Baseball in the Bronx was on hard times in the early-to-mid 1970s. At least hard times by the lofty standards the New York Yankees had set in winning 20 World Series titles coming into the 1976 season. But it had been 1964 since the Yanks were last even in the Fall Classic, 1962 since they won it, between 1965-75, they broke the 90-win barrier just once.
The period of relative irrelevance coincided with CBS buying the team in the mid-1960s. Yankee Stadium itself underwent renovations and the team had to share Shea Stadium with the Mets while the work was being completed.
George Steinbrenner bought the team in 1973 and towards the end of the 1975 season, he hired Billy Martin as manager. The 1976 New York Yankees would be George & Billy’s first run together, and they returned this proud franchise to prominence. This period of renaissance continued until 1981.
THE RENASSIANCE ERA
THE 1976-81 YANKEES
In the latter part of the 1960s, the Yankees fell on what were—for them—hard times. Between 1965-75, they broke the 90-win barrier just once and never made the postseason. But George Steinbrenner had bought the team in 1973 and by the end of 1975 he hired Billy Martin as his manager. George & Billy returned the Yankees to prominence in 1976 and started a strong six-year run for the franchise.
The history of the New York Yankees from 1976-81 is all here. There were big home runs off the bats of Chris Chambliss, Reggie Jackson and Bucky Dent. There was great starting pitching, especially from Ron Guidry. The bullpen, whether it was Sparky Lyle or Goose Gossage, was as good as any.
There were the turmoils, the managerial changes that Steinbrenner became renowned for, the slumps, and the moments when rivals—from the Boston Red Sox to the Baltimore Orioles to the Milwaukee Brewers—seemed ready to triumph, before New York finally won. Read about all six seasons and all ten postseason series the Yankees played in the Renaissance Era in this free download.
FREE!
The history of the New York Yankees from 1976-81 is all here. There were big home runs off the bats of Chris Chambliss, Reggie Jackson and Bucky Dent. There was great starting pitching, especially from Ron Guidry. The bullpen, whether it was Sparky Lyle or Goose Gossage, was as good as any.
There were the turmoils, the managerial changes that Steinbrenner became renowned for, the slumps, and the moments when rivals—from the Boston Red Sox to the Baltimore Orioles to the Milwaukee Brewers—seemed ready to triumph, before New York finally won.
As a young baseball fan, born in 1970 and just coming of age, it was all very galling to me. I grew up in southeastern Wisconsin. The Brewers were an American League team at the time and a division rival. I also loved the Red Sox and respected the Orioles. All took their turns battling the Yankees. New York won all too often for my taste. But nearly a half-century later, they and their rivals created indelible memories that I look back on with fondness.
Each season and each postseason series of The Renaissance Era has its own article on TheSportsNotebook.com. The purpose of this download is to pull all the articles together and present them as one cohesive compilation.
The moments—the big ones and the under-the-radar ones that marked the 1976-81 Yankee Renaissance—are here.