March 29 in Yankee History

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  • Few would deny that one man, Babe Ruth, will forever sit atop the Baseball Pantheon. Among a handful of others competing for second place would be legendary pitcher Cy (Denton True) Young, born this day in 1867. In 22 years, Cy sandwiched stints in Cleveland (early with the NL Spiders, later with the AL Indians) around a long stay in Boston, and amassed two equally impregnable numbers: 511 wins, 316 losses. Cy threw the first perfect game in AL history, and in 1904 he went 24.33 innings without giving up a hit. And as if in confirmation that this is a day for champions, the prize-winning racehorse Man O’War was born exactly 50 years later.
  • While it was wonderful traveling down to our nation’s capital and catching the Yanks play a Spring Training exhibition in Nationals Park on Friday, March 29, 2013, the manner of the fourth-inning, four-run rally that carried the team to a 4-2 victory could have led a fan to expect better results in the upcoming season than they would get. The five hits and four rbi’s all came from players who would have very disappointing seasons in the Bronx, including Eduardo Nunez, who finished well at third, but disappointed with the stick, despite his two-run single in this game. The other offense came from Kevin Youkilis, Travis Hafner, Vernon Wells, and Chris Stewart. Beginning his farewell tour in a park where he had never played before, Mariano Rivera pitched the ninth inning for the save.
  • On March 29, 1948, the Yankees and Red Sox must have both had some pitchers who could use a little work, as they played a 17-inning, 2-2 tie in a Spring Training game in St. Petersburg, Fla.
  • Fifty-seven years later, things were hot between the two Northeast powers yet again coming off back-to-back seven-game American League Championship Series between them. But on March 29, 2005, neither the Yankees nor the Red Sox used front-line pitching, or so it seemed, in an afternoon game in Legends Field, won by the Red Sox 7-2. Southpaw John Halama would be on the Sox roster when the two opened the season five days later in the Bronx, but not the Yankee starter, Aaron Small.
  • Although he started Spring Training with an early home run, his so-called battle with Austin Romine for the backup catcher job never really materialized, and a struggling (at the plate) Gary Sanchez was optioned by the Yankees to the AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders on March 24, 2016.
  • On March 29, 2023, the Yankees activated righthander Clarke Schmidt; and optioned righty Greg Weissert to Scranton Wilkes-Barre. Also, shortstop Anthony Volpe changed his number to 11.
  • On March 29, 2021, the Yankees signed free agent second baseman Derek Dietrich, whom they had released two days previous.
  • On March 29, 2019, the Indians signed free agent outfielder Cameron Maybin, but they would not become the 10th major league team for which he would play. That team would become the Yankees later that year. He has signed a free agent deal with Detroit in 2020, but he has played in the Motor City before.
  • In three March 29, 2018 designations with long-term consequences, the Yankees placed first baseman Greg Bird on the 10-day disabled list, retroactive to March 26, due to right ankle surgery; placed center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury on the 10-day disabled list, also retroactive to March 26, with a right oblique strain; and placed left fielder Clint Frazier on the 7-day disabled list, retroactive to March 26, with a concussion. The team also recalled first baseman Tyler Austin from the AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders.
  • On March 29, 2017, the Yankees optioned lefthander Caleb Smith to the AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders.
  • On March 29, 2016, lefthander Caleb Frare, righthander Andrew Schwaab, outfielder Trey Amburgey, and second baseman Billy Fleming were assigned to the Yankees.
  • Working toward settling on their 25-man roster that would head North, on March 29, 2015, the Yankees released veteran righthander Scott Baker; then optioned righty Bryan Mitchell and outfielder Ramon Flores to the AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders.
  • In a move some felt smacked of desperation, the Yankees brought back free agent righty Alfredo Aceves, signing him to a minor league contract on March 29, 2014.
  • Finishing off the final pivotal bookkeeping of the Spring, on March 29, 2013, the Yankees designated disappointing righty reliever David Aardsma for assignment; optioned outfielder Melky Mesa and outrighted righthander Sam Demel to the AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders; and watched as the Oakland Athletics claimed righty Dan Otero off waivers from their roster. In other moves, free agent second baseman David Adams was signed after being released to fill injury-created holes in the infield; and the contracts of left fielder Ben Francisco and infielder Jayson Nix were purchased from Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, and the two were assigned to the major league roster.
  • Having failed to make the 2010 Yankee roster, rule-5 draftee, outfielder Jamie Hoffmann, was assigned to the Los Angeles Dodgers on March 29.
  • Due to a numbers crunch not uncommon at the end of Spring Training when rosters need to be trimmed, the Yanks traded righty reliever Bret Prinz to the Dodgers for backstop Wil Nieves on March 29, 2005. Shortstop Felix Escalona was assigned to Columbus, as well. Nieves started the 2007 season as Jorge Posada‘s backup.
  • In a similar vein, the Yankees optioned outfielders Kevin Reese and Kevin Thompson to AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on March 29, 2007.
  • The Yankees placed young righthander Humberto Sanchez on the 60-day disabled list recovering from April 2007 Tommy John surgery on March 29, 2008.
  • In a not very well remembered twist to the 1996 baseball season, the Yanks and Mets played home-and-home exhibitions in New York for their last two preseason games. On March 29, 1996, the Yankees prevailed in the opener, 7-3.
  • Yankee hurler in 2004 Jon Lieber was the winning pitcher when the Cubs beat the Mets, 5-3, in the Tokyo Dome on March 29, 2000, in the first official big-league game ever played outside North America. The clubs split two, just as the Yanks did in opening the regular season with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in Japan four years later. How much that had to do with a bad start to that season we can only speculate.
  • The Yankees helped the Braves open Turner Field in Atlanta with an exhibition game on this day in 1997, falling 2-0. Of course, the Yanks had already seen to it that the Braves’ last three games in their old stadium were losses. After dropping the first two games of the 1996 World Series to the Braves in the Bronx, the Yanks stormed back to sweep all three in Atlanta, then copped the Championship in New York in Game Six.
  • The Yanks had an even better string of wins as the annual Spring champions of St. Petersburg than in their well-documented domination over the leagues in the regular season and playoffs. They won more than anyone in that Florida city in every year from 1926 until 1942. But on March 29, 1942, the Cardinals’ 3-2 victory ensured the end of the Yankee run. The St. Louis club won the 1942 St. Pete Series, six games to three.
  • The Cardinals’ release of hurler Dazzy Vance on March 29, 1935, could have finished his career, but he extended it with a year in Brooklyn. Vance failed pitching for several clubs, including the Yanks, early in his career, until it was realized that he needed extra rest between starts. He would thrive in today’s modern five-man rotations.
  • The March 29, 1978, Baltimore release of reliever Ed Farmer barely qualifies as our last former or future Yankee player transaction of the day because he was a member of the Yankee team for two days in 1974. On March 19 of that year, Detroit shipped Farmer to the Yankees as part of a three-team swap. New York sent Jerry Moses to the Tigers. Detroit sent Jim Perry to the Indians, and Cleveland sent Rick Sawyer and Walt Williams to the Yankees. Two days later, the Phillies would buy Farmer’s contract.
  • It is ironic that the old Montreal Expos opened the 2005 season in Washington as the Nationals. Way back on March 29, 1905, a group of Washington writers elected to call the original Washington AL club that nickname, but they largely continued to be known as the Senators anyway.

Players Who Have Died This Day

  • There are once again quite a few noteworthy ballplayers to have died on March 29, three of them one-time Yankees. Southpaw Ray Tift (1945) pitched all four of his big-league games (one start) with the 1907 New York Highlanders, to no record. In 19 innings, he allowed 10 earned runs. Righthander Johnny Allen (1959) debuted with the Yanks from 1932-1935 to a startling 50-17 mark with five saves. After playing much of the next decade with Cleveland, his record was still a very good 142-75-18. And righty Wilcy Moore (1963) bookended his career with Yankee stints: his Pinstriped record of 36 wins, 21 losses, and one save came from 1927-1929 and from 1932-1933. Adding in a two-year stop with the Red Sox in between brings the mark to 51-44-2.
  • Immediately leaping to the top of the list of noteworthy nonYankee players to have died this day is lefty hitting, righty throwing outfielder (played 425 of 2,117 games at first base) Rusty Staub (2018), who played from 1963 through 1985. Rusty debuted in Houston, playing six years with the Colt 45s, then Astros; from 1963-1968, then 1969-1971 with the Expos; then 1972-1975 and 1981-1985 with the Mets; and 1976-1979 with the Tigers. Beloved then in many major league cities, “le grand orange” hit 292 career home runs, and drove in 1,466 runs. Lefthander Cozy Dolan (1907), who played lots of outfield as well, is the earliest non-Yankee notable to have passed on March 29. He went 12-13-1 with the Beaneaters on the mound, then accumulated 10 home runs with 315 rbi’s with the Orphans, the Reds and others afterward. He played from 1895-1905. Righthander Jim Hughey (1945) won 29 games, lost 80, and saved one from 1891-1900 with six teams, much of it with the Pirates. Catcher Jimmy Archer (1958) hit 16 home runs with 296 rbi’s with the Cubs between 1904 and 1917. Hurler Kid Carsey (1960) pitched to a 116-138-3 mark from 1891-1901, largely with the Phillies. Slugger Ted Kluszewski (1988) blasted 279 homers with 1,028 rbi’s from 1947-1961, mostly with the Reds. Catcher Phil Masi (1990) hit most of his 47 long balls with 417 driven in from 1939-1952 with the Phillies; and outfielder Terry Moore hit 80 taters with 513 rbi’s playing with the Cardinals only from 1936-1948. Lefty-hitting first baseman Luke Easter (1979) did all his playing with Cleveland from 1949-1954; he hit 93 home runs, and drove in 340 runs. Righthander Ray Narleski did most of his pitching for the Indians too, recording a 43-33 mark with 58 saves from 1954 to 1959. And most recently, lefty-hitting, righty-throwing outfielder/first baseman Jim Holt (2019) played with Minnesota from 1968 through 1974, and in Oakland in the latter year through 1976; he hit 19 home runs and drove in 177 runs.

Players Born This Day

  • Lots of other birthdays aside from Hall of Famer Cy Young (1867), who was covered at the top of this column, today. Of the two Pinstripers celebrating, Domingo Ramos (1958) played in one game for the Yanks at short in 1978. He had been signed as an amateur free agent in May 1975, and was packaged along with Mike Heath, Sparky Lyle, Larry McCall, Dave Rajsich, and cash to the Texas Rangers for Dave Righetti, Juan Beniquez, Mike Griffin, Paul Mirabella, and minor-leaguer Greg Jemison in November 1978.
  • Righthander Herb McQuaid (1899) went 1-0 for the 1926 Yankees. He appeared in 17 games, and started one. That would close out his career, as his only other game action was with the 1923 Cincinnati Reds, a team for whom he also recorded a 1-0 record.
  • Other baseball birthdays: 31-game winner (in one season, the last to win 30) Denny McLain (1944); former ballplayer and current A’s GM Billy Beane (1962); Brian Jordan (1967); Geronimo Pena (1967); Eric Gunderson (1966); Sean Lowe (1971); Alex Ochoa (1972); Danny Kolb (1975); Scott Atchison (1976); and Eric Bruntlett (1978); Kila Ka’aihue (1984); Pat Light (1991); Chad Pinder (1992); Matt Olson (1994); and Jose Fermin (1999).