1982 New York Yankees season


The 1982 New York Yankees season was the 80th season for the Yankees. The team finished in fifth place in the American League East with a record of 79–83, finishing 16 games behind the AL Champion Milwaukee Brewers. As a result, the Yankees endured their first losing season since going 80–82 in 1973, the team's final season at the original Yankee Stadium before the 1976 renovations. The Yankees were managed by Gene Michael, Bob Lemon, and Clyde King. The Yankees played their home games at Yankee Stadium.
Mel Allen, the longtime Yankees play-by-play commentator, returned for the Yankees broadcasts on SportsChannel New York with Fran Healy, with former partner Phil Rizzuto alternating with him. Allen had been a familiar face to many for several years since his return to television in 1975 as the voice-over narrator and presenter for the hit program This Week in Baseball.

Offseason

Regular season

  • April 6, 1982, Opening Day vs. the Texas Rangers was snowed out, as a blizzard brought more than a foot of snow to New York; additional games were also postponed due to the stadium not being cleared. The team finally began their season on April 11, with a doubleheader against the Chicago White Sox.
  • April 27, 1982, Reggie Jackson returned to Yankee Stadium with the Angels. He broke out of a terrible season-starting slump to hit a home run off former teammate Ron Guidry. The at-bat began with Yankee fans, angry at Steinbrenner for letting Jackson get away, starting the "Reg-GIE!" chant, and ended it with the fans chanting "Steinbrenner sucks!" By the time of Jackson's election to the Hall of Fame in 1993, Steinbrenner had begun to say that letting him go was the biggest mistake he made as Yankee owner.
  • September 5, 1982: Roy Smalley hit home runs from both sides of plate for New York Yankees.
  • Future NFL Hall of Famer John Elway played baseball for the New York Yankees' Oneonta single-A farm club in 1982. Elway posted a.318 average and knocked in a team-high 24 runs with no errors in 42 games.

Notable transactions

Draft picks

Player stats

Batting

Starters by position

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases
PosPlayerGABRHAvg.HRRBISB
C893002968.2275280
1B692152045.2098270
2B14455385155.28033616
3B1224054794.23218551
SS14248655125.25720670
LF14053984151.280371065
CF12347776143.30096811
RF12748470134.277125410
DH1083164986.27218576

Other batters

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases
PlayerGABRHAvg.HRRBISB
1113484188.25332513
1022613380.3076370
631912756.2933200
591601127.169090
651411232.2277302
371282034.2666172
441181626.220290
33107820.187240
3058210.172030
174847.146020
144026.150020
173128.258020
142724.148000
102655.192002
71734.235030
111633.188111
71202.167010
41111.091120
3923.333010
Juan Espino3200.000000
Dave Stegman2000----000

Pitching

Starting pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
PlayerGIPWLERASO
34222.01483.81162
30186.210103.6654
Dave Righetti33183.011103.79163
Mike Morgan30150.17114.3771
1670.2454.4637
Doyle Alexander1666.2176.0826
Jay Howell628.0237.7121
Stefan Wever12.20127.002

Other pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
PlayerGIPWLERASO
47164.011104.06111
Rudy May41106.2662.8985
John Pacella310.0017.202

Relief pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
PlayerGWLSVERASO
5645302.23102
634413.4769
Dave LaRoche254203.4231
Curt Kaufman71005.191
Lynn McGlothen400010.802
100054.000

Awards and honors

Farm system

LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Nashville, Fort Lauderdale, Greensboro, GCL Yankees