Plently Room in Monument Park: Yankee Legends In Need of Recognition

On February 11, the New York Yankees announced that they would honor Mariano Rivera, the greatest closer in baseball history, with a plaque in Monument Park. The ceremony will take place before a Aug. 14 game against the Tampa Bay Rays. Rivera was previously honored in 2013, when he was still an active player, when his number 42 was retired. Also on tap this summer is a celebration of the 20th anniversary of the 1996 World Championship club. The Yankees have been on the best franchises in all of sports when it comes to honoring their legends. The memories of Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle and Yogi Berra are all well-preserved at Yankee Stadium. Monument Park is home to all these names, and many more, with retired numbers, plaques, and monuments all located in a cave-like space behind the center field wall. While the Yankees have honored almost 40 of their greatest players, managers, and executives, many more names are deserving.

2014 saw Goose Gossage, Tino Martinez, Paul O'Neil, and Joe Torre all enter Monument Park, with Torre's number 6 officially being retired. In 2015, Willie Randolph, Mel Stottlemyre, Bernie Williams, Jorge Posada, and Andy Pettitte all received plaques, with the later three having their numbers retired.

2016 should see a continuation of the Yankees recent trend of trying to fill up Monument Park. The past two seasons have seen 10 new plaques. This is the same number that was honored from the entire period between 1988 and 2010, not including Jackie Robinson's plaque from 2007.

First and foremost, this season the Yankees should honor the recently deceased Yogi Berra, by replacing his plaque with a monument, a posthumous honor only received thus far by Miller Huggins, Gehrig, Ruth, Mantle, and DiMaggio.

Next, in correspondence with Rivera's plaque dedication, two past Yankee relievers should also receive plaques this season, Dave Righetti and Sparky Lyle.

 Lyle was acquired in a trade with the Boston Red Sox before the 1972 season, and would proceed to lead the league in saves twice, with a remarkable 1977 season, which saw him go 13-5 with a 2.17 ERA and 26 saves en route to the Cy Young Award and the 1977 World Series title. When the Yankees signed former White Sox and Pirates reliever Goose Gossage in November of '77, Lyle lost his closers role, and was traded to the Texas Rangers in November of 1978. His 141 saves were a Yankees franchise record, until the emergence of Dave Righetti.

Righetti pitched parts of 11 years with the Yankees, in 1979, and from 1981 to  1990. He was named Rookie of Year in 1981, and made two American League all-star teams. Initially a starter, he pitched a no-hitter in 1983, before transitioning to the bullpen, where he saved 224 games, including 46 saves in 1986. Both were franchise records, until they were broken by Mariano Rivera. Righetti has served as the pitching coach of the San Francisco Giants since 2000, and the Giants coming to the Bronx from July 22-24 would provide the perfect opportunity for him to receive his plaque in person.

Why stop at 2016? The Yankees lack no shortage of names worth recognizing in Monument Park. One of the most peculiar facts about the park is it's lack of any real guidelines or regulations for who should be honored. Plaques for Allie Reynolds, a good pitcher but no Hall of Famer, and Tino Martinez, again a fine ballplayer, but not legendary by any means, have seemingly lowered the standards of what it takes to make Monument Park. Especially while many names, and several Hall of Famers, remain on the outside looking in.

I understand the Yankees problem with honoring long-dead ballplayers, as the prospect of having a "Jack Chesbro Day" or "Gil McDougald Day" will not sell tickets, or resonate with most fans, outside of diehard historians or the player's families. That is why for this to work, old-time ballplayers need to be juxtaposed with more recent names, to keep an interest in the ceremony.

So for 2017, why not honor living former third baseman and borderline Hall of Famer Graig Nettles, along side fellow Yankees infielders and actual Hall of Famers Tony Lazzeri and Joe Gordon? Nettles was a vital member of Yankees teams from 1973 to 1983, winning two World Series, making 5 All-Star teams, and providing both great power and defense. Lazzeri, the second baseman on the legendary 1927 "Murder's Row" team, hit .293 in 12 years with the Yankees, and is still ninth in franchise history in RBI (1157), and tied with Jorge Posada for 10th in offensive Wins Above Replacement (48.4). He was named to the Hall of Fame in 1991. Joe Gordon was Lazzeri's heir apparent at second base, debuting in 1938, and playing seven years for the Yankees, missing 1944 and 1945 due to military service in World War II. Gordon famously won the MVP Award in 1942, besting Ted Williams, who won the triple crown. A six-time All Star with the Yankees, Gordon was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2009. All three, especially Lazzeri, are all long deserving of a place in Monument Park.

1933 Goudey baseball card of Tony Lazzeri (Wikimedia Commons)

2018 could see some pitchers honored. At this point, Mike Mussina's momentum on the Hall of Fame ballot should continue to grow, with his percentages increasing from 24.6% to 43.0% from the 2015 to the 2016 election. Mussina could conceivably be hovering around the 75% range by 2018, and what better way to further help his cause then honoring him with a plaque in Monument Park. While arguably a better pitcher for the Baltimore Orioles, Mussina nonetheless provided the Yankees with eight years of consistency in the starting rotation. He won 123 games from 2001-2008, culminating in his only 20 win season in his final year. By the end of the 2015 season, he is sixth in franchise history in strikeouts (1278) and 10th in pitching Wins Above Replacement (35.1).

Mike Mussina in 2007. (Photo from Keith Allison via Flickr and Wikimedia Commons) 

Joining Mussina could be two Hall of Fame hurlers from the 1920s, Waite Hoyt and Herb Pennock. Hoyt spent 10 years with the Yankees from 1921 to 1930 winning 16 or more games seven times. He also helped the team in three World Series, pitching two complete game victories in the 1928 series against the Cardinals. He was inducted in the Hall of Fame in 1969. Pennock pitched 11 years with the Yankees from 1923 to 1933, winning 162 games and, like Hoyt, three World Series. In 10 career World Series games, he had a 1.95 ERA in 55.1 innings. After his playing career, he became general manager of the Phillies, a role he might best be remembered for. As documented in the 2013 film 42, In 1947, Pennock (played by actor Mark Harelik), voices his displeasure with Dodgers' GM Branch Rickey's (Harrison Ford) plan for Jackie Robinson to play against the Phillies in Philadelphia. Pennock died the following year, the same year he was named to the Hall of Fame. Pennock would perhaps be the most controversial figure in Monument Park, though controversies surrounding George Steinbrenner and Mickey Mantle, two figures both banned from baseball for a time, certainly did not prevent their inclusion in Monument Park.

1933 Goudey baseball card of Herb Pennock (Wikimedia Commons)

The Yankees should continue to honor figures from their illustrious history. A list of possibilities beyond 2018 could be:
2019 - Beloved player and broadcaster Bobby Murcer, overlooked World Series winning manager Ralph Houk, and Ford C. Frick Award winning broadcaster Red Barber.
2020 - Hall of Fame outfielders Dave Winfield and Earle Combs, and Roy White, who spent 15 years as a Yankee outfielder, and five more as a coach. 
2021 - Former player and longtime executive Gene Michael, Hall of Fame general manager George Weiss, and Frankie Crosetti, who won a record 17 World Series as both a player and coach from 1932 to 1962.

Maybe down the road, contemporary Yankees like Mark Teixeira and CC Sabathia will find a place in Monument Park as well, perhaps paired with the likes of Charlie Keller and Bob Shawkey.

One last name must be mentioned here as well, Derek Jeter. It is unknown when the Yankees plan to honor their legendary shortstop. He receive another grand celebration, like the one at the end of the 2014 season, where both his number is retired and a plaque is hung beyond center field. Or the Yankees could space out his plaque and number dedications, much like their handling of Mariano Rivera. No matter when or what the Yankees decide to do with Jeter, his presence in Monument Park is simply a matter of time, time which hopefully can be granted to some other forgotten Yankees legends as well.