1961 New York Yankees season
The 1961 New York Yankees season was the 59th season for the team. The team finished with a record of 109–53, eight games ahead of the Detroit Tigers, and won their 26th American League pennant. New York was managed by Ralph Houk. The Yankees played their home games at Yankee Stadium. In the World Series, they defeated the Cincinnati Reds in 5 games. This season was best known for the home run chase between Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle, with the former beating Babe Ruth's single season record by hitting 61.
Offseason
- December 14, 1960: Bob Cerv was drafted from the Yankees by the Los Angeles Angels in the 1960 MLB expansion draft.
- January 16, 1961: Mickey Mantle became the highest paid baseball player by signing a $75,000 contract.
- Prior to 1961 season: Art López was signed as an amateur free agent by the Yankees.
- Prior to 1961 season: Ole Miss Rebels football quarterback Jake Gibbs was signed as an amateur free agent by the Yankees.
Regular season
The 1961 season was notable for the race between center fielder Mickey Mantle and right fielder Roger Maris to break Babe Ruth's record of 60 home runs in a season. Maris eventually broke the record, hitting his 61st home run on October 1, the season's final day. During the season, Maris had seven multi-home run games; in a doubleheader against the Chicago White Sox, he hit four home runs.1961 was an expansion year, with the American League increasing from eight to ten teams, the first expansion in the 61-year history of the league. The old schedule of 154 games was replaced by 162 games which led to some controversy due to the eight extra games that Maris had to try to hit 61.
Ultimately, when Maris broke Ruth's record in game 162, baseball commissioner Ford Frick instigated "The Asterisk", which designated that Maris had only accomplished the feat in a longer season, and disallowed any reference to him as the record-holder. When commissioner Fay Vincent removed "The Asterisk" in 1991, Maris was finally given credit as the single-season home run record-holder. However, Maris had died in 1985, never knowing that the record belonged to him.
In addition to the individual exploits of Maris and Mantle, the 1961 Yankees hit a major league record 240 home runs. The record stood until 1996 when the Baltimore Orioles, with the added benefit of the designated hitter, hit 257 home runs as a team.
Roger Maris
In 1961, the American League expanded from eight to ten teams, generally watering down the pitching, but leaving the Yankees pretty much intact. Yankee home runs began to come at a record pace. One famous photograph lined up six 1961 Yankee players, including Mantle, Maris, Yogi Berra, Elston Howard, Johnny Blanchard, and Bill Skowron, under the nickname "Murderers Row", because they hit a combined 207 home runs that year. The title "Murderers Row", coined in 1918, had most famously been used to refer to the Yankees side of the late 1920s.As mid-season approached, it seemed quite possible that either Maris or Mantle, or perhaps both, would break Babe Ruth's 34-year-old home run record. Unlike the home run race of 1998, in which the competition between Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa was given extensive positive media coverage, sportswriters in 1961 began to play the "M&M Boys" against each other, inventing a rivalry where none existed, according to Yogi Berra.
The 1961 home run race between Maris and Mantle was dramatized in the 2001 film 61*, filmed under the direction of Billy Crystal.
Roger Maris 61 home runs
The Yankees played one tie game which was later made up, and hence took 163 games to achieve 162 decisions.Notable transactions
- May 8, 1961: Lee Thomas, Ryne Duren, and Johnny James was traded by the Yankees to the Los Angeles Angels for Bob Cerv and Tex Clevenger.
- July 1, 1961: Roy White was signed as an amateur free agent by the Yankees.
Player stats
Batting
Starters by position
Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; R = Runs; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in| Pos | Player | G | AB | R | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
| C | 129 | 446 | 64 | 155 | .348 | 21 | 77 | |
| 1B | 150 | 561 | 77 | 150 | .267 | 28 | 89 | |
| 2B | 162 | 662 | 80 | 173 | .261 | 4 | 49 | |
| 3B | 148 | 504 | 61 | 113 | .224 | 11 | 55 | |
| SS | 153 | 617 | 84 | 170 | .276 | 8 | 46 | |
| LF | 119 | 395 | 62 | 107 | .271 | 22 | 61 | |
| CF | 153 | 514 | 131 | 163 | .317 | 54 | 128 | |
| RF | 161 | 590 | 132 | 159 | .269 | 61 | 141* |
- Tied with Jim Gentile for league lead in RBI.
Other batters
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in| Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
| 93 | 243 | 74 | .305 | 21 | 54 | |
| 93 | 243 | 54 | .222 | 3 | 22 | |
| 57 | 118 | 32 | .271 | 6 | 20 | |
| 41 | 99 | 21 | .212 | 1 | 2 | |
| 30 | 41 | 6 | .146 | 0 | 2 | |
| 13 | 19 | 2 | .105 | 0 | 2 | |
| 22 | 18 | 2 | .111 | 0 | 0 | |
| 28 | 13 | 2 | .154 | 0 | 1 | |
| 11 | 13 | 2 | .154 | 1 | 1 | |
| 15 | 12 | 4 | .333 | 0 | 3 | |
| 9 | 8 | 2 | .250 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2 | 2 | 1 | .500 | 0 | 0 |
Pitching
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 |
| 39 | 283.0 | 25 | 4 | 3.21 | 209 | |
| 36 | 195.0 | 14 | 9 | 2.68 | 101 | |
| 31 | 188.1 | 16 | 3 | 3.15 | 86 | |
| 23 | 129.2 | 8 | 9 | 3.96 | 83 | |
| 15 | 72.0 | 3 | 5 | 5.75 | 48 |
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 |
| 35 | 162.2 | 11 | 5 | 3.60 | 84 | |
| 43 | 141.1 | 11 | 5 | 3.44 | 80 | |
| 12 | 54.1 | 2 | 3 | 4.64 | 24 | |
| 8 | 13.0 | 1 | 2 | 7.62 | 8 | |
| 5 | 9.0 | 1 | 0 | 8.00 | 12 |
Relief pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts| Player | G | IP | W | L | SV | ERA | SO |
| 65 | 119.0 | 15 | 5 | 29 | 2.19 | 87 | |
| 25 | 45.1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2.58 | 21 | |
| 21 | 31.2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4.83 | 14 | |
| 4 | 5.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5.40 | 7 | |
| 1 | 1.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 2 | |
| 1 | 0.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 54.00 | 0 |
Awards and honors
- Roger Maris, American League MVP
- Roger Maris, Associated Press Athlete of the Year
- Whitey Ford, Cy Young Award
- Whitey Ford, Babe Ruth Award
- Whitey Ford, starter, pitcher
- Tony Kubek, starter, shortstop
- Mickey Mantle, starter, center field
- Roger Maris, starter, right field
- Luis Arroyo, reserve
- Yogi Berra, reserve
- Elston Howard, reserve
- Bill Skowron, reserve
League leaders
- Whitey Ford, led league in innings:
- Whitey Ford, led league in games started:
- Whitey Ford, led league in batters faced:
- Luis Arroyo, led league in games pitched: and saves:
- Roger Maris, Major League Baseball home run champion,
Franchise records
- Roger Maris, Yankees single season record, home runs in a season:
- Mickey Mantle, Yankees single season record, home runs by a center fielder:
Team leaders
- Home runs – Roger Maris
- RBI – Roger Maris
- Batting average – Mickey Mantle
- Hits – Bobby Richardson
- Stolen bases – Mickey Mantle
- Walks – Mickey Mantle
- Wins – Whitey Ford
- Earned run average – Bill Stafford
- Strikeouts – Whitey Ford