Around The Horn With The '61 Yankees: SS

Sorry for the Blog Pause--went out of town to the wedding of a friend of mine, but now I'm back and back strong, to conclude my review of the unsung heroes of the 1961 Yankees infield. We're finishing with that all-important position of shortstop, Tony Kubek, who was an anchor for that 1961 team, both in the field and at the plate. He's also one of the great woulda-coulda-shoulda players, someone that many argue would have been one of the greatest Yankee shortstops ever, had his career not been cut short by injury.

Kubek burst onto the scene in 1957, playing wherever manager Casey Stengel chose to put him--which was practically anywhere. The multitalented Kubek logged fifty games in the outfield, 38 at third, one at 2B, and 44 at his eventual position at short. He was voted Rookie of the Year in 1957, and proved his value by swatting two dingers in the third game of that year's World Series (one of only four rookies to ever do so), one which the Yanks would drop to Hank Aaron's Braves. 

Stengel would continue to shuffle Kubek wherever he felt like he needed him, and Kubek continued to deliver with a quick bat that rapped singles to all parts of the park. Then in 1960 came the pebble that would change baseball history and possibly Kubek's career. In the famous (or, to Yankees fans, infamous) 1960 World Series Game 7, a bad-hop ground ball from Pirates' first baseman Bill Virdon popped over the sure-handed Kubek's glove and smashed him in the throat. He was carted off the field, Virdon reached, and the Pirates rallied for five runs, eventually winning the game in the bottom of the ninth with Mazeroski's dramatic home run.

The injury seemed to have no apparent effect on Kubek in the 1961 season, where new manager Ralph Houk moved Kubek permanently to short and paired him with Bobby Richardson. The two had played in those position for Houk in 1956, with the minor-league Denver Bears, and the change proved to be magical. Kubek and Richardson not only formed one of the most devastating double-play combinations, they typically hit 1-2 in the order, and were close friends off the field. In an era--and on a team--where womanizing and boozing were the accepted norms for pro ball players, Kubek and Richardson led cleaner lives, preferring Bible study to more earthly pursuits.

In 1961, Kubek not only solidified himself defensively, he cracked 38 doubles, a Yankee record for shortstops that stood until Jeter broke it in 2004 with 44. He led all shortstops in total chances that year, proving his range, and was voted to his third All-Star team. Like Richardson, his job was to get on base so the sluggers behind him could knock him in, and Kubek's 84 runs that season were second only to Mick and Maris.

Kubek's career was briefly interrupted the next season when his reserve unit was activated, and while on duty he would suffer an injury that would interrupt his career permanently. He hurt his neck and back in a touch football game, a neck that may have been weakened by that dramatic bad-hop grounder two years before, and Kubek was never the same. After a few lackluster years following his return, he retired in 1965, when doctors warned him that he could be paralyzed if he suffered a collision, always a danger when playing shortstop. 

Kubek went on to be a much-beloved announcer, known for causing controversy by openly criticizing players, umpires, and management in an era when commentators were supposed to be more subdued. He eventually retired from baseball, disappointed at the egotistical turn it had taken, in 1994, when the players struck for more money.

Many will say that a healthy Kubek would have been one of the best Yankee shortstops ever, and given his early career promise, it's hard to argue against that. Had Virdon's grounder not found that infamous pebble, or had Kubek chosen to sit out that fateful game of touch football, we might be speaking of him in the same breath as Jeter or Rizzuto--he was certainly better defensively than Derek, with more pop than Scooter.

Either way, Kubek shone while he could, and his quiet example of how to play the game with steady, predictable skill with both bat and glove was an anchor to the 1961 Yankees. As with all of his infield teammates, Kubek is among the quiet heroes on a Yankees team that many consider the best ever--and which so many forget about the magical infield that made the pitching so good, or who stood on the bases and watched Maris and Mantle launch mammoth moon shots over their heads. 

The next time you're in an argument about the best Yankees team ever and someone brings up the 1961 squad, remind them of the steady, quiet guys in the infield, the ones whose names will hopefully trip off your tongue a little easier now: Skowron, Richardson, Boyer and Kubek.