April 15, 1976: The Renovated Yankee Stadium Opens

April 15, 1976, 50 years ago: Yankee Stadium opens, after a renovation of two and a half years. Much of the original 1923 structure remains, but much of it is new. Some old-time Yankee Fans are relieved and thrilled. Others are appalled at the changes.

The support poles, and the obstructions they provided, were removed, while the upper deck was "cantilevered" and extended upward, so it no longer needed the poles' support. Seats and aisles were widened, dropping the Stadium's capacity from 65,010 (from a peak of 67,224) to 57,545.

The back wall of the Bleachers was raised to twice its height. No longer could a fan stand on the platform of the 161st Street Station of the Number 4 Train and watch the game for the price of a Subway token. And the "façade," actually a frieze, that wrapped around the roof of the Stadium was removed, as was the roof itself. A copy of the frieze was placed atop the Bleacher wall.

Robert Merrill sings the National Anthem. Bob Shawkey, the starting and winning pitcher from the 1st game there in 1923, throws out the ceremonial first ball. Among the guests with a connection to the Stadium's history are Babe's widow Claire Ruth, Lou's widow Eleanor Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle, New York Giants legend Frank Gifford, and Joe Louis, who successfully defended the Heavyweight Championship of the World at Yankee Stadium 7 times.

A photograph of "the four great Yankee catchers" in uniform is taken: Bill Dickey as a special guest, Yogi Berra and Elston Howard as current Yankee coaches, and Thurman Munson as the current Yankee catcher, who has been named the team's 1st Captain since Lou Gehrig.

And, yes, there was a game. The opponent was the Minnesota Twins. While Babe Ruth had hit the 1st home run in the Stadium, the 1st home run in the renovated Stadium was hit by the Twins' Dan Ford, off Yankee starter Rudy May. And the Twins led 4-0 going to the bottom of the 3rd inning.

A groundout by Roy White got the Yankees on the board in the 3rd. They put it together in the 4th: With 1 out, Graig Nettles drew a walk. (Cliché Alert: Walks can kill you.) Oscar Gamble tripled him home, and was singled home by Willie Randolph. Randolph stole 2nd, and was singled home by Lou Piniella to tie the game. A wild pitch by Vic Albury got Piniella to 2nd, and Otto Vélez singled him home, and the Yankees had the lead.

The Yankees scored 6 more runs in the 8th, thanks to walks by White, Piniella and Fred Stanley; singles by Nettles, Randolph, Mickey Rivers and Chris Chambliss; and a double by Gamble.

Yankees 11, Twins 4. Dick Tidrow, in relief, was the winning pitcher. Two days later, Munson would have the 1st Yankee homer in the "New Stadium."

The Yankees won the 1st of 3 straight American League Pennants that season. From the Stadium's reopening until its closing in 2008, they won 15 AL Eastern Division titles, 10 Pennants, and 6 World Championships -- more than most teams, to this day, have won in their entire history.

April 26, 1974: The Yankees' Friday Night Massacre

Chris Chambliss

April 26, 1974, 50 years ago: The New York Yankees trade 4 pitchers away: Fritz Peterson, Steve Kline, Fred Beene and Tom Buskey. They are sent to the Cleveland Indians. Just 6 months after President Richard Nixon initiated what became known as the Saturday Night Massacre, the New York media calls this the Friday Night Massacre.

The Yankees traded 1/3rd of their pitching staff for 1st baseman Chris Chambliss, the 1971 American League Rookie of the Year, and 2 pitchers that nobody in New York had ever heard of. This trade was very unpopular at the time, both in the clubhouse and in the stands.

The night before, 3 of the pitchers had played in the Yankees' 6-1 loss to the Kansas City Royals at Shea Stadium, where the Yankees were groundsharing with the Mets while Yankee Stadium was being renovated, that season and the next. Kline started, and didn't get out of the 6th inning, which Beene finished. Peterson pitched the last 3 innings, allowing the last run.

In a little over 8 seasons with the Yankees, Peterson had gone 109-106 with a 3.10 ERA, including a 20-win season in 1970. Kline had gone 40-37 and 3.26 in a shade over 4 seasons. Beene was 7-3 with 5 saves and a 1.99 ERA in a little over 2 seasons. Buskey had appeared in only 12 games, all in relief, going 0-2 with 2 saves and a 5.64 ERA. Mainly, it was the trade of Peterson that upset Yankee fans, with whom he was still popular, in spite of his "wife swap" the season before with fellow pitcher Mike Kekich, who was traded soon thereafter.

But it was a great trade for the Yankees. As one observer wrote, it "broke up the country club." Upshaw never did much for them, but Tidrow became a key pitcher, both starting and relieving, on the team that would win 3 straight Pennants from 1976 to 1978. And Chambliss had both a Gold Glove and a power bat, hitting the home run that clinched the 1976 Pennant. Once the fans poured onto the field at the renovated Yankee Stadium following Chambliss' homer, Peterson had become "Fritz Who?"

Peterson went 14-8 for the Indians in 1975, but pitched only 1 more season and change in the majors, due to a shoulder injury. He would finish his career at 133-131. The other pitchers were not missed.

In 2018, Peterson publicly revealed that he had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, and stepped away from public life. He died on October 19, 2023, although it wasn't publicly announced for another 6 months, until April 12, 2024.

Heart attacks took the lives of Cecil Upshaw when he was only 52 in 1995, and Tom Buskey when he was only 51 in 1998. Steve Kline died in 2018, Dick Tidrow in 2021. As of April 26, 2024, Chris Chambliss and Fred Beene are still alive.