If there was ever a sustained low
point for the Yankees before the free agent era, it was the latter half of the
1960’s....Mickey Mantle was ailing and nearing the end of the line calling it quits March
1st 1969....Jerry and teammate Bobby Murcer were both tabbed as the rays
of hope for the franchise....both brought youth and promise and were fresh from
coming off a military hiatus in 1968....As is well known Murcer wound up
Mantle’s eventual CF replacement but initially he was inserted at 3rdbase... Jerry
was the first real heir apparent to the Mantle's NY Centerfield....On May 13th
Kenny deployed at 3rd and Murcer to the outfield mostly right...stayed
that way for the rest of the season....Kenny’s rookie season was highlighted good
speed and a .256 BA....liability: light hitting....a poor 1970 season
demonstrated Jerry not even the the answer to the 1967 vacancy left by Clete
Boyer....1971 nevertheless retained Yankee employment platooning 3rd base
spot with Danny Cater....rebounded with a .262 average....1972; lost time as Yankees were trying new avenues
at 3rd....relegated mostly to SS....trade to Cleveland for 1973
resulted in a handful of plate appearences and his outright release one month
into the season....returned to Yankee minor league system....never made a
return call to the majors....stopped playing baseball 1978....hometown Beloit Wisconsin.
I remember at the time (1969?), Kenney (who was not as well-known as Murcer), was hyped to be just as good (if not better) than Murcer.
ReplyDeleteOh well.....
Yes, I gathered that in subsequent research. Both players fall short of Mantle's legacy power and speed (when healthy). Kenney brings speed but never had Mantle's power. From a nationwide perspective Murcer gets a nod being from Oklahoma, highly photogenic, engaging, and sense of deja vue with Mantle.
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