since Steve Whitaker from August 26-28, 1966.
He had four home runs over the final 12 games of July but his batting average dropped off, with Kevin going 9-for-39 (.231) over the rest of the month to bring his average to .275. He hit .270 in July with eight home runs and 15 RBIs (1 HR every 7.9 AB). He made 18 starts during the month (DH-10, 1B-8).
He had another productive month in August, hitting .260 with eight home runs (1 HR every 13 AB) and 15 RBIs and made 28 starts, all at first base. Kevin hit in five straight from July 31-August 4, going 9-for-20 (.450) and raising his batting average from .242 to .293. He hit his 12th homer on August 7 in Seattle off Erik Hanson, becoming the 21st player in Kingdome history to hit a ball into the upper deck. The ball traveled an estimated 448 feet.
He went 2-for-4 on August 11 to bring his average to .282 but hit .238 (15-for-63) over the remainder of the month. He struck out 31 times in August and had a .370 batting average (27-for-73) when he made contact.
Maas set the MAJOR LEAGUE record for fewest at-bats (77) to reach 10 home runs- the old record was held by George Scott who hit 10 in 79 at-bats for the Red Sox in 1966. He set the MAJOR LEAGUE record for fewest at-bats (110) to reach 13 home runs- the old record was held by Sam Horn who hit 13 in 123 at-bats for Boston in 1987. He set the MAJOR LEAGUE record for fewest at-bats (133) to reach 15 home runs- the old record was held by Wally Berger who hit 15 in 135 at-bats for the Boston Braves in 1930. Maas tied the MAJOR LEAGUE record for most home runs (12) in his first 100 at-bats with Dave Hostetler, who hit 12 in his first 100 for the Texas Rangers in 1982.
In September/October, Maas hit .222 with five home runs and 11 RBIs. From September 1-11 he went into a .122 skid, dropping his average 25 points to .241. He then went through the remainder of the season hitting .288 (17-for-59) with five home runs and 11 RBIs.
Maas and Mattingly started together 18 times and combined to hit .331 (45-for-136) with seven homers and 22 RBIs. Maas hit .359 (23-for-64) and Mattingly hit .306 (22-for-72). When Mattingly was active, Maas hit .283 (32-for-113) with 11 home runs and 24 RBIs and when Mattingly was on the disabled list, Maas hit .227 (32-for-141) with 10 homers and 17 RBIs. Mattingly hit .245 (79-for-322) with 'no-Maas.'
For the year, Maas started 70 games (1B-53, DH-17). He finished second in the majors for most home runs by a rookie, behind David Justice of Atlanta who hit 28, and first in the American League.
He signed a contract for the 1991 season.
Kevin was the Yankees' 22nd pick in the June 1986 free agent draft. He was signed by Bill Livesey and recommended by Greg Orr. He played 28 games with Oneonta, where he batted .356 (36-for-101) with 10 doubles and 18 RBIs in his first professional season.
He spent the 1987 season at 'A' Ft. Lauderdale of the Florida State League where he batted .278 (122-for-439) with 28 doubles, 11 home runs, 73 RBIs, 14 stolen bases and 108 strikeouts. He played 76 of his 116 games at first base but was named as the designated hitter on the Florida State League All-Star team.
Maas was named the 1988 Yankee Minor League Player of the Year.
He started the season with 'A' Prince William of the Carolina League and batted .296 (32-for-108) in 29 games with seven doubles, 12 home runs and 35 RBIs. He was promoted to AA Albany-Colonie of the Eastern League on May 13, where he finished the season.
Kevin was named to play in the mid-season Eastern League All-Star Game and was selected as the first baseman on the postseason Eastern League All-Star team. He was named Topps Minor League Player of the Month in the Eastern League for August, when he batted .243 (27-for-111) in 31 games with 20 runs scored, six home runs and 16 RBIs (including four game-winning RBIs).
He batted .263 (98-for-372) in 108 games at Albany with 66 runs, 14 doubles, 16 home runs and 55 RBIs, along with 103 strikeouts. He finished third in the Eastern League in home runs and third in walks (64). Kevin's combined 28 home runs at Prince William and Albany led the Yankee farm system. He was added to the Yankees' 40-man roster in November of 1988.
Maas spent the entire 1989 season at Columbus. He hit .320 in 83 games (third best on the club) with 23 doubles, six home runs and 45 RBIs. 31 of his 93 hits (33%) went for extra bases and his .474 slugging percentage ranked second on the team. He played 43 of 83 games as an outfielder but was named to the International League All-Star team as a designated hitter.
He was on the disabled list twice in 1989: from April 18-May 1 with the chicken pox, and from July 28 through the end of the season as he underwent arthroscopic surgery on August 16 to have ligaments in his right knee repaired.
Kevin graduated from Bishop O'Dowd (CA) High School and earned a degree in mechanical engineering from the University of California at Berkeley. He is the younger brother of Jason Maas, an outfielder in the Yankee organization."
-1991 New York Yankees Information Guide
"Named Eastern League Player of the Month, August 1988."
-1991 New York Yankees Information Guide
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