Bobby Murcer R.I.P.

George Steinbrenner, New York Yankees owner: "Bobby Murcer was a born Yankee, a great guy, very well-liked and a true friend of mine. I extend my deepest sympathies to his wife Kay, their children and grandchildren. I will really miss the guy.

Ted Cox, former MLB third baseman, met Murcer at a game when Cox was playing for the Red Sox: "He was always a very generous, fun-loving guy that was very well respected.”

Alex Rodriguez, current Yankees third baseman: "One of the greatest Yankees of all-time. One of the greatest human beings I ever met.”

Ferguson Jenkins, Hall of Fame pitcher and 1971 Cy Young Award winner, knew Murcer through their work at the Oklahoma Sports Museum: "He was such a good athlete and such a good man in the community. It's really unfortunate the way it happened; we thought he was making a recovery.”

John Filippelli, president of production and programming for the YES Network (the Yankees broadcasting network): "The Yankees have lost an icon, and we at YES have lost a great friend and colleague. Bobby was the ultimate pro, be it on the field or behind the microphone. He will be missed greatly. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his wife Kay and his family.”

Stan Meek, Director of Scouting for the Florida Marlins and former OU pitcher and assistant coach, met Murcer on two or three occasions and grew up a Murcer fan: "It's a sad day to see something like that. He was an outstanding player and seemed like a very solid guy. He was another Oklahoma guy to play for the Yankees, which was my team growing up. He was one of the guys I enjoyed watching play."

Michael Kay, current Yankees play-by-play man: "Sometimes you idolize somebody and you get to meet them and you're disappointed. But I've never met a more genuine person.

"What he went through the last couple of years no one should ever have to go through, but he went through it with such grace. He was an amazing, amazing guy. He was a piece of work in the best way possible.”

David Cone, former Yankee pitcher and current YES Network analyst: (On spending time with Bobby at Yankees Old-Timers Days) "He was so great in the clubhouse, just a pleasure to have in the clubhouse. The players really loved having him around. Old-Timers Day was always a special day for Bobby. When the Yankees would come to Kansas City when I was growing up there, he was always one of the guys I was trying to get an autograph from. He was a really good player, a really solid left-handed hitter.”

Ralph Terry, former Yankees, Athletics, Indians and Mets pitcher, met Murcer when he first signed with the Yankees: "Everybody loved Bobby; he was a great competitor and a great player. He was very well liked and very well loved by everybody that ever knew him. He was a great Oklahoma athlete; I'm proud to have had him for a friend.”

Kimberly Jones, YES Network clubhouse reporter: "I will never forget how kind Bobby was or how much he cherished every day. Back in March 2005, in one of my first interviews with Joe Torre, he first declined to answer a harmless question then asked me to hold his gum. I extended my notebook and Joe placed the wad on the top page.

I had no idea what to think. Two seconds later, Bobby was howling in laughter, as was Joe. It was through a practical joke that Bobby figured he would help the newcomer break the ice. And it was something Bobby and I laughed about many, many times in the years to come. He was always smiling, always upbeat and his spirit was undeniable. Everyone loved Bobby and we will miss him dearly.”

Bud Selig, Major League Baseball commissioner: "All of Major League Baseball is saddened today by the passing of Bobby Murcer, particularly on the eve of this historic All-Star game at Yankee Stadium, a place he called home for so many years. Bobby was a gentleman, a great ambassador for baseball, and a true leader both on and off the field. He was a man of great heart and compassion.”

Joe Girardi, current Yankees manager: "He was a tough man. He was a great Yankee, but probably more importantly he was a great friend. He always put others first. He played the game the right way. He got what life was about, and that was making life better for the people around you.”

Lou Piniella, Current Cubs manager, Murcer's teammate in New York: "Just a wonderful person, a great teammate and a heck of a baseball player.”

Mickey Tettleton, former MLB player from Oklahoma, met Murcer at games and through both attending Southeast High School: "It's a terrible loss. We've lost a good guy, and I hope Kay and his kids are doing all right.”

Jason Giambi, current Yankees first baseman: "He always had that bright smile and that positive spin on everything. He was the type of guy who never had a bad day.”

Career recap

After coming up briefly to the Yankees in 1965 and 1966 amid high expectations, Murcer fulfilled his military obligation in 1967 and 1968 before being called up to the majors to stay in 1969.

A left-handed hitter, Murcer had a career .277 batting average, finishing with 252 home runs and 1,043 RBIs. He hit .301 with runners on third base. He was only the third New York Yankee (after Joe DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle) to earn $100,000 per season, and at 26 years of age was the youngest American League player to earn a six-figure salary.

Murcer made the All-Star teams from 1971 through 1974 in the American League, and in 1975 in the National League. He also won a Gold Glove in 1972.

He was noted for excelling at the delayed steal in which, as the catcher catches the ball or is about to throw the ball back to the pitcher, the runner on first base breaks for second base. The thought is that the second baseman and shortstop will be back on their heels and slow to cover the bag. After working with Mickey Mantle, he was also known as an excellent drag bunter.

At his retirement, Murcer's 252 career home runs were tied for 72nd place on the all-time home run list, and his 175 home runs as a Yankee put him 11th on the club's career list. At his death, Murcer was tied for 183rd on the all-time list.

Against Hall of Fame pitchers, Murcer hit .291 with 17 homers and 65 RBIs in 447 at bats. If Tommy John and Bert Blyleven (both possible Hall of Famers) are inducted, Murcer's numbers total 553 at bats with 20 home runs, 76 RBIs and a .297 average, seemingly stellar numbers versus an elite group of pitchers.

In the 1970s, Murcer drove in 840 runs, the 9th most in the major leagues during that span. Murcer's 119 outfield assists led all major league outfielders for that decade, ahead of Bobby Bonds (106), Rusty Staub (97), Amos Otis (93), Reggie Smith (86), Jose Cardenal (85), Del Unser (82) and Reggie Jackson (81).[3] His 198 homers tied for 17th in the major leagues for the 1970s, and his .282 batting average was 20th among all players who had 5,000 or more plate appearances. During the 1970s, he led his club in home runs six times (1970, 71, 72, 73, 76, 77).

High school career

Murcer played on the football, baseball, and basketball teams as a sophomore at Southeast High School in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. In his junior year, he made the all-district football team. He also helped Southeast High to the conference championship in baseball.

As a senior, Murcer showed his athletic abilities by making All-State in both football (the state leading scorer) and baseball and was All-City (led the city in scoring) in basketball. Later, in the winter of 1964, he signed a letter of intent to play for the Oklahoma Sooners, but in the spring of '65 he signed a $20,000 bonus contract with the Yankees.

Minor league career (1964–68, 1985)

Murcer signed a contract with Yankees' scout Tom Greenwade, the same scout who signed fellow Oklahoman Mickey Mantle (Murcer's baseball hero).[5] Murcer signed for a $10,000 bonus in June 1964. He began with the Johnson City, rookie-level Appalachian League club in 1964 and hit .365 in 126 at bats.

The following season, 1965, he was the Carolina League MVP with the Greensboro Hornets. Murcer hit .322, homered 16 times, drove in 90 runs and stole 18 bases, playing in his league's All-Star game that season. In 1966, he began the season with the Yankees, but was sent down to Toledo of the International League. There he was in the All-Star game once again. He hit .266 with 15 home runs and had 63 RBIs to go along with 16 steals. He was the MVP of the Hornets (the Yankee's Single-A affiliate).

While on leave from the United States Army in 1968, Murcer played seven games in the Fall Instructional League. After his discharge, he played third base for Caguas in the Puerto Rico League, where he drove in 18 runs in 22 games.

Major league career

New York Yankees (1965–66, 1969–74)
A shortstop in the minor leagues, Murcer was slated to be the Yankees' shortstop but ended up being the center fielder, following in the footsteps of Mickey Mantle and Joe DiMaggio. There were strong expectations that he would be "the next Mantle"; Murcer did well enough during the years the Yankees finished second in the division to become one of the team's most popular players of the era.

His first hit in the major leagues, in 1965, was a home run that won the game for the Yankees. He also played on "Mickey Mantle Day" on September 18 of that year. Murcer said playing alongside Mantle in that game was the "greatest thrill of his career". He began the 1966 season with the major league club but was sent down to AAA. Murcer then spent the 1967–68 in the United States Army.

After returning from the military, Murcer started out 1969 on fire. He was hitting .321 with 11 homers and a league-leading 43 runs- batted-in when he jammed his heel in Kansas City. Murcer recalled, "I laid out seven days, and I lost my groove and my momentum".

He ended the season batting .259 with 26 homers and playing center field, his third defensive position, after beginning the season at third base and then switching to right field.

On August 10, 1969, he was part of a feat that was perhaps the highlight of the 1969 season for Yankees' fans. Murcer, Thurman Munson, and Gene Michael hit consecutive home runs in the sixth inning against Oakland. Murcer led off the Yankees' sixth with a shot into the right field bleachers. Thurman Munson, playing in only his second major league game, hit a pitch into the left field seats, bringing up Michael, who hit a ball into the right field seats. This was the third time Yankees hit three successive home runs. Bobby Richardson, Mickey Mantle, and Joe Pepitone did it in 1966. In 1947 Charlie Keller, Joe DiMaggio, and Johnny Lindell accomplished the feat.

Murcer tied for the American League lead in outfield assists in 1970 with 15, while committing only 3 errors in center field. In June 1970, Murcer hit four home runs in consecutive at bats in a double header against the Cleveland Indians, tying an American League record and joining Lou Gehrig, Johnny Blanchard, and Mickey Mantle as the only Yankees to hit home runs in four consecutive at bats.

He had a career-high .331 batting average (2nd in the AL) in 1971. He led the American League in on-base percentage (.427) and times on base (266), and came in 2nd in slugging percentage (.543) and runs (94), 4th in RBIs (94) and walks (91), 5th in intentional walks (13), and 10th in home runs (25). Murcer was 7th in MVP voting and was voted to the prestigious Sporting News All-Star team. On June 2, 1971, Murcer hit two home runs and "made a spectacular shoestring catch off Rico Petrocelli in the first inning to rob the Red Sox of a run" in a Yankee win over their perennial rival Boston. On Sunday, July 25, 1971, Murcer hit a pinch-hit grand slam in a win against the Milwaukee Brewers—the first of his seven career grand slams.

In 1972 he hit a career-high 30 doubles (3rd in the AL), 7 triples (4th), 33 home runs (2nd), and 96 RBIs (3rd). He also led the AL in runs scored (102), extra base hits (70), and total bases (314), was 3rd in slugging percentage (.537) and hits (171), and 10th in batting (.292).

He came in 5th in the AL MVP voting and was a Gold Glove for his fielding. On August 29, 1972, Murcer hit for the cycle by hitting a single, a double, a triple and a home run in one game. On June 3, 1972, Murcer's five runs scored in a game marked the 11th time it had been done in Yankee history.

He was named to the Sporting News All-Star team again and Murcer's 33 home runs were the most by a Yankee centerfielder since Mickey Mantle hit 35 in 1964. No Yankee center fielder has topped it since, the closest being Bernie Williams' 30 home runs in 2000.

In 1973 he was 3rd in the league in hits (187), 4th in batting (.301), and 7th in RBIs (95). He was 9th in the MVP voting. He also led the American League in assists once again, with 14.

He made the Sporting News All-Star team for the third time in his career. On July 13, 1973, Murcer hit three home runs (for the second time in his career) and drove in five runs in a 5–0 win over the Kansas City Royals. He narrowly missed his second Gold Glove, finishing 4th in the voting among American League outfielders. He finished with 17 game-winning hits, second to AL MVP Reggie Jackson's 18.