The 1973New York Yankees season was the 71st season for the team. The Yankees finished fourth in theAmerican League East with a record of 80–82 under managerRalph Houk, 17 games behind the division championBaltimore Orioles. This was the last time that the Yankees finished the season below .500 until1982. This was also their last year in the "old" Yankee Stadium (on the south side of 161st Street), which was targeted for major reconstruction in 1974–1975. During this period, the Yankees shared a home field with aNational League team for the third time in their history, moving intoShea Stadium for two years.

The Yankees had been struggling during their years underCBS ownership, which had acquired the team in 1965. In 1972, CBS ChairmanWilliam S. Paley told team presidentE. Michael Burke the media company intended to sell the club. As Burke later told writerRoger Kahn, Paley offered to sell the franchise to Burke if he could find financial backing. Burke ran across Steinbrenner's name and veteran baseball executiveGabe Paul, a Cleveland-area acquaintance of Steinbrenner, helped bring the two men together.

On January 3, 1973, a group of investors led by George Steinbrenner and minority partner Burke bought the Yankees from CBS for $10 million.

The announced intention was that Burke would continue to run the team as club president. But Burke later became angry when he found out that Paul had been brought in as a senior Yankee executive, crowding his authority, and quit the team presidency on April 29, 1973. (Burke remained a minority owner of the club into the following decade.) He handed in his resignation to the New York Yankees, so that he could become president ofMadison Square Garden.^[1]

It would be the first of many high-profile departures by employees who crossed paths with "The Boss". At the conclusion of the 1973 season, two more prominent names departed: managerRalph Houk, who resigned and then signed to manage theDetroit Tigers; and general managerLee MacPhail, who became president of theAmerican League.

• November 24, 1972:Rob Gardner and a player to be named later were traded by the Yankees to theOakland Athletics forMatty Alou. The Yankees completed the deal by sendingRich McKinney to the Athletics on December 1.^[2]
• November 27, 1972:John Ellis,Jerry Kenney,Charlie Spikes, andRusty Torres were traded by the Yankees to theCleveland Indians forGraig Nettles andJerry Moses.^[3]
• Bobby Murcer signed a $100,000 contract with the Yankees. He was just the second player in Yankees history (behind Mickey Mantle) to earn a base salary of $100,000 in one season.^[4]

After the last game of the 1973 season on September 30, fans ripped out parts of the stadium, including the seats, to take as souvenirs. The stadium would be remodeled, and reopen in 1976. On July 1, the Yankees were 45–33 and leading the American League East by four games, but posted a 35–49 record in their remaining games.^[5]

• April 5, 1973:Frank Baker was traded by the Yankees to theBaltimore Orioles forTom Matchick.^[6]
• June 5, 1973:Kerry Dineen was drafted by the Yankees in the 4th round of the1973 Major League Baseball draft.^[7]
• June 7, 1973:Frank Tepedino,Wayne Nordhagen and players to be named later were traded by the Yankees to theAtlanta Braves forPat Dobson. The Yankees completed the deal by sendingDave Cheadle to the Braves on August 15 andAl Closter to the Braves on September 5.^[8]
• June 7, 1973:Sam McDowell was purchased by the Yankees from theSan Francisco Giants.^[9]
• June 12, 1973:Mike Kekich was traded by the Yankees to theCleveland Indians forLowell Palmer.^[10]
• July 30, 1973:Jerry Kenney was signed as a free agent by the Yankees.^[11]
• August 7, 1973: The Yankees sent a player to be named later and cash to theSt. Louis Cardinals forWayne Granger. The Yankees completed the deal by sendingKen Crosby to the Cardinals on September 12.^[12]
• August 13, 1973:Bernie Allen was purchased from the Yankees by theMontreal Expos.^[13]
• August 18, 1973:Johnny Callison was released by the Yankees.^[14]

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Kinston affiliation shared withAtlanta Braves^[15]

All-Star Game

• Thurman Munson, catcher
• Bobby Murcer, outfield, starter
• Sparky Lyle, pitcher^[16]

• 1973 New York Yankees at Baseball Reference
• 1973 New York Yankees team page at www.baseball-almanac.com

• New York Yankees seasons
• 1973 Major League Baseball season
• 1973 in sports in New York City
• 1970s in the Bronx

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