Damn Yankees by Edward Drobinski - HTML preview
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Damn Yankees
Page 78
could even dance with the Yankees. A 41-11 start, highlighted by an 18 game win streak and a memorably monstrous 565 foot home run at Washington by Mickey Mantle, gave the Yankees a 10 game lead before summer heated up.
The Yankees maintained first place to the finish, absorbing a nine game losing streak in June that particularly ticked off manager Casey Stengel. After a series of admonishments by the skipper, normalcy returned and the Yankees were able to glide to an early clinching date on September 14.
Stengel’s platooning once again did the job, and many of the regulars did theirs as well. The eight mostly everyday starters were meticulously balanced in their numbers, led slightly by catcher Yogi Berra’s 27 home runs and 108 RBIs. Billy Martin
became a rock in his second year starting at second base while cementing his reputation in the majors as a big time brawler. Southpaw pitcher Whitey Ford was back from his stint in the military and showed no rust, emerging as the team ace with an 18-6 record in his first full year as a starter. Staff mate Ed Lopat led the AL with a 2.43 ERA while posting a 16-4 mark, and 38 year old Allie Reynolds gradually took on the role of closer and led the Yankees with 13 saves.