What Would George Have Done?

This is a tale of timing. The month is December and the year is 1951. Mickey Mantle has just completed his first season as a Yankee. It was not a good season for the player who would become the next great Yankees centerfielder, not after a .267 batting average, 13 home runs, and a short stint in the minors during July.

Yankees' scout Tom Greenwade signed Mantle for an $1,100 bonus in 1949. Mickey made the parent club after being the sensation of an "instructional school" the Yankees had initiated in 1951 and he was in right field for Game 2 of the 1951 World Series against the cross town rival New York Giants. In the fifth inning Mantle and DiMaggio went after a Willie Mays fly ball. Either could have caught the ball but DiMaggio called Mantle off and made the catch but in his haste to avoid a collision, Mantle pulled up short, stepping into a water sprinkler drain cover, twisting his knee. Mantle, despite vast potential, was damaged goods.

The Yankees won the 1951 pennant by five games over the Cleveland Indians in an exciting race that went down to the wire and then beat the Giants in the World Series for their third straight World Championship, but the pitching staff was thin and rookie sensation Ed "Whitey" Ford was in the army. There were major problems going into the 1952 season.

Joe DiMaggio retired and Allie Reynolds, Vic Raschi, and Eddie Lopat were getting old. Rookie Tom Morgan, who had won nine while losing only three would be leaving for the army sometime during the 1952 season. The Yankees needed outfield and pitching help.

What actually happened in 1952 was that Mantle, despite his bad knee, which would be a problem his entire career, took over in center field, batted .311 and hit 23 home runs. The veteran Johnny Sain, whom general manager George Weiss obtained in August, 1951 for young right hander Lewis Selva Burdette, won eleven games while losing only six with a 3.46 ERA. Manager Casey Stengel used Reynolds, Raschi, Lopat and then utilized a patchwork group consisting of Bob Kuzava, who had been obtained from the Senators in 1951, Morgan before he left, Bill Miller, and Tom Gorman. The Yankees won their fourth straight World Championship.

What would George Steinbrenner have done if he were the Yankees owner in 1951? Well, it is interesting to speculate based upon past performance. Mr. Steinbrenner is a proponent of instant gratification. From Willie McGee being traded for Bob Sykes (who was Bob Sykes?) to Eric Milton going to Minnesota for Chuck Knoblauch to Nick Johnson going to Montreal for Javier Vazquez and to Brandon Claussen being sent to Cincinnati for Aaron Boone, Mr. Steinbrenner has exchanged young players for veterans he believes will lead the Yankees to the promised land. Under his leadership, the Yankees have not given youngsters the chance to fail at the major league level. Just look at the present team.

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