A lot of Yankee games have been postponed this week, so instead of talking about the Yankee’s present, let’s go back to the Yankee’s past. We would be here for days if we decided to celebrate every single achievement they’ve accomplished and all the records they’ve broken, so let’s stick with the monumental moments from this week, in years past.
August 24th –
1951 – After briefly playing for the minor leagues, Mickey Mantle returned to the Yankee lineup. This was the first time Mantle wore his iconic #7 jersey, as his original number was given away during his absence.
1985 – After being plunked by a ball thrown by Mariner Mark Langston, Don Baylor ties the record for most times being hit by a pitch. His total being 189, which tied him with Minnie Minoso, who established the record in 1963 with the White Sox.
2007 – After having their game delayed, the Yankees and Tigers faced off in an 11-inning match-up. This game took four hours and 24 minutes to complete and concluded (at 3:30 in the morning) with a three-run homerun, hit by Carlos Guillen, that gave Detroit a victory over New York by a score of 9-6.
August 25th –
1946 – The Yankees become the first major league team to bring in two million paying patrons to their home stadium, after 42,908 fans come out to see them beat the Detroit Tigers 7-2. This breaks the previous record of three-quarters of a million, also set by New York, when the team played at the Polo Grounds in 1920.
1996 – A commemorative plaque is built in center field at Yankee Stadium, to honor Mickey Mantle who passed the previous year to liver cancer. This monument is the first to be constructed in 47 years and joins memorials dedicated to Lou Gehrig, Miller Huggins, and Babe Ruth. On it, he is memorialized by his stats and the phrase – “A magnificent Yankee who left a legacy of unequaled courage.”
2011 – The Yankees become the first team to hit three grand slams in one game, beating the Oakland Athletics 22-9. Robinson Cano, Curtis Granderson, and Russell Martin all knocked it out of the park with the bases loaded at Yankee Stadium.
August 26th –
1961 – Roger Maris hits his 51st home run of the season, helping the Yankees score a 5-1 victory over Kansas City. Maris would go on to hit 10 more home runs that season and will hold the record for most home runs hit in a single season until 1998, when the record was broken by Mark McGwire while playing for the St. Louis Cardinals.
2002 – This marks the first time a Major League Baseball game ever streamed on the internet. 30,000 fans tuned in to MLB.com to watch the Yankees defeat the Rangers 10-3. That’s only 12,000 less than the amount of people who came out to Bronx Park to watch the game live. In the same game, Alfonso Soriano broke the team record for most home runs set by a second baseman. Breaking Joe Gordon’s previous record of 30, established in 1940. As if having two amazing feats in one game wasn’t enough, Derek Jeter also used this game to join big leaguers Earle Combs (Yankees – 1925-32) and Ted Williams (Red Sox, 1939-49) as one of the only three players to score at least 100 runs in his first seven seasons in the major leagues.
August 27th –
1938 – In the first game of a doubleheader, Joe DiMaggio hit three consecutive triples, and assisted the Yankees in an 8-7 win against the Cleveland Indians. In the second game of this doubleheader, Monte Pearson becomes the first pitcher to throw a no-hitter in Yankee Stadium, which leads to a 13-0 win over the Indians.
2017 – After committing five errors in one inning, the Mariners achieved something that hadn’t been seen since the Cubs did it in 1977. These mistakes led to a Yankees win 10-1.
August 28th –
2008 – During the Red Sox’s last regular-season game at Yankee Stadium, the Yankees were trailing 2-0. But when Jason Giambi obtained a clutch two-run homer in the 7th inning and a single in the ninth, the Yankees were able to beat Boston 3-2 and avoid a sweep.
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