Damn Yankees by Edward Drobinski - HTML preview

Damn Yankees

Page 347

It was discovered years later that Jacobson's so called "miracle shot" was in fact laced with various substances, including amphetamines and methamphetamines, and resulted in at least one death. This revelation exposed Jacobson as a fraud and he was stripped of his medical license in 1975.

While Maris went on to break the record on the last day of the season, Mantle finished with 54 home runs, the single season record for a switch hitter. He also led the AL in runs scored and walks. For the second consecutive year, he narrowly missed winning his third MVP award, again finishing second to repeat

winner Maris. The 1961 Yanks are regularly considered a candidate for greatest team of all time. Under new manager Ralph Houk, the Yankees won the World Series that year against the Cincinnati Reds. Neither Mantle nor Maris performed well in the series, however, between them recording three hits and two RBIs in a combined twenty five at bats over five games.

In 1962, Mantle batted .321 in 121 games and was selected as an All-Star for the eleventh consecutive season. He played in the first game but, due to the recurrence of an old injury, sat out the second. Despite missing 41 games, he was selected as MVP for the third time, beating out teammate Bobby Richardson in the

voting. With a .978 fielding percentage that season, he also received his only Gold Glove Award. In the 1962 World Series,