...you share it with the first great Yankee reliever I remember, Luis Arroyo. He gets 88 candles on his cake today. Seen here at 2012's Old Timers Day (with former 3rd baseman Dr. Bobby Brown to your right), Arroyo had his career year in 1961, on the most powerful Yankee team of the decade. Sure, the headlines were dominated by Mantle and Maris and their pursuit of Babe Ruth's home run record. But there were some other remarkable performances that year -- Whitey Ford, who won 25 games and the Cy Young Award; and Luis Arroyo -- who turned in one of the greatest years by a reliever in an era when the term closer hadn't been established. He won 15 games and saved 29 more with an ERA barely above 2. Go ask Whitey who helped him earn that Cy -- he'll give the big assist to Arroyo (keep in mind, Ford "only" had 11 complete games that season). The game has evolved over the decades, as the last guy out of the bullpen evolved into an essential part of every club. While Johnny Murphy and Joe Page had similar roles on earlier Yankee champions, I'll tip my cap to Luis Arroyo for standing out as I began to learn the nuances of the national pastime.
Who else shares it with Mr. Arroyo? The incoming Yankee shortstop Didi Gregorius, longtime Dodgers pinch hitter and coach Manny Mota -- part of the first wave of standout players from the Dominican, whose 44 consecutive seasons in an LA uniform (1980 through 2013) are a record for continuous on-field service with any single team, Red Sox infielder John Valentin, and John Mayberry Senior -- father of the current Mets backup outfielder.
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