"The deal wasn't announced in big, bold headlines. It was an agate line in the 'transactions' column. And it didn't threaten to upset the balance of power in the American League East.
On January 21, 1992, the Yankees signed veteran catcher Mike Stanley to a one-year, minor league contract. Big deal.
The 'minor league' part didn't frighten Stanley, a veteran of five major league seasons, all with the Texas Rangers. He'd spent time in the minor leagues before. Besides, he was told he would have a chance to win a major league job in spring training, and that's all he wanted. A chance.
The chance came, and when the Yankees broke camp last year, Mike Stanley came north with them. He was to be the right-handed backup to the left-hand hitting Matt Nokes. But don't call Stanley a backup. Manager Buck Showalter didn't.
'Mike is a solid catcher, period,' the manager says. 'I like Mike. I like the way he goes about his business. He's a solid pro.'
He also proved to be a catcher pitchers love to work with because of his ability to call a game and to throw runners out. Not bad for an agate line in the transactions column."
-The New York Yankees Official 1993 Yearbook
"In 1992 Mike was signed by the Yankees to a minor league contract for the season on January 21. He was invited to the major league camp as a non-roster player. He made the team with a strong spring training, hitting .310 in 17 games. He appeared in 68 games for the Yankees and hit .249 with a career best eight home runs and 27 RBIs.
Mike had his contract purchased on April 3. He made his Yankee debut, starting behind the plate, on April 9 against Boston and went 0-for-3. His first hit for the Yankees came in his second start, April 15 at Toronto, a 3rd inning single off Jimmy Key. Mike made four starts in April (the team was 3-1), hitting .400.
He struggled in the month of May, hitting .136. He went 0-for-11 before breaking the skid with his first Yankee home run, a two-run shot on May 18 against California off Chuck Finley. On May 27 at Minnesota, Mike made the first of two 1992 starts at first base.
He continued to scuffle in June as he hit .179 for the month, lowering his average to .200. A highlight came on June 27 against Chicago when he started a rally with a leadoff home run in the 7th inning off Roberto Hernandez in a come-from-behind 8-7 victory.
Mike rebounded with a strong July, hitting .344 in nine starts with three home runs and eight RBIs. On July 9 against Seattle, he hit a grand slam off Randy Johnson in the 1st inning, the third of his career. On July 23 at Seattle, he hit a solo homer in the 8th inning, then stroked a game-tying single with two outs in the 9th in a 5-4, 11-inning win.
Hitting .282 in August, he raised his average to .260. On August 6 against Boston he caught a combined 1-hitter from Sam Militello and Steve Farr. On August 19 against Oakland he knocked in three runs in a 14-3 romp.
He ended the season hitting .214 in September/October. He hit three homers in a seven-day period (Sept.7-16). In that period Mike raised his average to .266, his highest since May 5 when he was hitting .294. He hit .279 (6 HR, 19 RBI) over the last 42 games of the season to raise his batting average from .194 to a season-ending .249.
On September 16 against Chicago, he reached his career high in home runs (8) with a 2nd inning three-run blast off Greg Hibbard. The round-tripper traveled 452 feet, the longest at the Stadium by a Yankee in 1992.
Mike started 54 games in 1992 (C-48, DH-4, 1B-2) and New York was 24-24 in games he started behind the plate. He threw out 28.1% (16-for-57) of attempted base stealers; from August 22-29 he threw out seven of ten attempted base stealers.
He started 45 games against left-handed pitchers and nine against right-handers, hitting .241 (5 HR) against left-handed pitchers, .262 (3 HR) against righties. He hit fourth through eighth in the batting order. Mike hit .222 (3 HR, 11 RBI) in the first half of the season and .267 (5 HR, 16 RBI) after the break. He hit .264 (5 HR) at home and .232 (3 HR) on the road and .303 on artificial turf. Mike batted .249 overall for the third consecutive season.
He signed a two-year contract extension in November 1992. The contract extends through the 1994 season.
Mike was selected by the Rangers in the June 1985 free agent draft in the 16th round. He was scouted by Joe Branzell. He started that season at Salem and hit .556 in four games, was sent to Burlington on June 26 and hit .310 in 13 games, and was promoted to Tulsa on July 11 and hit .309 in 46 games.
He began the 1986 season with Tulsa and was recalled to Texas on June 26. That day his first major league hit, a double, came against Seattle off Steve Fireovid.
Mike began the 1987 season with Oklahoma City of the American Association and was recalled by the Rangers on June 2. At the time of his recall, Mike was hitting .335, was leading the league in RBIs (54) and was tied for the lead in home runs with 13. He started 54 games for Texas behind the plate, more than any other Ranger catcher.
He hit a pair of grand slams including the first pinch-hit grand slam in club history on June 27 against Minnesota off Jeff Reardon. Mike's other slam came on July 3 off Cecilio Guante at New York. He missed most of September with chickenpox and pneumonia.
1988 was his first full season in the majors. Mike began the season as the Rangers' regular catcher and started 44 of the club's first 88 games through July 15. A pulled left hamstring put him on the disabled list from July 23-August 13. He made just four starts behind the plate over the remainder of the season. He caught a total of 64 games and finished with a .991 fielding percentage.
Mike played in 67 games in 1989, hitting .246. He made 34 starts with the Rangers overall, including 18 of the last 28 games. After having only three RBIs in his first 48 games, Mike knocked in eight in his last 19 to close out the season. He spent time on the DL (August 19-September 2) with a strained left knee.
He spent the entire 1990 season with Texas, hitting .249 with two homers and 19 RBIs. He played a career high 103 games and tied his career-best with eight doubles. He hit .259 (7-for-29) as a pinch hitter.
Mike's best stretch came from June 17-August 31, hitting .350 (28-for-80) and raising his average from .177 to .264. He broke his left little finger in batting practice on July 21 but did not miss any action. His home run as a pinch hitter came on August 22 against New York.
A versatile player, Mike made 41 starts at catcher, nine as the designated hitter, three at third base and two at second. In 63 games behind the plate, he had a .985 fielding percentage.
Mike played in 95 games for the Texas Rangers in 1991. He made 34 starts behind the plate, five at first base and four at third, hitting .249 with three home runs and 25 RBIs. He walked 34 times and had a .372 on-base percentage.
He hit .375 (3-for-8, 6 RBIs) with the bases loaded. He hit .277 against left-handed pitchers and .281 at home. 17 of his 45 hits were extra-base hits, including a career high 13 doubles. Eight of his 25 RBIs were game-winning.
Over the last 29 games of the season, Mike hit .325. He became a free agent on October 14 when he refused an assignment to the minors.
Mike played four seasons for the University of Florida. He was selected as the All-Southeastern Conference catcher in 1982 and 1984 and was named to the SEC All-Academic team in 1983. In college he played against Rafael Palmeiro, Will Clark, Scott Ruskin, Dave Magadan and Bobby Thigpen. He is working toward a degree in marketing.
He graduated from St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Ft. Lauderdale where he starred in both baseball and football. He was all-state and team MVP in both sports as a senior. He also played Little League, Senior League and American Legion baseball.
Mike enjoys fishing and golf. He cites catching Nolan Ryan's seventh no-hitter as among the most dramatic moments in his career."
-1993 New York Yankees Information Guide
Michael Robert Stanley "Mike" "Stano" (C) #20
Born June 25, 1963, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, resides in Oviedo, Florida. Height: 6-0, weight: 190. Bats right, throws right.
Attended the University of Florida.
Married, Erin (1/30/88), and father of Ryan Michael (3).
Major league service time: 5 years, 170 days. Opening Day Age: 29.
-1993 New York Yankees Information Guide
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