| 1981 New York Yankees | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| American League champions American League East champions | ||||
| League | American League | |||
| Division | East | |||
| Ballpark | Yankee Stadium | |||
| City | New York City | |||
| Record |
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| Divisional place |
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| Owners | George Steinbrenner | |||
| General managers | Gene Michael | |||
| Managers | Gene Michael,Bob Lemon | |||
| Television | WPIX SportsChannel NY (Phil Rizzuto,Frank Messer,Bill White) | |||
| Radio | WABC (AM) (Frank Messer,Phil Rizzuto,Bill White,Fran Healy) | |||
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The 1981New York Yankees season was the franchise's 79th season. Games were suspended for 50 days due to the1981 Major League Baseball strike, causing asplit season. The Yankees competed as members of theAmerican League East, finishing first in the first half of the season, and tying for fifth in the second half of the season; overall, they won 59 games while losing 48. The team advanced to the postseason due to their first-half first-place finish, where they defeated theMilwaukee Brewers in theAmerican League Division Series and theOakland Athletics in theAmerican League Championship Series, capturing the Yankees' only pennant of the 1980s. The Yankees then lost theWorld Series in six games to theLos Angeles Dodgers. The Yankees played their home games atYankee Stadium and were managed byGene Michael until September 5, and byBob Lemon thereafter.
The team finished in first place in theAmerican League East for the first half of the season with a 34–22 record but finished fifth in the second half with a 25–26 record, for an overall record of 59–48. The season was suspended for 50 days due to the infamous1981 players strike and the league chose as its playoff teams, the division winners from the first and second halves of the season, respectively.
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Milwaukee Brewers | 62 | 47 | .569 | — | 28–21 | 34–26 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 59 | 46 | .562 | 1 | 33–22 | 26–24 |
| New York Yankees | 59 | 48 | .551 | 2 | 32–19 | 27–29 |
| Detroit Tigers | 60 | 49 | .550 | 2 | 32–23 | 28–26 |
| Boston Red Sox | 59 | 49 | .546 | 2½ | 30–23 | 29–26 |
| Cleveland Indians | 52 | 51 | .505 | 7 | 25–29 | 27–22 |
| Toronto Blue Jays | 37 | 69 | .349 | 23½ | 17–36 | 20–33 |
| AL East First Half Standings | W | L | Pct. | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York Yankees | 34 | 22 | .607 | — |
| Baltimore Orioles | 31 | 23 | .574 | 2 |
| Milwaukee Brewers | 31 | 25 | .554 | 3 |
| Detroit Tigers | 31 | 26 | .544 | 3+1⁄2 |
| Boston Red Sox | 30 | 26 | .536 | 4 |
| Cleveland Indians | 26 | 24 | .520 | 5 |
| Toronto Blue Jays | 16 | 42 | .276 | 19 |
| AL East Second Half Standings | W | L | Pct. | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Milwaukee Brewers | 31 | 22 | .585 | — |
| Boston Red Sox | 29 | 23 | .558 | 1+1⁄2 |
| Detroit Tigers | 29 | 23 | .558 | 1+1⁄2 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 28 | 23 | .549 | 2 |
| Cleveland Indians | 26 | 27 | .491 | 5 |
| New York Yankees | 25 | 26 | .490 | 5 |
| Toronto Blue Jays | 21 | 27 | .438 | 7+1⁄2 |
Sources:[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14] | ||||||||||||||
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| Team | BAL | BOS | CAL | CWS | CLE | DET | KC | MIL | MIN | NYY | OAK | SEA | TEX | TOR |
| Baltimore | — | 2–2 | 6–6 | 3–6 | 4–2 | 6–7 | 5–3 | 2–4 | 6–0 | 7–6 | 7–5 | 4–2 | 2–1 | 5–2 |
| Boston | 2–2 | — | 2–4 | 5–4 | 7–6 | 6–1 | 3–3 | 6–7 | 2–5 | 3–3 | 7–5 | 9–3 | 3–6 | 4–0 |
| California | 6–6 | 4–2 | — | 6–7 | 7–5 | 3–3 | 0–6 | 4–3 | 3–3 | 2–2 | 2–8 | 6–4 | 2–4 | 6–6 |
| Chicago | 6–3 | 4–5 | 7–6 | — | 2–5 | 3–3 | 2–0 | 4–1 | 2–4 | 5–7 | 7–6 | 3–3 | 2–4 | 7–5 |
| Cleveland | 2–4 | 6–7 | 5–7 | 5–2 | — | 1–5 | 4–4 | 3–6 | 2–1 | 7–5 | 3–2 | 8–4 | 2–2 | 4–2 |
| Detroit | 7–6 | 1–6 | 3–3 | 3–3 | 5–1 | — | 3–2 | 5–8 | 9–3 | 3–7 | 1–2 | 5–1 | 9–3 | 6–4 |
| Kansas City | 3–5 | 3–3 | 6–0 | 0–2 | 4–4 | 2–3 | — | 4–5 | 9–4 | 2–10 | 3–3 | 6–7 | 3–4 | 5–3 |
| Milwaukee | 4–2 | 7–6 | 3–4 | 1–4 | 6–3 | 8–5 | 5–4 | — | 9–3 | 3–3 | 4–2 | 2–2 | 4–5 | 6–4 |
| Minnesota | 0–6 | 5–2 | 3–3 | 4–2 | 1–2 | 3–9 | 4–9 | 3–9 | — | 3–3 | 2–8 | 3–6–1 | 5–8 | 5–1 |
| New York | 6–7 | 3–3 | 2–2 | 7–5 | 5–7 | 7–3 | 10–2 | 3–3 | 3–3 | — | 4–3 | 2–3 | 5–4 | 2–3 |
| Oakland | 5–7 | 5–7 | 8–2 | 6–7 | 2–3 | 2–1 | 3–3 | 2–4 | 8–2 | 3–4 | — | 6–1 | 4–2 | 10–2 |
| Seattle | 2–4 | 3–9 | 4–6 | 3–3 | 4–8 | 1–5 | 7–6 | 2–2 | 6–3–1 | 3–2 | 1–6 | — | 5–8 | 3–3 |
| Texas | 1–2 | 6–3 | 4–2 | 4–2 | 2–2 | 3–9 | 4–3 | 5–4 | 8–5 | 4–5 | 2–4 | 8–5 | — | 6–2 |
| Toronto | 2–5 | 0–4 | 6–6 | 5–7 | 2–4 | 4–6 | 3–5 | 4–6 | 1–5 | 3–2 | 2–10 | 3–3 | 2–6 | — |
| 1981 New York Yankees | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roster | |||||||||
| Pitchers | Catchers Infielders | Outfielders
Other batters | Manager Coaches | ||||||
| 1981 regular season game log: 34–22 (Home: 19–7; Away: 15–15) | |||||||||||||
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April: 11–6 (Home: 6–3; Away: 5–3)
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May: 14–14 (Home: 7–4; Away: 7–10)
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June: 9–2 (Home: 6–0; Away: 3–2)
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| Legend: = Win = Loss = Postponement Bold = Yankees team member |
| 1981 regular season game log: 25–26 (Home: 13–12; Away: 12–14) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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August: 11–10 (Home: 6–6; Away: 5–4)
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September: 13–14 (Home: 7–6; Away: 6–8)
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October: 1–2 (Home: 0–0; Away: 1–2)
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| Legend: = Win = Loss = Postponement Bold = Yankees team member | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1981 Postseason game log: 8–6 (Home: 5–3; Away: 3–3) | ||||||||||||
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AL Division Series: vs. Milwaukee Brewers 3–2 (Home: 1–2; Away: 2–0)
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AL Championship Series: vs. Oakland Athletics 3–0 (Home: 2–0; Away: 1–0)
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World Series: vs. Los Angeles Dodgers 2–4 (Home: 2–1; Away: 1–3)
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| Legend: = Win = Loss = Postponement Bold = Yankees team member |
| = Indicates team leader |
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 | Avg. | HR | RBI | SB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | Rick Cerone | 71 | 234 | 23 | 57 | .244 | 2 | 21 | 0 |
| 1B | Bob Watson | 59 | 156 | 15 | 33 | .212 | 6 | 12 | 0 |
| 2B | Willie Randolph | 93 | 357 | 59 | 83 | .232 | 2 | 24 | 14 |
| SS | Bucky Dent | 73 | 227 | 20 | 54 | .238 | 7 | 27 | 0 |
| 3B | Graig Nettles | 103 | 349 | 46 | 85 | .244 | 15 | 46 | 0 |
| LF | Dave Winfield | 105 | 388 | 52 | 114 | .294 | 13 | 68 | 11 |
| CF | Jerry Mumphrey | 80 | 319 | 44 | 98 | .307 | 6 | 32 | 14 |
| RF | Reggie Jackson | 94 | 334 | 33 | 79 | .237 | 15 | 54 | 0 |
| DH | Bobby Murcer | 50 | 117 | 14 | 31 | .265 | 6 | 24 | 0 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oscar Gamble | 80 | 189 | 45 | .238 | 10 | 27 |
| Larry Milbourne | 61 | 163 | 51 | .313 | 1 | 12 |
| Lou Piniella | 60 | 159 | 44 | .277 | 5 | 18 |
| Barry Foote | 40 | 125 | 26 | .208 | 6 | 10 |
| Dave Revering | 45 | 119 | 28 | .235 | 2 | 7 |
| Jim Spencer | 25 | 63 | 9 | .143 | 2 | 4 |
| Bobby Brown | 31 | 62 | 14 | .226 | 0 | 6 |
| Dennis Werth | 34 | 55 | 6 | .109 | 0 | 1 |
| Aurelio Rodriguez | 27 | 52 | 18 | .346 | 2 | 8 |
| Johnny Oates | 10 | 26 | 5 | .192 | 0 | 0 |
| Andre Robertson | 10 | 19 | 5 | .263 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike Patterson | 4 | 9 | 2 | .222 | 0 | 0 |
| Steve Balboni | 4 | 7 | 2 | .286 | 0 | 2 |
| Tucker Ashford | 3 | 0 | 0 | ---- | 0 | 0 |
| = Indicates league leader |
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rudy May | 27 | 147.2 | 6 | 11 | 4.14 | 79 |
| Tommy John | 20 | 140.1 | 9 | 8 | 2.63 | 50 |
| Ron Guidry | 23 | 127.0 | 11 | 5 | 2.76 | 104 |
| Dave Righetti | 15 | 105.1 | 8 | 4 | 2.05 | 89 |
| Rick Reuschel | 12 | 70.2 | 4 | 4 | 2.67 | 22 |
| Gene Nelson | 8 | 39.1 | 3 | 1 | 4.81 | 16 |
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Doug Bird | 17 | 53.1 | 5 | 1 | 2.70 | 28 |
| Tom Underwood | 9 | 32.2 | 1 | 4 | 4.41 | 29 |
Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | W | L | SV | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rich Gossage | 32 | 3 | 2 | 20 | 0.77 | 48 |
| Ron Davis | 43 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 2.71 | 83 |
| Dave LaRoche | 26 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 2.49 | 24 |
| George Frazier | 16 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1.63 | 17 |
| Bill Castro | 11 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3.79 | 4 |
| Dave Wehrmeister | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5.14 | 7 |
| Andy McGaffigan | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2.57 | 2 |
| Mike Griffin | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2.08 | 4 |
New York wins series, 3–2.
| Game | Score | Date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | New York 5, Milwaukee 3 | October 7 |
| 2 | New York 3, Milwaukee 0 | October 8 |
| 3 | Milwaukee 5, New York 3 | October 9 |
| 4 | Milwaukee 2, New York 1 | October 10 |
| 5 | New York 7, Milwaukee 3 | October 11 |
New York Yankees win the Series over the Oakland Athletics, 3–0
| Game | Score | Date | Location | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oakland – 1,New York – 3 | October 13 | Yankee Stadium | 55,740 |
| 2 | Oakland – 3,New York – 13 | October 14 | Yankee Stadium | 48,497 |
| 3 | New York – 4, Oakland – 0 | October 15 | Oakland Coliseum | 47,302 |
| Game | Score | Date | Location | Attendance | Time of Game |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dodgers – 3,Yankees – 5 | October 20 | Yankee Stadium (New York) | 56,470 | 2:32 |
| 2 | Dodgers – 0,Yankees – 3 | October 21 | Yankee Stadium (New York) | 56,505 | 2:29 |
| 3 | Yankees – 4,Dodgers – 5 | October 23 | Dodger Stadium (Los Angeles) | 56,236 | 3:04 |
| 4 | Yankees – 7,Dodgers – 8 | October 24 | Dodger Stadium (Los Angeles) | 56,242 | 3:32 |
| 5 | Yankees – 1,Dodgers – 2 | October 25 | Dodger Stadium (Los Angeles) | 56,115 | 2:19 |
| 6 | Dodgers – 9, Yankees – 2 | October 28 | Yankee Stadium (New York) | 56,513 | 3:09 |
LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Columbus, Greensboro, Oneonta, Paintsville[15]