1994 New York Yankees season
Encyclopedia
The New York Yankees
' 1994 season
was the 92nd season for the Yankees. New York was managed by Buck Showalter
and played at Yankee Stadium. The team finished with a record of 70-43 finishing games ahead of the Baltimore Orioles
, having the best record in the American League and the second-best record in Major League Baseball. The season was cut short by the infamous 1994 player's strike, which wiped out any postseason aspirations that their star player and captain, Don Mattingly
, had. It also wiped out any aspirations for their first postseason since losing the 1981 World Series
. On the day the strike began, the Yankees were on pace to win at least 100 games. The Yankees' ace, 33 year-old veteran Jimmy Key
, was leading the majors with 17 wins and was on pace to win 24 games. Right fielder Paul O'Neill was also having a career year, as he was leading the league with a .359 batting average.
The strike is remembered bitterly by Yankees fans, as it shook sports fans in New York City and the Yankees to the core and made 1994 one of the worst years in New York City sports hitory, and has been named among the 10 worst moments in New York City sports history, primarily because Mattingly had led active players in both games played and at bats without a postseason. Because the Yankees were last in a postseason in a season cut short by a strike, the news media constantly reminded the Yankees about the parallels between the two Yankee teams (1981 and 1994), which included both Yankee teams having division leads taken away by strike. Also, throughout October, they continued to bombard the Yankees, talking about what might have been if there had not been a strike, making references to the days games in the post-season would have been played.
Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
All-Star Game
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
' 1994 season
1994 in baseball
-Headline events of the year:As a result of a players' strike, the MLB season ends prematurely on August 11, 1994. No postseason is played...
was the 92nd season for the Yankees. New York was managed by Buck Showalter
Buck Showalter
William Nathaniel "Buck" Showalter III is an American Major League Baseball manager for the Baltimore Orioles. He has previously served in a similar capacity with the New York Yankees , Arizona Diamondbacks , and Texas Rangers...
and played at Yankee Stadium. The team finished with a record of 70-43 finishing games ahead of the Baltimore Orioles
Baltimore Orioles
The Baltimore Orioles are a professional baseball team based in Baltimore, Maryland in the United States. They are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's American League. One of the American League's eight charter franchises in 1901, it spent its first year as a major league...
, having the best record in the American League and the second-best record in Major League Baseball. The season was cut short by the infamous 1994 player's strike, which wiped out any postseason aspirations that their star player and captain, Don Mattingly
Don Mattingly
Donald Arthur "Don" Mattingly is a former Major League Baseball first baseman and current manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers. Nicknamed "The Hit Man" and "Donnie Baseball", he played his entire 14-year baseball career for the New York Yankees...
, had. It also wiped out any aspirations for their first postseason since losing the 1981 World Series
1981 World Series
The 1981 World Series matched the New York Yankees against the Los Angeles Dodgers, marking their third meeting in the Series in five years as well as a record eleventh Series meeting overall and last Series meeting to date...
. On the day the strike began, the Yankees were on pace to win at least 100 games. The Yankees' ace, 33 year-old veteran Jimmy Key
Jimmy Key
James Edward "Jimmy" Key is a former left-handed starting pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Toronto Blue Jays , New York Yankees , and Baltimore Orioles...
, was leading the majors with 17 wins and was on pace to win 24 games. Right fielder Paul O'Neill was also having a career year, as he was leading the league with a .359 batting average.
The strike is remembered bitterly by Yankees fans, as it shook sports fans in New York City and the Yankees to the core and made 1994 one of the worst years in New York City sports hitory, and has been named among the 10 worst moments in New York City sports history, primarily because Mattingly had led active players in both games played and at bats without a postseason. Because the Yankees were last in a postseason in a season cut short by a strike, the news media constantly reminded the Yankees about the parallels between the two Yankee teams (1981 and 1994), which included both Yankee teams having division leads taken away by strike. Also, throughout October, they continued to bombard the Yankees, talking about what might have been if there had not been a strike, making references to the days games in the post-season would have been played.
Offseason
- November 27, 1993: Andy StankiewiczAndy StankiewiczAndrew Neal Stankiewicz in Inglewood, California, U.S. is a retired Major League Baseball middle-infielder, presently minor league field coordinator for the Seattle Mariners...
and Domingo JeanDomingo JeanDomingo Jean Luisa is a former professional baseball pitcher. He played part of one season in Major League Baseball, pitching in 10 games for the New York Yankees in .- White Sox :...
were traded by the Yankees to the Houston AstrosHouston AstrosThe Houston Astros are a Major League Baseball team located in Houston, Texas. They are a member of the National League Central division. The Astros are expected to join the American League West division in 2013. Since , they have played their home games at Minute Maid Park, known as Enron Field...
for Xavier Hernandez. - December 9, 1993: Spike Owen was traded by the New York Yankees with cash to the California Angels for Jose Musset (minors).
- December 20, 1993: Luis PoloniaLuis PoloniaLuis Andrew Polonia Almonte was a Major League Baseball outfielder and designated hitter....
was signed as a free agent by the Yankees. - December 22, 1993: Sam HornSam HornSamuel Lee Horn is a former baseball player who spent parts of 8 seasons in MLB and was an anchor for New England Sports Network, the flagship station of Boston sports teams.-Pro career:...
was signed as a free agent by the Yankees. - January 28, 1994: Bob OjedaBob OjedaRobert Michael Ojeda is a former Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. Ojeda is best remembered as an anchor in the 1986 World Series Champion New York Mets starting rotation , and for being the lone survivor of a March 22, boating accident that killed fellow Cleveland Indians pitchers...
signed as a free agent by the Yankees. - February 9, 1994: Bobby MuñozBobby MuñozRoberto Muñoz Sbert , is a former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball from 1993-2001 for the New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies, Montreal Expos, and Baltimore Orioles....
, Ryan KarpRyan KarpRyan Jason Karp was a major league pitcher.-Baseball career:Karp was born Jewish, to Harvey Karp, a Beverly Hills commodities broker. Out of high school Karp was drafted by the Houston Astros in the 73rd round of the 1989 amateur player draft...
, and Kevin JordanKevin Jordan (baseball)Kevin Wayne Jordan , is a retired American Australian Major League Baseball infielder who played for the Philadelphia Phillies from 1995 to 2001...
were traded by the Yankees to the Philadelphia PhilliesPhiladelphia PhilliesThe Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
for Terry MulhollandTerry MulhollandTerence John Mulholland is a retired Major League Baseball pitcher. He threw left-handed and batted right-handed.-Early and personal life:...
and a player to be named later. The Phillies completed the deal by sending Jeff PattersonJeff PattersonJeffrey Simmons Patterson is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. Patterson was drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in the 58th round of the 1988 draft. He pitched three career games in the major leagues, all with the New York Yankees in . He allowed 3 hits in 3.1 innings pitched with an ERA...
to the New York Yankees on November 8. - February 15, 1994: Jeff ReardonJeff ReardonJeffrey James Reardon , nicknamed "The Terminator" for his intimidating presence on the mound and 98 mph fastball, is a former professional baseball relief pitcher from 1979-1994 who played for the New York Mets, Montreal Expos, Minnesota Twins, and Boston Red Sox, Atlanta Braves, Cincinnati...
was signed as a free agent by the Yankees.
Regular season
By Friday, August 12, the Yankees had compiled a 70-43 record through 113 games. They were leading the AL East Division and had scored 670 runs (5.93 per game) and allowed 534 runs (4.73 per game).Notable transactions
- March 21, 1994: Paul AssenmacherPaul AssenmacherPaul Andre Assenmacher is a former left-handed relief pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for fourteen seasons. Assenmacher pitched for the Atlanta Braves , Chicago Cubs , New York Yankees , Chicago White Sox and the Cleveland Indians...
was traded by the Yankees to the Chicago White SoxChicago White SoxThe Chicago White Sox are a Major League Baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois.The White Sox play in the American League's Central Division. Since , the White Sox have played in U.S. Cellular Field, which was originally called New Comiskey Park and nicknamed The Cell by local fans...
for Brian BoehringerBrian BoehringerBrian Edward Boehringer is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who pitched for the New York Yankees , San Diego Padres , and Pittsburgh Pirates . He attended the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and was drafted in the tenth round of the 1990 Major League Baseball Draft by the Houston Astros, but...
. - March 29, 1994: Kevin MaasKevin MaasKevin Christian Maas is a former Major League Baseball player. He was drafted by the New York Yankees in the 22nd round of the 1986 draft after attending the University Of California. He made his major league debut for Yankees on June 29, 1990 when they called him up from the Columbus Clippers...
was released by the Yankees. - May 1, 1994: Kevin Elster was signed as a Free Agent with the New York Yankees.
- May 5, 1994: Bob Ojeda was released by the New York Yankees.
- May 6, 1994: Jeff Reardon was released by the New York Yankees.
- June 23, 1994: Sam Horn was released by the New York Yankees.
- July 3, 1994: Greg A. Harris was signed as a Free Agent with the New York Yankees.
- July 13, 1994: Greg A. Harris was released by the New York Yankees.
Roster
| 1994 New York Yankees | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roster | |||||||||
| Pitchers |
Catchers Infielders |
Outfielders |
Manager Coaches (First Base) (Third Base) (Bullpen Catcher) |
||||||
Player stats
| = Indicates team leader |
Starters by position
Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in| Pos | Player | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | Avg. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | Mike Stanley | 82 | 290 | 54 | 87 | .300 | 17 | 57 |
| 1B | 97 | 372 | 62 | 113 | .304 | 6 | 51 | |
| 3B | 97 | 366 | 61 | 125 | .342 | 11 | 55 | |
| CF | Bernie Williams | 108 | 408 | 80 | 118 | .289 | 12 | 57 |
| RF | 103 | 368 | 68 | 132 | .359 | 21 | 83 | |
Other batters
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in| Player | G | AB | R | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 77 | 280 | 47 | 78 | .279 | 9 | 34 | |
Starting pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Other pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Relief pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | W | L | SV | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 53 | 5 | 4 | 6 | 3.09 | 56 | |
Awards and honors
- Paul O'Neill - American League Batting Champion (.359)
All-Star Game
1994 Major League Baseball All-Star Game
The 1994 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was the 65th playing of the midsummer classic between the all-stars of the American League and National League , the two leagues comprising Major League Baseball...
- Paul O'Neill, reserve