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Mickey Mantle poses for a portrait photo in December 1951 after his rookie season with the New York Yankees - Mickey won his first World Championship with the Yankees in the 1951 World Series
Important
Mickey Mantle Anniversaries
 
The plaque honoring Mickey Mantle at the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY. Mickey was inducted to the Hall of Fame in 1974, his first year of eligibility.

JANUARY:

January 16, 1974: Mickey is elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY in his first year of eligibility. In addition to Mickey, his close friend Whitey Ford is also elected, along with Negro League star Cool Papa Bell and umpire Jocko Conlan. The induction ceremony is scheduled for August 12, 1974. (Mickey's Hall of Fame plaque is shown in the picture on the right. It reads, "Mickey Charles Mantle  New York  A. L.  1951 - 1968  Hit 536 home runs, won league homer title and slugging crown four times. Made 2415 hits. Batted .300 or over in each of ten years with top of .365 in 1957. Topped A. L. in walks five years and in runs scored six seasons. voted Most Valuable Player 1956-57-62. Named on 20 A. L. All-Star Teams. Set World Series Records for Homers, 18; Runs, 42; Runs Batted In, 40; Total Bases, 125; and Bases on Balls, 45.")

FEBRUARY:

Feb. 2, 1954: Mickey enters the hospital in Springfield, MO to undergo surgery to have a cyst removed from his right knee by Dr. Dan Yancey. Mickey had surgery the previous November to have cartilage removed from the same knee.

Feb. 2, 1959: The grand opening for Mickey’s bowling alley is held in Dallas, TX. Mickey, Billy Martin, Yogi Berra, Whitey Ford and other Yankees players attend to help kick-off Mickey's new business.

Feb. 3, 1954: Mickey undergoes surgery in Springfield, MO to have a cyst removed from his right knee by Dr. Dan Yancey, the same knee that was operated on to remove cartilage the previous November. The cyst had been in the tendon muscle of his hamstring since his knee injury in the 1951 World Series, but fluid didn’t accumulate until he tested his knee after his November surgery.

Feb. 3, 1957: The New York Chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of America presents Mickey their Player of the Year plaque, the Mercer Award, at an awards dinner at the Waldorf Astoria. The award is named after baseball writer Sid Mercer as a memorial.

Feb. 3, 1957: At the NY Baseball Writers Association dinner Casey Stengel says, “Mickey is the greatest hitter I’ve seen – for distance – as a modern-age ballplayer. I’ve seen hit balls so far in this park (Yankee Stadium) and in Washington that even the President came out to see him twice.”

Feb.  4, 1954: Mickey’s doctors say that Mickey “will be as good as new” and “feeling fine” when he reports to spring training after his surgery yesterday to remove a cyst from his right knee. They also say that he will be up and around tomorrow, and that the 22-year-old switch-hitter will probably be released from the hospital next week.

Feb. 4, 1957: After winning the Triple Crown in 1956, difficult, sometimes bitter salary negotiations and a holdout, Mickey signs his contract for the 1957 season for $60,000. The $27,500 raise is the largest raise of his career. Adjusted for inflation, his $60,000 salary was equivalent to approximately $500,000 in 2013, a steal by any standard.

Feb. 5, 1954: It’s announced that Mickey is recovering ahead of schedule after surgery to remove a cyst from his right knee and will leave the hospital tomorrow.

Feb. 5, 1962: After over 35 years in St. Petersburg, the Yankees open their new million dollar spring training facility in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The team is quartered in a hotel appropriately named, “The Yankee Clipper.”

Feb. 5, 1966: The Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN announces that Mickey is leaving St. Mary’s Hospital after surgery to remove a bone chip from his right shoulder. He will remain at the Mayo Clinic for several weeks of physical therapy. A clinic spokesman says Mickey was “doing well” recovering from the operation, but made no comment whether Mickey would be ready for spring training.

Feb. 6, 1954: Mickey leaves the hospital on crutches in Springfield, MO after knee surgery performed by Dr. Dan Yancey to remove a cyst from the back of his right knee. He had surgery on the same knee the previous November to remove cartilage. His 17-year-old twin brothers, Ray and Roy, drive him home to Commerce, Oklahoma by automobile.

Feb. 6, 1970: In a Pro-Am golf tournament in Phoenix Mickey, paired with football great Joe Namath, makes a remarkable shot out of a lake to just a couple of feet from the hole. One spectator is so shocked he falls backward into the lake!

Feb. 7, 1959: Mickey uses the only leverage baseball players had before free agency to try to get a better salary. He refuses to sign his Yankees’ contract for the 1957 season and “holds out” for a better salary.

Feb. 8, 1959: Mickey says he will “never set foot in St. Pete” until he reaches terms with the Yankees on a new contract for the 1959 season. The Yankees want Mickey to take a pay cut from last year’s $75,000 salary – Mickey wants a raise to $80,000.

Feb.9, 1952: Mickey signs his contract for the 1952 season and returns it to the Yankees. Says Mickey, “It’s a pretty good contract.” Mickey receives the same salary he was paid his rookie year, $7,500. Adjusted for inflation, $7,500 in 1952 was equivalent to about $64,000 today. It’s $2,500 over the $5,000 major league minimum, which is now is $79,000 a year.

Feb. 11, 1952: Mickey arrives in New York for a check-up on his right knee, injured in the 1951 World Series. The exam will be performed by the Yankees’ team doctor, Dr. Sidney Gaynor.

Feb. 11, 1952: New York Yankees’ General Manager Roy Hamey acknowledges receiving Mickey's signed contract for the 1952 season.

Feb. 13, 1954: The Yankees sign outfielder Irv Noren as a backup center-fielder in case Mickey is slow to recover from his two knee surgeries. Yankees’ PR man Red Patterson says, “With Mickey’s condition doubtful right now Casey has to worry about that, and Noren is the guy who will have to take over if Mantle doesn’t recover from that cyst operation on the back of his right knee.”

Feb. 14, 1962: M&M mania continues! Shooting begins on the film “Safe at Home,” written especially for and starring Mickey and his teammate and friend Roger Maris, at the Yankees’ new million dollar spring training complex in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Feb. 14, 1965: Mickey signs his Yankees contract for the 1965 season, his third straight $100,000 contract. It makes him the highest paid player in baseball for the sixth year in a row. (After adjusting for inflation, $100,000 in 1965 is equivalent to about $729,000 in 2013. In contrast, the average MLB salary in 2012 was over $3.3 million and the minimum salary was $414,500.)

Feb. 15, 1955: Mickey signs his Yankees contract for the 1955 season for $25,000. (Adjusted for inflation, $25,000 in 1955 was equivalent to about $220,000 in 2013.)

Feb.15, 1965: Mickey signs his Yankees contract for the 1965 season, his third straight $100,000 contract. It makes him the highest paid player in baseball for the sixth year in a row. (After adjusting for inflation, $100,000 in 1965 was equivalent to about $728,000 in 2013. In contrast, the average MLB salary in 2012 was over $3.3 million and the minimum salary was $414,500.)

Feb. 16, 1954: Mickey, still on crutches after knee surgery, says he expects to join his teammates in spring training on March first in St. Petersburg. Mickey remains unsigned for the 1954 season.

Feb.16, 1961: Mickey signs his contract for the 1961 season for $75,000, a $10,000 raise over his 1960 salary. It makes him the highest paid player in baseball. (Adjusted for inflation, $75,000 is equivalent to about $575,000 in 2013.)

Feb. 17, 1952: The NY Times reports that outfielder Jackie Jensen says that he will beat out Mickey as the center-field replacement for Joe DiMaggio in spring training. The Times got the story off the wire from a story written by a reporter in Oakland, California.

Feb. 17, 1956: In Miami Mickey shoots a 99 in the National Baseball Players’ Golf Championship to finish in the top 20 in the Major League division.

Feb. 18, 1959: It’s reported that the Yankees have asked Mickey to accept a “good behavior” clause in his 1959 contract – Mickey refuses.

Feb. 19, 1959: After an initial offer of $60,000 - a $10,000 pay cut - Mickey signs his contract for the 1959 season for $72,000, a $2,000 raise.

Feb. 20, 1954: Mickey declares his right knee is “in good shape” after surgery to remove a cyst behind his right knee and that it will stand up to a full season’s play.

Feb. 21, 1953: Mickey attends the National Sportsman’s Show in NY at the Grand Central Palace, demonstrating how to tie fly fishing ties.

Feb. 21, 1957: Mickey reports to spring training in St. Petersburg after playing in golf tournaments in Miami and Lake Worth, FL.

Feb. 21, 1958: After tough negotiations with Yankees General Manager George Weiss and threatening to hold-out, and despite a career high .365 batting avg. in 1957, Mickey signs his 1958 contract for $70,000, just a $10,000 raise. Weiss justified the contract by saying that Mickey hadn't won another Triple Crown in 1957 like he had in 1956.

Feb. 21, 1959: Yogi Berra unwittingly starts a rumor that The Mick has come to training camp when he is overheard saying he played 18 holes of golf with Mickey. Mickey is actually in Texas, contract unsigned, holding out for a raise to his salary. It turns out Berra played golf with a different Mickey, St. Pete local farmer and restaurateur “Chicken” Mickey.

Feb. 22, 1952: Mickey, convalescing from his World Series’ knee injury, participates in the Yankees’ opening spring training drills. He’s the only outfielder to participate other than a dozen battery-men (pitchers and catchers). Although still limping, Mickey says he has no pain and expects to be as good as ever after his spring training strengthening and conditioning drills.

Feb. 22, 1954: Mickey, along with 23 other players, remains unsigned for the 1954 season, but isn’t due to report to spring training in St. Petersburg, FL until March 1st.

Feb. 23, 1951: Mickey’s a no-show at spring training - he doesn't have the train fare. The team can't reach him because his family doesn't own a phone. A local sportswriter locates Mickey so the Yankees can wire him the train fare to spring training in Phoenix, where the Yankees have swapped facilities with the NY Giants, who train at the Yankees’ camp in St. Pete, FL.

Feb. 23, 1952: Observers say Mickey, still limping from his World Series knee injury, won’t play as a regular until late in the exhibition season.

Feb. 23, 1955: One of Mickey’s twin brothers, Roy, stars at bat the second day in a row, hitting a homer and a single in the Yankees' rookie camp.

Feb. 24, 1953: After strained contract negotiations, Mickey signs his 1953 contract for $17,500, more than double the $7,500 salary he made in 1951 and 1952.

Feb. 24, 1960: After a lengthy salary dispute Mickey finally signs his 1960 contract for $65,000, a $7,000 pay cut. However, it's $10,000 more than the Yankees' original offer of $55,000 that represented a $17,000 pay cut! It's the first and only pay cut of The Mick's career.

Feb. 25, 1951: Playing a game of pepper on his first day of spring training, Mickey bats a ball that smacks a passing player in the shin. It's Joe DiMaggio. That's how Mickey first meets the Yankee Clipper!

Feb. 25, 1955: Mickey arrives early for spring training at the Yankees' training facility in St. Petersburg, FL. It’s the first time in his career that his team is not the defending World Champion.

Feb. 25, 1955: New York Times columnist Arthur Daley reports that Casey Stengel is considering converting Mickey from a switch-hitter to batting exclusively as a right-handed hitter.

Feb. 26, 1952: After a reporter in Oakland writes that Jackie Jensen said he’d outplay Mickey in center-field, Jackie Jensen denies it and writes Mick a letter explaining that he was misquoted. Says Yogi Berra, “It left nobody feelin’ hurt at nobody.” (Photo of Mickey with Jackie Jensen in Boston on the right.)

Feb 26, 1955: In his “Sports of the Times” column, writer Arthur Daley declares that 1955 “could be a year of decision” for Mickey.

Feb. 26, 1959: On the first day of spring training Mickey officially becomes a “holdout” when he doesn’t report, his 1959 contract unsigned.

Feb. 26, 1962: Shooting of "Safe at Home" - a film written especially for and starring Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris - is completed at the Yankees' new Fort Lauderdale spring training facility. The film is in response to "M&M Boys" mania, generated by the 1961 home run race between Mickey and Roger, when Roger broke Babe Ruth's single-season home run record by hitting 61 home runs.

Feb. 27, 1952: Yankees’ physician, Dr. Sidney Gaynor, examines Mickey knee, injured in the ‘51 World Series, and again expresses satisfaction with the way it is coming along.

Feb 27, 1954: Mickey signs his 1954 contract with the Yankees for $22,500 and is immediately leaving his home in Commerce, Oklahoma by car for spring training. He expects to arrive in camp on Monday, March 1 or Tuesday March 2.

Feb. 27, 1955: In spring training the Yankees “powers-that-be” look to Mickey’s younger twin brothers, Ray and Roy, for help in the future.

Feb. 27, 1957: Although he engages in only the lightest drills with almost no running, Mickey insists there’s nothing wrong with his knees. Trainer Gene Mauch asks Mickey to not participate in the Baseball Players’ Golf Tournament in Tampa.

Feb 27, 1963: Mickey finally joins the elite six-figure club in baseball when he signs his 1963 contract for $100,000. It makes Mickey the highest paid player in baseball and is his highest career salary. Only Joe DiMaggio has been paid $100,000 prior to Mickey. (Adjusted for inflation, $100,000 in 1963 is equivalent to about $750,000 in 2011 - a steal by today's standards.)

Feb. 27, 1969: Mickey Mantle and Joe Namath, teamed together at the American Airlines golf classic, shoot a 12 under par 60 to place just one shot behind the leaders on the first day of the tournament.

Feb. 28, 1959: Casey Stengel tells reporters that Mickey could become the top earner in baseball, forecasting a $150,000 yearly salary.

Feb. 28, 1969: Ralph Houk says that how the Yankees play for the 1969 season hinges on Mickey.

Feb. 29, 1952: Mickey bears down in spring training drills, running hard and in spurts with no trace of a limp. Oddly, only when he slows down does he still show a slight limp.

Mickey Mantle announces his retirement from baseball on March 1, 1969 at a press conference held at Yankee Stadium in New York.

MARCH:

March 1, 1969: Mickey announces his retirement from baseball at a press conference at Yankee Stadium in New York. Mickey played 18 seasons for the Yankees, from 1951-1968. He played a total of 2,401 games, the most games of any Yankees player. (Photo on the right.)

Diagram of three long home runs Mickey Mantle hit in spring training at Al Lang Stadium in St. Petersburg, Florida.March 11, 1956: In a spring training game in St. Petersburg against the St. Louis Cardinals Mickey crushes a spectacular home run over the left-field bleachers, across a street and into Tampa Bay. (The path of this home run is shown by the middle arrow in the photo on the left. Photo of the field was taken after the bleachers were removed.)

March 12, 1956: Warming up for what will be his Triple Crown winning season, Mickey clouts a second formidable home run against the Cardinals in St. Petersburg, a one-hopper into Tampa Bay. (The path of this home run is shown by the broken arrow on the right in the photo on the left.)

March 18, 1960: Mickey's fourth son, Danny, is born.

Diagram of Mickey Mantle's home run out of Dodgertown in Vero Beach, FL on March 20, 1961.March 20, 1961: In his first spring under manager Ralph Houk, Mickey crushes a high home run off Roger Craig against the Dodgers at Dodgertown in Vero Beach, Florida. Mickey's left-handed drive goes completely out of the park over the rightfield fence and disappears into the distance. (The red arrow in the in photo on the right shows the path of Mickey's homer.)

March 20, 1956: On a tear for what will be his finest spring training since 1951, Mickey - facing the Cardinals in St. Petersburg yet again - unleashes another tremendous tape-measure home run, this one high over the centerfield barrier at Al Lang Stadium, at least 500 feet long. Cardinals' centerfielder Bill Virdon (Yankees manager from 1974-75) says it's the longest homer he ever saw. (The path of this home run is shown by the arrow on the left in the photo above on the left.)

March 24, 1956: Mickey hits yet another historic home run, this time at Miami Stadium in Miami against the Brooklyn Dodgers. The ball goes over the 35-foot centerfield wall at the 400-foot mark. It's the first time ever a ball has gone out of Miami Stadium over the centerfield wall. The next day the homer is reported as a 500-footer by the Associated Press.

Diagram of Mickey Mantle's two spectacular home runs hit at an exhibition game at Bovard Field at USC on March 26, 1951. One hit right-handed went over 500 feet and landed on a third-floor porch several houses down the street. The other, hit left-handed, crossed an adjacent football field and traveled 656 feet.March 26, 1951: Mickey crushes two epic, monster home runs in an exhibition game played at Bovard Field at the University of Southern California (USC). Both are hit left-handed. The first - a moon shot if ever there was one - left the park in right-centerfield, crossed a football field adjacent to the baseball diamond then short-hopped a low wall out of the facility and onto a neighboring street, never to be seen again. The exact spot where it landed was witnessed by legendary USC coach Rod Dedeaux and center-fielder Tom Riach. Each led observers to the landing point they saw, which were a mere two feet apart. It may the longest home run ever measured, traveling a mythic 656 feet! Mickey's second homer is also remarkable: an opposite-field blast that travels well over 500 feet. It sails out of the park, across the street bordering the field, then crashes into the second-story porch of the third house down down the street. He also triples and, in his final at-bat, uses his world-class speed to beat out a routine grounder for a single. His box score for the game: 5-AB, 4-H, 2-HR, 1-3B, 1-1B, 7-RBI. (The red arrows in the diagram above left show the paths of both homers.)

Mickey Mantle awaits the pitch from Astros' pitcher Turk Farrell that he hit for the first home run ever hit in the Houston Astrodome on April 9, 1965.

APRIL:

April 9, 1965: Mickey hits the first home run ever in the Houston Astrodome in an exhibition game against the Houston Astros. Leading off the sixth inning, Mickey crushes a high drive off Astros' pitcher Turk Farrell that lands in centerfield near the 406 foot marker. Mickey also got the first hit in the Astrodome, a single to center to lead off the first inning. (In the photo on the right Mickey waits for the pitch from Astros' pitcher Turk Farrell that he slammed into the centerfield seats for the first home run ever hit at the Astrodome in Houston.)

April 10, 1962: Mickey hits his last Opening Day home run. It goes some 425 feet into the right-centerfield bleachers at Yankee Stadium as the Yankees nip Baltimore 7-6.

April 12, 1953: Mickey's first son, Mickey Jr., is born.

April 13, 1955: Mickey homers on Opening Day for the first time.

April 17, 1951: Mickey makes his Yankees debut against the Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium before nearly 45,000 fans. Whitey Ford, on leave from the Army, throws out the first pitch. Mickey gets his first hit, a single in the sixth inning that drives in his first run, as the Yankees shut out the Red Sox 5-0. Mickey goes 1-for-4 with an rbi and a run scored.

Diagram showing the path of Mickey Mantle's 565-foot home run hit at Griffith Stadium in Washington on April 17, 1953. Picture shows Mickey batting left-handed but he actually batted right-handed.April 17, 1953: Mickey, batting right-handed, blasts a monster 565-foot homer out of Griffith Stadium in Washington, DC. Yankees PR director Red Patterson  coins the term "tape measure home run" by measuring the homer during the game. It may be the most famous home run ever hit. The Guinness Book of World Records lists it as the longest home run to be measured at the time it was hit.
(The photo on the above right illustrates the path of Mickey's homer. Mickey is shown batting left-handed but he hit the home run right-handed. The yellow arrow in the diagram below the photo shows how far it went after it left Griffith Stadium.)

Aerial diagram of Mickey Mantle's three mammoth home runs at Griffith Stadium in Washington. One went 565-feet on April 17, 1953 (yellow arrow). Two (red arrows) each went over 500 feet on Opening Day, April 17, 1956.April 17, 1956: Mickey belts two tremendous Opening Day homers against the Washington Senators at Griffith Stadium in Washington, DC. President Eisenhower cheers Mickey from his seat behind the Senators dugout. Both homers are searing line drives hit left-handed off Camilo Pascual. Each goes over 500 feet, clearing the 31-foot wall in centerfield. The first homer lands atop a house across from the park. The second homer ricochets off a tree growing in a clump of trees outside the park. It caroms out and onto adjacent Fifth Street. Only Babe Ruth had ever hit a ball into the trees outside Griffith Stadium, and he only did it once. (In the diagram on the left Mickey's two Opening Day homers are shown in red. The red arrow in the center shows the path of Mickey's first home run that landed atop a house across Fifth Street. The red arrow on the left shows the path of his second home run that ricocheted off a tree behind the centerfield wall and then caromed out onto Fifth Street. For comparison, the yellow arrow shows the path of his 565-foot homer hit on April 17, 1953, exactly two years earlier.)

April 20, 1951: Mickey plays his first major league game at Yankee Stadium.

MAY:

May 1, 1951: Mickey hits his first major league home run at Comiskey Park in Chicago. The ball travels nearly 500 feet.

May 1, 1956: Mickey begins the scoring with a first-inning solo home run to right-field that just clears Al Kaline’s glove, who makes a leaping stab at the ball in an attempt to take Mickey’s homer away from him, and the Bombers go on to beat the Tigers 9-2 at Yankee Stadium.

May 2, 1961: In the Yankees’ first game ever in Minnesota, Mickey hammers a tenth-inning grand slam over the 402-foot sign on the screen in center-field to give them a 6-4 win over the Twins. It’s only the sixth extra-inning grand slam in Yankees’ history. The Yankees are 10-5, and seven of their ten wins are due to Mickey’s clutch hitting. How sweet it is!

May 3, 1956: Mickey goes 2-for-2 with 2 runs, 2 rbi and his first right-handed homer of the year, a titanic 440-foot blast deep into the left-field seats, giving him seven homers and 18 rbi on the year. Despite three Yankees’ homers they’re nipped by the A’s in the ninth by a bunt and a sacrifice and lose 8-7 to the Kansas City Athletics at Yankee Stadium.

May 4, 1951: Mickey’s second career home run is an historic and formidable 500-plus-foot blast that flies over the roof and completely out of Sportsman’s Park in St. Louis as the red hot Bronx Bombers’ win their sixth straight game. (The path of The Mick's blast at Sportsman's Park is shown in the diagram on the right.)

May 4, 1961: Mickey wins a case of beer by hitting a home run directly into the teeth of a 25-mph wind in a 5-2 win in Minnesota after the Twins’ pitcher, Ted Sadowski, bets The Mick a case of beer that he can’t homer with the wind blowing in at him. While rounding third base Mickey yells to Sadowski, on the mound in shock after witnessing Mick’s amazing feat, “I’ll take Budweiser!”

The path of Mickey's tremendous home run blast of Kansas City's Mo Burtschy on May 5, 1956. It's the first of Mickey's façade shots at Yankee Stadium.

May 5, 1956: Mickey hits his first home run to strike the façade at Yankee Stadium. It's off righty Moe Burtschy of the Kansas City A's and his second homer of the game as the Yankees win 5-2. It's his first homer to nearly go out of Yankee Stadium. A's broadcaster Merle Harmon says, "If not for the roof, it would have hit the subway across the street!" (The path of Mickey's first façade shot at Yankee Stadium is diagrammed in the photo on the right.)

May 5, 1957: Mickey goes 3-for-3 with a walk, a run, 2 rbi, a stolen base and a two-run homer into the top deck in left-field at Comiskey Park in Chicago for a 5-2 win over the White Sox.

May 5, 1962: Mickey goes 2-for-4 with 2 runs scored, a run-batted-in, and a two-run homer deep into the third deck in right-field as the Yankees nip the Washington Senators 7-6 at Yankee Stadium.

May 6, 1962: Mickey goes 4-for-8 with 3 runs, 5 rbi and 3 homers in a doubleheader split against the Senators at Yankee Stadium. His tape-measure shot in the first game goes 460-feet into the last row of the right-field bleachers. In the second game Mickey switch-hits homers for the ninth time in his career – only one player in the American League had done it before, and only once.

May 6, 1962: Mickey goes 4-for-8 with 3 runs, 5 rbi and 3 homers in a doubleheader split against the Senators at Yankee Stadium. His tape-measure shot in the first game goes 460-feet into the last row of the right-field bleachers. In the second game Mickey switch-hits homers for the ninth time in his career – only one player in the American League had done it before, and only once.

May 6, 1963: Mickey goes 3-for-3 with a walk, a run, 3 rbi, a sacrifice fly and a bazooka shot home run to the upper deck in left-field to beat the Tigers 10-3 at Tiger Stadium in Detroit.

May 6, 1964: Mickey goes 3-for-8 with a walk, 2 runs, 5 rbi and his first two homers of the year, one in each game of a doubleheader split against the Senators at DC Stadium in Washington.

May 6, 1968: Mickey passes Ted Williams for fourth in the all-time career home runs with #522, a two-run shot into the lower deck in right off Indians’ lefty Sam McDowell in a 3-2 loss in NY. McDowell, who breaks the AL record this day for Ks in consecutive games with 30, later says it “was a change-up in which I knew that I had him fooled, yet he hit it out to the opposite field.”

May 6, 1998 (14 Years): WCBS-TV in New York reports that the FBI maintains a 29-page file on Mickey. They say it contains a report that an unidentified blackmailer tried to extort $15,000 from Mickey after he was caught in a “compromising situation” with a married woman,  that he received calls from a known gambler in 1963 and letters threatening to shoot him.

May 7, 1954: Mickey’s sky-high howitzer blast over the 402-foot sign in left soars over 425 feet, past the double rows of box seats, and leads the Bombers to a 2-0 win over the Philadelphia Athletics at Yankee Stadium.

May 7, 1955: Mickey launches a towering solo home run in the eighth deep to dead center-field in Fenway Park to put the Yankees ahead for good as the Bombers beat the Red Sox 9-6.

May 7, 1998 (14 Years): The FBI confirms that it kept a 29-page file on Mickey. 24 pages concern a blackmail attempt and letters threatening to shoot him. Five pages are their response to a 1969 White House request that Mickey’s name be checked to see if it turned up in other files.  Says the FBI, “By no stretch of the imagination was Mickey Mantle ever the subject of an FBI investigation.”

May 8, 1956: Mickey, despite a painful muscle spasm in his left thigh and fouling a ball off his right big toe in batting practice, still manages to knock a homer into Yankee Stadium’s lower right-field seats for a 4-3 win. Mickey’s dinger came off Indians’ right-hander Early Wynn, Mickey’s favorite pitcher for career home runs. Wynn gave up 13 to The Mick, the most of any pitcher.

May 8, 1957: Mickey belts a 440-foot three-run home run to deepest center-field in Cleveland's cavernous Municipal Stadium, adding to his total of career home runs hit off Early Wynn, but the Yankees lose 10-4.

May 8, 1964: Despite tornado warnings and stormy skies, Mickey rips a homer through the winds over the right-field fence at Cleveland’s cavernous Municipal Stadium as the Yankees crush the Indians 10-3.

May 9, 1953: Mickey catapults a tremendous home run off the light-tower above the net in left-field and is later robbed of a homer when Jimmy Piersall makes a leaping, back-hand catch above the wall in deep center near the 420-foot sign as the Bombers beat Boston 6-4 at Fenway Park.

May 9, 1958: Mickey hits the first of three inside-the-park home runs in less than a month, a 450-ft drive into the monuments in center-field at Yankee Stadium. The Mick turns on the after-burners and flies around the bases for an inside-the-park home run. He goes 3-for-5, scoring 2 runs and driving home an rbi, and steals third as part of a double steal as the Bombers beat the Senators 9-5 in NY. This one is against the Senators at Yankee Stadium.

May 9, 1964: Mickey hits his 12th and final career homer off left-handed pitcher Pedro Ramos (his second favorite pitcher for hitting home runs) as the Bronx Bombers beat the Indians 6-2 at Municipal Stadium in Cleveland.

May 9, 1966: Slowed by major shoulder surgery in the off-season, Mickey finally hits his first homer of the year in the 23rd game of the season. It’s the latest he’s homered in any year of his career, but it comes at a good time as it enables the Bombers nip the Minnesota Twins 3-2 at Metropolitan Stadium in Minneapolis.

May 10, 1959: In a doubleheader sweep over the Senators at Yankee Stadium, in the first game Mickey smacks a 410-foot homer into the left-field bullpen and scores two runs. In the second game he singles and scores the winning run in the bottom of the tenth.

May 10, 1965: Mickey goes 3-for-4 with a run, 2 rbi, a long homer to right and a double. The Mick’s double comes with two out in the ninth, a long, hard hit ball that caroms high off the left-center-field wall, missing being a homer by two feet. Mickey's pinch runner is stranded at second and the Yankees lose 3-2 at Fenway Park. It is pitcher Jim Lonborg’s first big league win.

May 11, 1963: Mickey goes 2-for-4 with a walk, 3 runs, 3 rbi and a homer off Milt Pappas in a 13-1 massacre of the Orioles at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore. Roger Maris homers too, the first time M&M homered in the same game this season.

May 11, 1965: After Mickey hurt his hands hitting a hard sinker off the end of his bat, pitcher Arnie Earley sees Mickey set-up in the back of the batter’s box. On a 3-2 pitch Earley fires another hard sinker well outside. Rather than walk, Mickey reaches out and smashes it 430-feet into the seats beyond the Red Sox bullpen in right-center-field and the Yankees win 5-3 at Fenway.

May 12, 1957: Mickey belts a game-winning homer deep into the right-field seats with two out in the eighth inning to lead the Yankees to a 4-3 win over the Orioles at Municipal Stadium in Baltimore.

May 12, 1959: Mickey hits a tremendous drive all the way to the 457-foot sign in left-center-field at Yankee Stadium then races around the bases for an inside-the-park homer, but the Bombers lose 7-6 to the Indians in NY.

May 12, 1962: Mickey crushes a 450-foot ninth inning blast into the bullpen in right-field to help seal a 9-6 victory over the Tribe at Municipal Stadium in Cleveland.

May 13, 1951: Mickey’s first right-handed major league home run is overshadowed by the Philadelphia Athletics sweep of a doubleheader from the Yankees at Shibe Park. With a runner on third Mickey popped out trying to bunt to end the first game. In the second game he made a rookie running mistake and missed touching second base. Game two was called after 8 innings due to a curfew.

May 13, 1955: Mickey has the only three-homer game in his career and first switch-hit homer game – one righty and two lefty – goes 4-for-4 and drives in all five runs to beat the Detroit Tigers in New York. All three homers are hit to the right-centerfield bleachers. Each is well over 400 feet.

May 13, 1960: Mickey, batting second for one of the few times in his career, bashes a tremendous opposite-field homer over the 31-foot high wall in right-field, completely out of Griffith Stadium – a rare feat for a right-handed hitter - and the Yankees beat the Senators 7-3 in Washington.

May 14, 1966: Mickey mauls a monster mash of a homer - over 500 feet - that clears the outfield fence in deepest right-center-field and continues rocketing to the base of a second, outer fence - something never before accomplished - but the Athletics go on to win 4-2 in Kansas City.

May 14, 1967: On a two out full count Mickey smokes Orioles’ pitcher Stu Miller’s “pitcher’s pitch” (low & away) deep into the lower seats in right for career homer #500. It's the difference in the Bombers' 7-6 win at Yankee Stadium. Only the 6th player ever to hit 500 career homers, Yankees’ 3rd base coach Frank Crosetti breaks tradition by shaking The Mick’s hand as he rounds 3rd.

May 15, 1957: While celebrating Billy Martin’s birthday, Mickey, Billy, Yogi Berra and Hank Bauer are involved in a brawl at the Copacabana nightclub. When the players ask a drunk bowling team to stop yelling racial slurs at Sammy Davis during his performance, they challenge the Yankees to a fight in the cloak room. The highly publicized incident gives GM George Weiss an excuse to trade Billy to Kansas City. One of the bowlers sues Hank Bauer for $1,000,000. The judge throws out the case.

May 16, 1951: Mickey hits his first major league home run at Yankee Stadium.

May 20, 1958: Mickey hits the second of three inside-the-park home runs in less than a month. This one is against the White Sox at Comiskey Park.

MAY 21

May 21, 1963: Mickey goes 2-for-4, scoring 2 runs with 5 rbi. Both of his hits are home runs to right (one goes into the lower seats, the other soars into the bullpen) to help the Yanks beat the Kansas City A's 7-4 at Yankee Stadium in NY.Diagram of Mickey Mantle's "hardest ball I ever hit!" at Yankee Stadium on May 22, 1962.

MAY 22

May 22, 1962: Mickey hits what he calls "the hardest ball I ever hit" at Yankee Stadium off Bill Fischer of the Kansas City A's. The ball hits the façade inches from the top and bounces back to the infield. It wins the game in the bottom of the tenth inning. (The diagram in photo on right shows the location where Mickey's home run off Bill Fischer hit the façade at Yankee Stadium.)

MAY 23

May 23, 1959: Mickey breaks a personal slump and a team slump with a great game by going 3-for-3 with 2 walks, 3 runs scored, an rbi double in the first followed by a steal of third - when the catcher's throw gets away Mickey races home to score, plus a hefty home run in the fifth belted deep over the barrier in right to give the Yankees a 13-5 win at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore.

MAY 24

May 24, 1956: Mickey has a great day, going 5-for-5 with a long home run into the stands in right in the second inning, plus a walk, 3 runs, and 3 rbi as the Yankees pound Detroit 11-4 at Tiger Stadium. Mickey's performance raises his average to .421, with 17 homers and 39 rbi - the best in the majors, and speculation about Mickey winning the Triple Crown begins!

MAY 25

May 25, 1954: Mickey goes 3-for-4 with a walk, 2 runs, 1 rbi, uses his blazing speed to beat-out two infield singles, and then in the eighth inning catapults a homer well over Griffith Stadium’s 31-foot high wall in right-field to help the Yankees beat the Senators 9-3 in Washington.

May 25, 1957: Mickey goes 2-for-4 with a run and 2 rbi, then in the fifth inning picks on home run favorite Pedro Ramos again by hitting another homer off him, a sharp drive into the lower seats in right-field, as the Yankees beat the Senators 8-1 at Yankee Stadium.

May 25, 1966: Mickey has his first two-homer game since Aug. 12, 1964. He goes 3-for-3 with 2 walks, 3 runs, 5 rbi and 2 homers. He hits one homer into the back of the bullpen in right-field, and the other homer he slices to the opposite-field stands in left, helping the Yankees knock the halos off the Angels 11-6 at Yankee Stadium.

MAY 26

May 26, 1957: Mickey’s towering “eye-opening” homer disappears through a runway opening in the top tier in right, bringing the Yankees back to even from a 6-0 deficit, but the Senators manage to eke out a 9-6 win anyway in the first game of a twin-bill split with Washington at Yankee Stadium.

May 26, 1963: This game against the Senators is a tense pitcher’s duel until the 6th inning when Mickey kites an opposite-field homer that sails into the lower deck in right-field, giving the Yankees a 2-1 lead. That opens the floodgates and the Bombers go on to win 7-1 at Yankee Stadium.

MAY 27

May 27, 1959: Mickey wins this game with his speed rather than his bat. He stretches a line single into a double, steals a base and gets 3 walks. After Mickey walks in the 8th Bosox hurler Murray Wall, mindful of his speed, tries a half-dozen pick-off attempts. When he finally pitches to Moose Skowron it’s a gopher ball. Moose parks it in the right-field seats for a 3-2 win in NY.

MAY 28

May 28, 1960: Mickey breaks a scoreless tie (and an 0-for-20 slump) in the 6th inning with a lead-off opposite-field homer that travels over 400 feet into the bleachers in right to lead the Yankees to a 5-1 win over the Senators at Yankee Stadium. New right-fielder Roger Maris – traded for in the off-season - also homers, the first time the “M&M Boys” both homer in the same game.

MAY 29

May 29, 1960: Mickey, batting right-handed, lifts an opposite-field drive into the bleachers in right-field for a home run to start a three-run rally in the sixth inning, leading the Yankees to a 6-4 win over the Senators at Yankee Stadium. It’s his third righty homer of the year, and all have been hit to the opposite field.

MAY 30

May 30, 1956: In a Memorial Day doubleheader at Yankee Stadium Mickey launches his first façade shot off Pedro Ramos in game 1. It misses going out by 18 inches and reporters estimate it would’ve gone at least 600 feet! In game 2 he clouts a 450-footer off Camilo Pascual that goes half-way up the bleachers in right to lead the Yankees to a twinbill sweep over the Senators. (The façade home run hit the façade a little to the right of the home run shown in the "hardest ball" photo diagram just above this entry.)

May 30, 1961: The Yankees turn on the power and hit 7 homers. Mickey & Roger Maris hit two each - two back-to-back and each of the four over 400 feet - as NY clobbers the Bosox 12-3 at Fenway Park.

May 30, 1965: Mickey, playing left-field, goes 2-for-4 and homers in the fourth for the first run as the Yankees beat the Chisox 3-1 at Comiskey Park.

May 30, 1968: In his finest game as a first-baseman, Mickey has his fourth and last 5-hit game and third 5-for-5 game, with 2 homers, a double, 2 singles, 3 runs and 5 rbi to beat the Senators 13-4 in game 1 of a twinbill sweep in NY.

MAY 31

May 31, 1954: Though his 11-game hitting streak ends in game 1, Mickey goes 3-for-3 with a run, 2 rbi & a triple in the nightcap to give the Yanks a twinbill split with the Senators in NY. Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie is in attendance.

May 31, 1960: The NY Times reports Mickey’s face and jaw are bruised by fans running on the field, clawing and grabbing him after the Memorial Day twinbill. Stadium security is beefed up due to the incident. Mickey later says “I learned to throw the ball one way, my cap the other way, and then to run like hell for the clubhouse.”

May 31, 1956: Arthur Daley devotes his NY Times column primarily to tape measure homers at Yankee Stadium due to Mickey’s tremendous homer off the façade on May 30.

May 31, 1961: Mickey hits the key blow, a 400+-foot home run to center-field with Roger Maris on base (Maris also homered earlier) to give the Yankees a 7-6 win over Boston at Yankee Stadium.

May 31, 1964: Sitting out due to a leg injury that prevents him from running, Mickey is called on to pinch-hit. Batting right-handed, he hits a shot that scores two-runs. It would normally have been a double but The Mick has to jog to first and stop there because of his injury. Thus far in the season his average batting right-handed is .559, with 18 rbi in 34 at-bats!

May 31, 1965: Mickey singles, steals second base, races to third on a ground ball, then scores on a passed ball. His daring base running makes the difference, giving the Yankees a doubleheader split with Detroit at Yankee Stadium.

JUNE:

JUNE 1

June 1, 1960: Mickey whacks a 400+-foot homer to center his first at-bat for the Yankees’ only hit. He also makes a great catch, turning his back to the ball and racing to the fence in center for a spectacular backhanded grab, but it’s not enough as the Bombers lose 4-1 to the Birds in Baltimore. 

June 1, 1966: Mickey’s homer into the center-field bullpen in the ninth spoils White Sox pitcher Juan Pizarro’s shutout, but the Bombers lose to the Pale Hose 6-2 at Comiskey Park in Chicago.

JUNE 2

June 2, 1957: Mickey’s two-run first inning homer off Orioles’ righty Hal Brown flies high into the top deck in right, followed by solo shots from Berra and Howard - all the Yankees need to ground the Birds 4-0 at Yankee Stadium in NY.

June 2, 1958: Mickey’s solo clout in the first is enough for Whitey Ford, who ties the AL record with six consecutive strikeouts, but Hank Bauer hammers two homers also as the Pale Hose wash out at Yankee Stadium 3-0.

JUNE 3

June 3, 1955: Mickey crushes a solo homer that caroms off Comiskey Park’s upper deck in left-center to tie the game 2-2 in the sixth, but Chicago holds off the Yankees and ekes out a 3-2 win.

June 3, 1958: Mickey lines a 3-run shot into the seats in right in the first to get the Yankees rolling (Mickey works Chisox pitchers for 3 walks and scores 3 runs, too) as the Pale Hose get hosed 13-0 at Yankee Stadium.

June 3, 1959: With the game tied 5-5 in the ninth inning, Mickey swings at a pitch but doesn’t get it all. But even a little can be a lot when it’s The Mick. He lofts a fly ball to right-center that looks like a fly out. To everyone’s surprise – except Mickey’s – it keeps going and going, eventually carrying over the fence for a game-winning homer and a 6-5 Yankees’ win in Detroit.

JUNE 4

June 4, 1953: Mickey belts 420-foot homer into the Yankees’ bullpen in the third inning, then singles to ignite a four-run rally in the tenth inning that leads to a 9-5 win at Comiskey Park in the Windy City.

June 4, 1958: Mickey’s 478-foot blast to row 19 of the bleachers in left-center is only the  eighth ball ever hit there. The Mick has now homered to all of the seating areas at Yankee Stadium, but the Chisox take this one 7-2.

June 4, 1963: With Orioles’ ace Steve Barber in command in the second, Mickey lunges at a full-count pitch. Though fooled on the pitch, The Mick’s off-balance poke demonstrates his incredible strength. The resulting lazy fly ball to the opposite-field just keeps on carrying, sailing 360 feet to the bleachers in left. It’s the Yankees’ only run in a 3-1 loss at Memorial Stadium in Charm City.

JUNE 5

June 5, 1953: Mickey extends his hitting streak to 10 games by racking up a single and belting a homer into the seats in right-center as the Bombers beat the Browns 5-0 at Busch Stadium in Mound City.

Diagram of Mickey's blast out of Comiskey Park on June 5, 1955.June 5, 1955: Mickey launches a tape measure rocket that leaves the field between the 352-foot and 367-foot signs, flying over the Comiskey Park roof and sailing into a parking lot over 550 feet away as the Yankees split a twinbill with the Pale Hose in Chicago. (A diagram of Mickey's homer on 6/5/55 homer out of Comiskey Park in Chicago is in the photo on the right.)

June 5, 1956: A’s manager Lou Boudreau uses the “Mantle Shift” when Mickey is batting lefty with no one on base. Complicated, it moves fielders to the right to give KC five outfielders. Mickey tries bunting twice but strikes out. In the eighth with no shift Mickey belts a 2-run homer but the Yankees lose 7-3. Says GM George Weiss of the shift, “It got him thinking, and that’s bad.”

June 5, 1957: Mickey goes 3-for-5, scores two runs and slams a long 450-foot homer to right as the Yankees scalp the Indians 13-3 at Municipal Stadium in Cleveland.

June 5, 1958: Mickey hits his third inside-the-park home run in less than a month – half his career total - when he wallops a shot to the 461-foot sign in center and blazes around the bases as the Yankees split a twinbill with Chicago’s Pale Hose at Yankee Stadium in NY.

June 5, 1960: Mickey goes 2-for-3 with a single and a home run in the first game to help the Bombers win 5-4 and sweep a doubleheader from the Bosox at Yankee Stadium in NY. 

June 5, 1961: Mickey’s 420-foot 2-run homer to the bleachers in right helps the Bombers sweep a twinbill from the Twins at Yankee Stadium in NY. It’s his 15th homer of the season and career home run #335. His homers are almost perfectly divided: The Mick’s hit 168 homers on the road and 167 at home.

June 5, 1963: It's a black day for The Mick. Chasing a fly ball in Baltimore he crashes into the center-field railing, breaks a bone in his left foot and tears a cartilage in his knee. He's carried off the field on a stretcher. As a result he plays in only 65 games this season.

June 5, 1965: Mickey homers in the sixth, then makes a fine running catch to rob a bid for extra-bases to help Mel Stottlemyre, who pitches the full ten innings and hits his first major league home run. Elston Howard, newly back from elbow surgery, rips a single to left to drive in the winning run in the tenth as the Bombers nip the Pale Hose 4-3 at Yankee Stadium.

June 5, 1967: Mickey goes after a “waste pitch” from Senators’ reliever Darold Knowles – a sinker thrown ankle-high and about a foot outside - and golfs a drive that slices towards the opposite-field, continuing to carry until it sails into the lower right-field seats for a home run, as the Yankees beat the Senators 4-2 at Yankee Stadium.

JUNE 6

June 6, 1954: Mickey goes 2-for-4 with 2 runs, 2 rbi and a homer into the right-field stands as the Bombers beat the first-year Orioles (the former St. Louis Browns) 5-2 at Yankee Stadium.

June 6, 1955: Mickey hits a 450-foot homer that clears the 440 foot sign and lands in the stands in dead center at Tiger Stadium - the first homer ever hit there! It leads the Bombers to a 7-5 win over the Tigers in Detroit.

June 6, 1957: Mickey goes 2-for-3 with 3 walks, 3 runs, 4 rbi and a 450-foot homer that clears the fence and one-hops off a cinder track into the never-before-reached seats in center-field for a 14-5 win over the Tribe in Cleveland.

June 6, 1958: Mickey goes 3-for-3 with a walk, 3 runs, 4 rbi and 2 homers – one caroms off the railing of the upper deck in left – as the Bombers nip the Cleveland Indians 6-5 at Yankee Stadium.

JUNE 7

June 7, 1957: Mickey silences a large crowd in Detroit when he launches a prodigious blast in the first inning that ricochets off the facing of the right-field roof to give the Yankees a temporary 1-0 lead at Tiger Stadium, but the Tigers eventually prevail over the Bombers 6-3.

June 8, 1969: "Mickey Mantle Day" - the third day honoring Mickey - is held at Yankee Stadium. 70,000 people attend. (Mickey is overcome with emotion on "Mickey Mantle Day" in photo on the right.)

JUNE 8

June 8, 1958: Mickey blasts his seventh homer in seven days but today it's not enough and the Bombers still lose a doubleheader to the Cleveland Indians at Yankee Stadium.

June 8, 1960: Mickey is red hot with his fourth consecutive 2-hit game (minus a 3 walks in 3 at-bats game). He’s 2-for-4 with 2 runs, 3 rbi and 2 homers into the seats in right - #9 & #10 on the year, one his first back-to-back homer with Roger Maris - in a 6-0 win vs. Chicago. Maris benefits from Mickey batting behind him. He already has 16 homers, his total for last year.

June 8, 1969: Approximately 70,000 people turn out for “Mickey Mantle Day” at Yankee Stadium to honor Mickey and his 18-year career with the Yankees. NY Mayor John Lindsay passes a resolution proclaiming June 8, 1969 as Mickey Mantle Day in New York. It’s the third day held at Yankee Stadium to honor Mickey, the most of any player! (A fourth MM Day will be held after his death.)

JUNE 9

June 9, 1959: Mickey goes 2-for-5 with 2 walks, 2 runs, 2 rbi, 2 stolen bases and a home run hit deep to right-field to lead the Yankees to a 9-8 win in 13 innings over the Kansas City A’s at Yankee Stadium.

June 9, 1960: Mickey pounds a right-handed home run into the opposite-field bullpen in right as the Chicago Pale Hose fade to the Yankees 5-2 at Yankee Stadium.

June 9, 1961: Mickey gets on base four times in two official at-bats, going 2-for-2 with 2 walks, 2 runs and 4 rbi. He walks in the second, moves to second on an out and scores on a single, lifts a 3-run homer to left in the third (#16), and singles home Kubek from second in the fifth in a game delayed by rain four times. Maris also homers (#18) as the Yankees beat KC 8-6 in NY.

JUNE 10

June 10, 1954: Mickey goes 2-for-5 with 2 runs and 2 rbi, and slams a back-to-back homer with Dr. Bobby Brown deep into the seats in right to beat the Tigers 9-5 at Yankee Stadium in NY.

June 10, 1957: Mickey goes 2-for-3 with a walk, a run and 1 rbi with a homer to right in the sixth but the Tigers still beat the Yankees 9-4 at Briggs Stadium in Detroit.

June 10, 1960: Mickey’s powerful homer in the eighth breaks a 3-3 tie to beat the Cleveland Indians 4-3 in NY. His fourth homer in six games and sixth in June, he also makes a great running catch in deep center-field in Yankee Stadium to rob the Tribe of a triple.

June 10, 1961: Mickey hammers a triple and belts season homer #17 to lead the Yankees to a 5-3 win over the Kansas City A's at Yankee Stadium. The Mick goes 2-for-3 with a walk, three runs and one rbi. Whitey Ford pitches and gets the complete game win to go 9-2 on the season. It's the Yankees' seventh win in eight games of their 11-games-in-8-days home stand.

JUNE 11

June 11, 1953: Mickey rockets a shot off the roof of the top deck in right-center-field at Briggs Stadium – only Ted Williams had ever cleared the roof, but the Detroit Free Press says Mickey's would’ve gone further but for the roof. It gives The Mick a 16-game hitting streak and the Yankees their 14th win in a row as they beat the Tigers 6-3 in Detroit.

June 11, 1957: Mickey crushes a homer high into the top deck in right at Comiskey Park, then doubles and scores the winning run in a 3-2 win over the Pale Hose in Chicago.

June 11, 1959: Mickey’s solo homer plus home runs hit by Marv Throneberry and Norm Siebern aren’t enough as the Kansas City A’s beat the Yankees 9-5 at Yankee Stadium in NY.

June 11, 1961: In game one of a twinbill vs. the Los Angeles Angels in NY, Mickey robs the Angels of extra bases with an incredible, backhand grab in left-center & Maris robs them of two more homers with great catches. In game two Mickey belts a long three-run homer & Maris hits two to give the Bombers the sweep.

June 11, 1964: After two weeks off due to injury, Mickey comes back into the line-up and catapults two long home runs deep to right – one onto the runway and the other into the seats – to lead the Yankees to an 8-4 win over the Bosox at Fenway Park.  

June 11, 1968: Mickey hammers a two-run homer and Tom Tresh hits a three-run dinger but it's not enough as the Pale Hose from the Windy City win 9-5 at Yankee Stadium. 

JUNE 12

June 12, 1957: In a game with several rain delays on a stormy Chicago night, Mickey goes 4-for-5, scoring two runs and driving in four. He switch-hits two homers - one a two-run shot into the bullpen in center in the ninth, but it’s not enough. The Yanks lose to the Pale Hose 7-6 at Comiskey. Says pitcher Jack Harshman about Mickey, “They ought to create a new league for that guy.”

JUNE 13

June 13, 1958: Mickey smashes a towering, cloud-duster of a home run that carries deep into the seats in left to tie the game against the Tigers 1-1 in NY, but the Bengals go on to win 4-2 at Yankee Stadium.

June 13, 1959: Mickey’s first inning solo home run clubbed into the front rows of seats in right-field starts things off for the Yankees, who go on to beat the Detroit Tigers 6-4 at Yankee Stadium. It’s win #1,000 for the Yankees under their legendary manager, Casey Stengel.

June 13, 1964: In a crucial series against the first place White Sox at Yankee Stadium, Mickey comes up big, going 3-for-3 with a walk, a run, and 2 rbi. He singles in a run in the first, then rips a solo homer to right in the fourth for season #11, career #430 (215 on the road and 215 at home!). The Yankees go on to beat the Chisox 6-3, their third win over Chicago in 24 hours!

JUNE 14

June 14, 1956: Mickey goes 2-for-3 with a walk, 2 runs scored and 2 rbi. He doubles home a run in the third, then in the seventh he breaks a short home run drought by blasting his first homer in eight games. He drills it 20 rows deep into the bleachers in right for season homer #22, leading the Yankees to a 5-1 win over the Chisox at Yankee Stadium.

June 14, 1957: Mickey does his part (1-for-3, 3 walks, 2 runs, 2 rbi, solo homer) in the Yanks’ 10-1 rout of the A’s at Municipal Stadium. Mickey’s pal Tom Sturdivant pitches a complete game to go 5-3 on the year. Talk of his pitchers throwing “bean balls” leads Casey Stengel to say, “Now that Mantle wears a protective helmet, pitchers walk him by throwing at his legs and feet.”

JUNE 15

June 15, 1952: Mickey hits his first left-handed homer of the year, a three-run shot, to lift the Bronx Bombers to a twinbill sweep of the Tribe before 69,468 fans in Cleveland.

June 15, 1956: In the first inning Mickey slices a 2-run opposite-field homer over the fence in left, putting him five games ahead of Babe Ruth’s 1927 record 60-homer pace as the Yankees beat the Indians 6-2 in Cleveland.

June 15, 1957: Mickey’s best friend, Billy Martin, is traded by Yankees' General Manager George Weiss to the Kansas City Athletics in the wake of the Copacabana nightclub incident on May 15. Weiss thinks Martin is a bad influence on The Mick and was looking for a reason to trade him. Mickey is devastated by the loss of his best pal. (Mickey and Billy are in the photo on the right.)

June 15, 1961: Mickey slams a homer in the seventh inning to tie the game at one all, then the Yankees go on to win 3-2 in the eleventh inning on John Blanchard’s pinch-hit rbi single at Municipal Stadium in Cleveland.

June 15, 1967: After missing five games due to a pulled thigh muscle, Mickey returns to the lineup and rockets a 450-foot drive high into the upper deck in left-center-field at DC Stadium in Washington to lead the Bombers to a 2-0 win over the Senators.

JUNE 16

June 16, 1956: Trailing 1-0 in the third, Mickey wallops a long 2-run homer well over the left-field fence to give NY the lead and help beat the Indians 3-1 in Cleveland.

June 16, 1962: A big moment for Mickey. Benched by a severe muscle tear, he's asked to pinch-hit in the eighth with two men on. He’s determined to hit a homer since he can't run due to his injury. He misses a fastball for a strike, then smashes a dramatic three-run homer to give NY a 9-7 lead in Cleveland. The fans cheer him like one of their own as he limps around the bases.

June 16, 1968: Angels’ pitcher Clyde Wright struck out Mickey on a curve-ball last season, so he thought he’d try it again. Mickey is waiting for it. He belts it 450 feet for a two-run homer and a 4-3 Yankees’ win over Anaheim in Los Angeles.

JUNE 17

June 17, 1952: Mickey booms a cannon shot into the upper deck in left-center in Detroit, the first one ever hit there. It’s one of his earliest long distance homers.

June 17, 1955: Mickey swats a homer ten rows deep into the upper deck in right-field with two-out in the eighth  inning to tie the Chisox 1-1 at Yankee Stadium in NY.

June 17, 1959: On a 50° Bronx night Mickey smashes a three-run homer halfway up the third deck in right, just missing the façade, in a 7-3 win vs. the Pale Hose. The Chicago papers report that it would’ve gone 480 feet if unobstructed.

June 17, 1960: The Yankees mock the new $300,000 exploding scoreboard at Comiskey Park (it sets off fireworks after a Chisox homer) by waving sparklers after homers by Clete Boyer in the second and Mickey in the eighth. Mickey and Casey Stengel lead the dugout celebration and Yogi Berra leads the bullpen. The first game of a key 4-game series, the Yanks win 4-2 and sweep the series.

June 17, 1961: With two on and two out In the ninth, Mickey launches a spectacular homer into the third deck in right-field at Tiger Stadium. Elston Howard follows with a solo homer but it’s not enough and the Yanks lose to the Tigers 12-10 in Detroit.

June 17, 1964: Mickey called Bosox reliever Dick Radatz, “the toughest pitcher I ever faced.” In the bottom of the eighth Mickey finally gets a Radatz pitch he can hit. He jumps on it and skies it to right. At first he thinks he’s flied out. But the ball has plenty of carry, finally landing in the bleachers in right. Crossing the plate Mickey says to Radatz, “I finally got you!”

JUNE 18

June 18, 1953: Mickey rips a two-run home run into the seats in left in the first game of a twinbill sweep vs. the St. Louis Browns at Yankee Stadium. The Bombers won both games by shutouts.

June 18, 1956: Batting left-handed with two on in the eighth inning and the score tied at 4-4, Mickey crushes a game winning homer that clears the right-field roof in Detroit - only Ted Williams had done it before. Detroit Manager Bucky Harris said, "That would bring tears to the eyes of a rocking chair."

June 18, 1959: Mickey singles in the fifth for career hit #1,300, then celebrates with a walk-off homer in the bottom of the tenth as the Yankees complete a three-game sweep of the Chisox at Yankee Stadium in NY.

June 18, 1960: Mickey clouts a long home run to center-field at Comiskey Park and goes 2-for-4 with 2 walks, 2 runs and 2 rbi to help the Yankees beat the Pale Hose 12-5 in Chicago.

June 18, 1965: Mickey comes up in the first with the bases loaded thinking sacrifice fly. Mickey reaches for an away pitch, hits a high fly and thinks, mission accomplished. But Mickey is so strong that even his sacrifice flies have plenty of carry. It keeps going and going, finally touching down in the seats in left for a grand slam! It leads the Yanks over the Twins 10-2 in NY.

JUNE 19

June 19, 1951: On Mickey’s first two-homer day he belts one in each game of a twinbill split with the Chisox at Yankee Stadium. He’s 4-for-8 with a walk, 3 runs, 5 rbi & a stolen base.

June 19, 1955: In the second game of a key doubleheader with the first place Chicago White Sox at Yankee Stadium, Mickey blasts career homer #100 20 rows deep into the seats in right to help the Bronx Bombers sweep into first.

JUNE 20

June 20, 1954: On a day when an electrical storm threatens to cancel their twinbill, Mickey turns on the power and lights up Game One, going 2-for-3 with 3 walks, 4 runs and 2 rbi. He whacks a long two-run homer and gets on base five times! The Bombers hose the Pale Hose 16-6 at Comiskey Park. Game Two is called due to darkness in the eighth inning with the Chisox ahead 7-3.

June 20, 1956: Mickey launches two titanic “bazooka blasts” (per Tigers’ pitcher Paul Foytack) off Billy Hoeft into Tiger Stadium’s never-reached center-field top deck in the Yankees’ 7-4 win. In the ninth, 20 Tigers’ fans hop the fence in center, mob Mickey, shake his hand and salaam. Afterward he leads his competitors in homers (27 vs. 17), rbi (64 vs. 50) & avg. (.380 vs. .370).

JUNE 21

June 21, 1953: Mickey hits for a twinbill cycle: in Game One he belts a single, triple and 425-foot opposite-way right-handed homer hit deep into the Bombers’ bullpen in right, and a double in Game Two for a split with the Detroit Tigers at Yankee Stadium in NY.

June 21, 1955: Mickey makes history in a 6-2 win vs. the Kansas City Athletics at Yankee Stadium, crushing an explosive 486-foot drive that clears the 30-foot hitters’ screen in center-field and lands in bleachers’ row 9. It’s the first ball ever hit there!

June 21, 1960: Mickey goes 3-for-5, scoring 3 runs with 3 rbi and a stolen base. He clobbers two homers off “Yankee Killer” Frank Lary – first an opposite-way shot deep into the stands in right, then another into the seats in left – to help Whitey Ford toss a 6-0 shutout against the Tigers at Briggs Stadium in Detroit.

June 21, 1961: Mickey wallops two mammoth shots in a 5-3 win in Kansas City that combine for a distance of over a thousand feet! His first blast clears the wall in right-center and hits the top of the scoreboard! His second tape measure shot clears the fence in right, sails over a grassy knoll and an outer fence, then bounces on Brooklyn Avenue adjacent to Municipal Stadium!

June 21, 1964: Mickey blasts a long right-handed home run deep into the top deck in left-field at Comiskey Park in Chicago as the Yankees win a pair of pitchers’ duels, 2-0 and - in the 17th inning - 2-1, to sweep a doubleheader and move into first place. The wins give the Yankees nine wins in 11 days against the Pale Hose for a 10-0 record against the White Sox on the year.

JUNE 22

June 22, 1952: Mickey smacks a game-tying solo homer (2-for-3 with a walk, a run scored, rbi and a stolen base) but the Bombers lose to the Pale Hose 2-1 at Comiskey Park in Chicago.

June 22, 1955: Mickey clouts a home run well over 400 feet deep into the bleachers in right to lead the Bronx Bombers to a 6-1 win over the Kansas City Athletics at Yankee Stadium in NY.

June 22, 1957: In the first inning The Mick lines a 2-run shot to the opposite field in right to help the Yankees win 6-5 in 13 innings against the Chisox at Yankee Stadium in NY.

June 22, 1959: Mickey’s big day - a solo homer, a three-run shot hit far over the fence in center-field, a two-run triple and six runs-batted-in - leads the Yankees to a 10-6 win over the Athletics at Kansas City’s Municipal Stadium.

June 22, 1965: In the first game of a doubleheader at Yankee Stadium in NY an injured, hurting Mickey belts a 475-foot homer to the rarely reached seats in left-center, then has to limp around the bases. In the second game he tears a hamstring just feet from home plate trying to score from second on a single.

June 22, 1968: In Minnesota Mickey’s 380-foot homer to left-center-field gives the Yankees a temporary 1-0 lead, but the Twins come back and pick-up the win, 5-2 at Metropolitan Stadium in Minneapolis.

JUNE 23

June 23, 1953: Mickey goes 2-for-4 with a walk, run, and rbi; and knocks a homer into the lower right-field seats but the White Sox prevail nevertheless as the Bombers lose 11-3 to the Chicago nine at Yankee Stadium in NY.

June 23, 1957: Mickey hits one of the longest homers in Stadium history off the façade in right, landing in the far edge of the top deck near where the grandstand meets the bullpen. He also makes a spectacular leaping catch off the top of the wall in deep right-center to rob Larry Doby of a homer in a twinbill split with Chicago in NY. He leads the AL with a .392 avg and 21 homers.

June 23, 1959: Mickey launches a two-run homer over the barrier in left-field – his third homer of the series – in the Yankees 10-2 win over the Kansas City A’s at Municipal Stadium.

June 23, 1962: Mickey doesn’t start Game One due to a rain-soaked field but later pinch-hits a single and scores. In Game Two he hits a leadoff homer in the ninth and NY splits a twinbill with Detroit at Tiger Stadium.

June 23, 1964: Mickey hammers a long three-run homer into the right-field bleachers in Baltimore to give NY a 7-2 lead but it doesn't hold up as the Orioles please the hometown fans with a come-from-behind 9-7 win at Memorial Stadium.

June 23, 1966: Jim Palmer shuts Mickey down until the eighth inning, when The Mick unloads a monstrous home run deep into the third deck in right-field. Nonetheless the Bombers suffer a 5-2 loss to the Orioles at Yankee Stadium.

JUNE 24

June 24, 1958: Mickey unloads a sweet 420-foot homer deep into the center-field bleachers, setting off a five-run fourth and a 6-2 Yankees’ win over the Pale Hose at Comiskey Park in Chicago.

June 24, 1967: Mickey blasts a tremendous walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth - 440 feet plus - into the bleachers in right-center-field to beat the Detroit Tigers at Yankee Stadium in NY. It’s The Mick’s eighth game-winning hit of the year - seven by home runs!

JUNE 25

June 25, 1956: Mickey beats the “KC Shift,” (conceived by KC manager Lou Boudreau - when Mickey bats lefty he moves his fielders to center & right for extra defense on the right but leaving the left side wide open) with two singles. Batting righty he gets another single, an rbi, scores a run and just misses a homer with a 421-foot triple for a 9-3 win over the A's in Kansas City.

June 25, 1957: Mickey announces the formation of a fund to help fight Hodgkin’s Disease at a gathering and press conference at Toots Shor’s restaurant in New York City.

June 25, 1961: Mickey singles to give him a nine-game hitting streak and hits in 18 of his last 19 games. During that time he bats at a .370 clip, as the Bombers win 8-4 against the Twins at Metropolitan Stadium in Minneapolis.

June 25, 1967: Mickey, playing first-base, participates in a triple play. He also singles, scores, and drives in a run to help beat the Detroit Tigers 3-2 and sweep a three-game series with them at Yankee Stadium.

JUNE 26

June 26, 1954: In a wild game before 46,192 fans at Cleveland's Municipal Stadium, Mickey makes a bad throw to help the Tribe take an early 2-1 lead. But The Mick atones by hitting an rbi double plus a solo home run to give the Yankees a 7-5 lead, and the Bombers go on to win 11-9.

June 26, 1961: Mickey crushes a long home run high over the 412-foot sign in deepest center-field, and John Blanchard pinch-hits one. Then with the score 6-5 Angels in the ninth, two out and Maris and Mantle on, Moose Skowron hits the game-winner 420 feet at Wrigley Field - the Angels’ first year home run mecca - for an 8-6 Yankees' win. The win makes Whitey Ford 13-2 on the year.

JUNE 27

June 27, 1952: Mickey's raps his seventh homer of the season and third lefty homer, this one with Yogi Berra on and one out in the fourth, giving the Yankees all they really need, but he goes on to walk and score a run in the fifth too, as Joe Collins shuts out the Philadelphia Athletics 10-0 at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx.

June 27, 1964: Mickey, batting against Denny McLain, lofts a solo home run that sails high and deep into the seats in right-field to help power the Yankees to a 5-4 win over Detroit's Bengal Cats at Yankee Stadium in NY.

JUNE 28

June 28, 1960: Mickey homers into the left-field stands in the third inning to tie the score 2-2, as the Bronx Bombers go on to a 5-2 win over the Kansas City Athletics at Yankee Stadium.

June 28, 1961: Mickey belts a towering blast over a light tower in left-center-field off Angels’ pitcher Ryne Duren in a 5-3 loss at Wrigley Field in Los Angeles. After the game Duren said he didn’t think  Mickey’s homer was going out at first. Says A’s’ pitcher Art Fowler sarcastically, “It would’ve gone out of an airport!”

June 28, 1962: Mickey hits an opposite-field shot into the bleachers in right-field, back-to-back after Roger Maris’ homer in a 4-2 win over the Twins at Yankee Stadium in NY.

June 28, 1966: Mickey has another career two-homer game, driving in all three Yankees’ runs. He starts with a two-run lefty blast slammed deep into the bleachers in right-center in the first, then slices a lefty opposite-field solo shot in the eighth onto the screen above the Green Monster in left that gets him a standing ovation from Red Sox fans in a 5-3 loss at Fenway Park.

JUNE 29

June 29, 1958: Mickey breaks an 0-for-17 slump (with nine strikeouts) against the Kansas City Athletics by slamming a two-run homer but the Bombers still lose 12-6 at Municipal Stadium in Kansas City.

June 29, 1966: In Boston Mickey has his second two-homer game in a row. He blasts a 3-run shot onto the screen in left-center in the first inning, then hits the middle homer of three back-to-back-to-back homers in the third inning, giving The Mick four rbi and the Bombers’ a 6-5 win at Fenway Park.

June 29, 1968: In a doubleheader split with the Oakland Athletics at Yankee Stadium, Mickey trades homers with Reggie Jackson in Game One – Mickey’s is career home run #529. Then in Game Two he pinch-hits in the eighth inning and hammers a double that lands just in front of the monuments in the field of play in deepest center-field to drive in two runs and win the nightcap 5-4.

JUNE 30

June 30, 1954: Mickey slices an opposite-field homer high into the net above Boston’s Green Monster in left-field, averting a shutout to the Bosox at Fenway Park, 6-1.

June 30, 1960: Mickey’s two-run cannon shot scatters players and coaches as it ricochets around the bullpen in right-field. The Mick's shot is part of a five-homer barrage in the Bronx Bombers’ 10-3 rout of the Kansas City Athletics at Yankee Stadium.

June 30, 1961: Mickey bashes “the hitting showpiece of the game,” a titanic blast that sails over the monuments in center-field, caroming high off the wall by the 461-foot mark and rolling halfway back to second for a stand-up, inside-the-park homer, his sixth and final one. Whitey Ford’s five-hit complete game gem gives him a record eight wins in June, making him 14-2 on the year.

JULY:

JULY 6

July 6, 1953: Mickey slams his first pinch-hit home run, over 500 feet out of Shibe Park in Philadelphia.

JULY 9

July 9, 1955: Mickey has his first five-hit game with a double and five singles.

JULY 10

July 10, 1956: Mickey and Ted Williams hit back-to-back homers in the All-Star Game at Griffith Stadium in Washington. The Mick's homer is hit right-handed off Hall of Fame pitcher Warren Spahn. (In the photo on the left Mickey poses with teammate Yogi Berra - on the left - and Red Sox legend Ted Williams - center - at the All-Star Game in Washington.)

JULY 13

July 13, 1951: After striking out four times in a doubleheader in Boston, Casey Stengel sends Mickey down to the triple-A Kansas City Blues.

Mickey Mantle slams a home run on July 23, 1957 against the White Sox as he hits for the cycle for the first and only time of his career.

JULY 23

July 23, 1957: Mickey hits for the "cycle" (hitting a single, double, triple and home run in the same game) for his first and only time. He goes 4-for-5, scoring two runs and driving in four. His homer flies 465 feet into the right-field bleachers to beat the White Sox 10-6 in New York. (In the photo on the right Mickey slams his home run as part of his "cycle" against the White Sox on July 23, 1957.)

JULY 26

July 26, 1952: Mickey belts his first career grand slam into the upper deck in left-centerfield at Briggs Stadium in Detroit. It's career home run #28.

JULY 28

July 28, 1952: Just two days after hitting his first career grand slam, Mickey hits his second career grand slam, this one at Comiskey Park in Chicago. This one's career home run #29.

 

AUGUST:

AUGUST 4

August 4, 1968: "Mickey Mantle Banner Day" - the second day honoring Mickey - is held at Yankee Stadium.

AUGUST 5

August 5, 1954: Mickey smashes the famous "Joe Collins" home run, one of two home runs Mickey hit that day, leading the Yankees to a 5-2 win over the Indians in Cleveland. After Joe hit a home run into the upper deck, he challenged Mickey to "go chase that one, big boy." In his next at-bat Mickey clouted a longer home run into the upper deck. (In the photo on the right the red arrow on the left shows the approximate path of Joe Collins' home run at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. The red arrow on the right shows the approximate path of Mickey's home run.)

AUGUST 6

August 6, 1954: Mickey slams his first pinch-hit home run, over 500 feet out of Shibe Park in Philadelphia.

AUGUST 7

August 7, 1953: Mickey hits his first inside-the-park home run as the Yankees beat Chicago 6-1 at Yankee Stadium.

AUGUST 11

August 11, 1954: Mickey has his first two-homer game in a 7-0 win over the Red Sox at Yankee Stadium.

AUGUST 12

August 12, 1964: Mickey crushes a sky-high fly ball to centerfield. Mickey thinks he's flied out. But the ball continues to carry until it finally lands 15 rows deep in Mickey is inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame with teammate and friend Whitey Ford, along with Cool Papa Bell and umpire Jocko Conlan.the centerfield bleachers at Yankee Stadium. Distance: 502 feet. It's only the second home run ever to land in the centerfield "black seats" at Yankee Stadium. The first: Mickey's home run on June 21, 1955.

August 12, 1974: Mickey is inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame with friend and teammate Whitey Ford. (In the photo on the right Mickey poses with fellow Hall of Fame inductees - from left to right - standing: Mickey and close friend Yankees' pitcher Whitey Ford, seated: Cool Papa Bell next to umpire Jocko Conlan.)

AUGUST 10

August 10, 2009: Mickey's wife, Merlyn Mantle, passes away in Dallas at age 77.

AUGUST 13

August 13, 1995: Mickey passes away in Dallas at age 64.

August 13, 1996: "Mickey Mantle Day" - the fourth day honoring Mickey - is held at Yankee Stadium one year after his death.

AUGUST 22

August 22, 1951: Casey Stengel keeps his word and brings Mickey back up to the Yankees from the minor leagues.

SEPTEMBER:

SEPTEMBER 1

September 1, 1963: Mickey hits the famous "hangover" home run in Baltimore after unexpectedly being taken off the disabled list a day early and being called upon to pinch-hit.

Diagram of two of Mickey Mantle's tape-measure homers in Detroit: the upper arrow shows his blast on 9-17-58 that hit the second story of a building across the street, the lower arrow shows his 643-foot home run hit into the Brooks Lumber Yard across Trumbull Avenue.

SEPTEMBER 10

September 10, 1961: Mickey wallops a tremendous home run over the rightfield roof at Tiger Stadium in Detroit. The ball crosses Trumbull Avenue and lands in the Brooks Lumber Yard. It was measured years later and found to have gone 643 feet! The Guinness Book of World Records lists it as the longest home run ever measured (after the fact) in baseball history. (In the photo on the left the red arrow shows the path of Mickey's historic 643-foot home run hit into Brooks Lumber Yard across the street from Tiger Stadium in Detroit.)

SEPTEMBER 17

September 17, 1952: Mickey, batting right-handed, clouts a prodigious opposite-field home run off the upper deck football press box in right-centerfield, just below the roof, to beat the Tigers in Detroit. The ball bounced back onto the field almost to second base. At the time Mickey called it, "the hardest ball I ever hit." That, of course, would change as Mickey racked up more tape-measure blasts later in his career.

Mickey Mantle crushesa mammoth home run off Jim Bunning on September 17, 1958 at Tiger Stadium in Detroit. It went over the rightfield roof and struck the second story of a building on the opposite side of Trumbull Ave.September 17, 1958: Mickey batting left-handed against Tigers' pitcher Jim Bunning, belts a mammoth homer down the rightfield line that goes over the roof and out of Briggs Stadium (later renamed Tiger Stadium) in Detroit. The ball crosses adjacent Trumbull Avenue and hits the second story of a building across from the Stadium. It's recovered by taxi driver Bob Gilbert. (In the photo on the right Mickey crushes his mammoth home run that went over the right-field roof of Briggs Stadium in Detroit and struck the second story of a building on the opposite side of Trumbull Ave. In the photo of Tiger Stadium on the right above, the shorter upper red arrow shows the path of this home run and where it struck the building across the street from the Stadium. It's above Brooks Lumber Yard in the photo.)

Mickey Mantle greets Robert F. Kennedy on Mickey Mantle Fan Appreciation Day at Yankee Stadium in New York.

SEPTEMBER 18

September 18, 1965: "Mickey Mantle Fan Appreciation Day" - the first day honoring Mickey - is held at Yankee Stadium with Robert F. Kennedy in attendance. Mickey plays his 2000th game for the Yankees. Among the gifts Mickey receives are two quarter horses, and more than $32,000 is raised in Mickey's name for research in the fight against Hodgkin's Disease. (In the photo on the left Mickey greets Bobby Kennedy on Mickey Mantle Fan Appreciation Day at Yankee Stadium in New York, September 18, 1958. Kennedy was a Senator for New York at the time.)

Mickey Mantle blasts home run #54 in 1961 to help pal Whitey Ford win his 25th game of the season.

SEPTEMBER 23

September 23, 1961: Mickey - in the starting line-up for the first time in six days due to a severe viral infection - hits a three-run home run into the rightfield bullpen in his first at-bat. It's home run #54 for his career-best season high. The Mick's three-run homer helps pal Whitey Ford win his 25th game of the season, Whitey's career high for wins in a season. (In the photo on the right Mickey blasts home run #54 - his career season high - on September 23, 1961.)

SEPTEMBER 28

September 28, 1968: Mickey plays his last game – number 2,401, the most ever for the Yankees – in Boston. Andy Kosco substitutes for Mickey after his first at bat.

Casey Stengel crowns Mickey Mantle with the Sultan of Swat Award crown at Yankee Stadium in 1956. Mickey holds three bats with his winning numbers written on each one: .353 batting average, 52 home runs and 130 runs-batted-in.

SEPTEMBER 30

September 30, 1956: Mickey beats out Ted Williams in the batting title race on the last day of the season to win baseball's Triple Crown. His numbers: .353 average, 52 home runs, 130 rbi, leading both leagues in each category. He is only the twelfth player in history to win the Triple Crown. Mickey hit the most home runs of any Triple Crown winner, and is the only switch-hitter to win it. (Casey Stengel crowns Mickey with the Sultan of Swat Award crown at Yankee Stadium in 1956 in the photo on the left. Mickey holds three bats with his winning numbers written on each one.)

September, 1949: Mickey wins his first championship with the Yankees Organization as the Independence Miners capture the K-O-M (Kansas-Oklahoma-Missouri) league title.

OCTOBER:

OCTOBER 4

October 4, 1951: Mickey plays his first World Series game against the New York Giants and rookie Willie Mays at Yankee Stadium in New York.

OCTOBER 5

October 4, 1953: Mickey crushes a tremendous first pitch grand slam into the upper deck in left-centerfield as the Yankees beat the Dodgers 11-7 at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn. It's only the fourth grand slam in World Series history. (In the photo on the right Mickey is greeted by Yogi Berra as he crosses the plate after belting his grand slam off Russ "Monk" Meyer in Game 5 of the 1953 World Series.)

A doctor examines Mickey Mantle at Lennox Hill Hospital in New York after Mickey seriously injures his knee in Game 2 of the 1951 World Series against the NY Giants.October 5, 1951: Mickey gets his first World Series hit but is seriously injured when his spikes get caught in a sprinkler head while chasing down a fly ball hit by Willie Mays in Game 2. His right knee is never the same afterward. Mickey's knee injury is the first of many career injuries Mickey suffers. (In the photo on the left Mickey is examined by a doctor at Lennox Hill Hospital in New York after injuring his knee.)

October 5, 1953: The Yankees with their fifth consecutive World Series championship led by Mickey's best pal and World Series MVP Billy Martin, batting .500 with 12 hits  and 8 rbi. Mickey, while batting only .208, has five hits, seven rbi, and wins two games with home runs, one of them a grand slam. It's the only time in history that a team wins five world championships in a row.

OCTOBER 8

October 8, 1956: Don Larsen pitches the only perfect game in World Series history as the Yankees beat the Dodgers 2-0 in game five of the 1956 World Series. Mickey hits a solo Mickey Mantle's spectacular game-saving back-handed catch made in Don Larsen's perfect game in the 1956 World Series. Mickey also homered for the Yankees first run.home run in the fourth inning for the first Yankees' run (the only run they'll need, as it turns out), then makes a spectacular game-saving catch in the fifth inning to rob Gil Hodges of an extra-base hit. Hodges drive would have gone into the upper deck had the game been played at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn, but Mickey's tremendous speed enabled him to make the catch at Yankee Stadium. (Mickey's game-saving catch of Gil Hodges' bid for extra bases in Don Larsen's Perfect Game is shown in the three-panel sequence on the above right.)

OCTOBER 10

October 10, 1951: Mickey wins his first World Series championship as the Yankees beat the Giants in six games. He watches it from his hospital bed at Lennox Hill Hospital in New York, where he is recovering from his knee injury in the World Series five days before.Mickey Mantle crushes the first pitch from Cardinals' pitcher Barney Schultz to win Game 3 of the 1964 World Series. The Mick called his shot in the on-deck circle, predicting a home run to Elston Howard.

October 10, 1964: Mickey crushes the first pitch from Cardinals' relief pitcher Barney Schultz into the third deck at Yankee Stadium for career World Series homer number 16, breaking Babe Ruth's record. It's The Mick's "called shot" - he predicted the homer to Elston Howard in the on-deck circle while Schultz warmed up. Mickey's walk-off home run wins the game for the Yankees in the bottom of the ninth inning. (Mickey's swing for his walk-off home run in Game 3 of the 1964 World Series - his record-breaking World Series home run #16 - hit off knuckleball pitcher Barney Schultz, is shown in the photo on the right.)

OCTOBER 12

October 12, 1955: Mickey and the Yankees open their tour of Hawaii, Japan and the Philippines with a 12-1 win over the Hawaii Red Sox.

October 12, 1960: Mickey and the Yankees win Game 6 of the 1960 World Series against the Pittsburgh Pirates 12-0. Whitey Ford pitches a complete game shutout to tie the Series at 3 games each.

 

October 12, 1964: The St. Louis Cardinals beat Mickey and the Yankees in Game 5 of the 1964 World Series on Tim McCarver's three-run home run in the tenth inning to take a 3 game to 2 lead in the Series. Tom Tresh's two-run home run tied the game for the Yankees in the ninth inning. Bob Gibson strikes out 13 for the Cardinals.

OCTOBER 13

October 13, 1960: In one of the most dramatic games in World Series history, the Pittsburgh Pirates beat Mickey and the Yankees in Game 7 of the 1960 World Series 10-9 on Bill Mazeroski's walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth inning in Pittsburgh to win the Series 4 games to 3. The Yankees tied the game in the top of the ninth due to Mickey's remarkably intuitive base-running. With the score 9-8 and one out, Mickey on first and Gil McDougald on third, Yogi Berra grounded to Pirates' first-baseman Rocky Bridges in what appeared to be a game-ending double-play ball. Bridges stepped on first to force Berra but Mantle, instead of running to second, distracted Bridges from throwing home to get McDougald, then dove around him - avoiding the tag - sliding safely back into first. It allowed the tying run to score and took the game to the bottom of the ninth. It's the sort of play that perhaps 1 in 1000 players might make. The Yankees outscored Pittsburgh 55-27 in the Series. Mickey was so upset by losing the Series that he cried on the plane trip home. He called it, "The greatest disappointment of my career."

OCTOBER 14

October 14, 1964: Mickey adds to his World Series home run record by smashing Series home run #17 as the Yankees beat the Cardinals 8-3 in Game 6 of the 1964 World Series in St. Louis, tying the Series at 3 games each. Mickey and Roger Maris hit back-to-back homers in the sixth and Joe Pepitone added a grand-slam in the eighth inning to seal the win. (In the photo on the right Mickey and Roger Maris celebrate in the locker room after hitting back-to-back homers to beat the Cardinals in Game 6 of the 1964 World Series.)

OCTOBER 15

October 15, 1962: The San Francisco Giants come back to tie Mickey and the Yankees in the 1962 World Series at 3 games each.

October 15, 1964: Mickey belts his 18th and final World Series home run - a three-run homer - to set the all-time World Series home run record, but the Cardinals win the Series 4 games to 3. It's Bob Gibson's second complete game win of the Series. Bobby Richardson sets an all-time World Series record with 13 hits. It is Mickey's last World Series game.

Bobby Richardson spears Willie McCovey's line drive bid for a base hit with two on and two out in the bottom of the ninth innning in Game 7 of the 1962 World Series. The Yankees won the game 1-0, and the Series 4 games to 3.

OCTOBER 16

October 16, 1962: Mickey wins his seventh and final World Series championship on Willie McCovey's dramatic line drive out with two on and two out in the ninth inning of game seven. (In the photo on the right Yankees' second baseman Bobby Richardson spears Willie McCovey's line drive with two on and two out in the bottom of the ninth inning in Game 7 of the 1962 World Series. It ended the game and the Yankees held on to win 1-0. They won the Series 4 games to 3.)

OCTOBER 18

October 18, 1951: Commissioner Ford Frick announces that a Yankees’ winning World Series share is $6,446.09. Mickey buys his father a house with his share. The NY Giants’ losing share is a record $4,951. In contrast, a winning share for the World Champion San Francisco Giants in 2010 was $317,631.29. The Yankees share is equivalent to $56,165.73 in 2011 after adjusting for inflation.

OCTOBER 20

October 20, 1931: Mickey is born during the Great Depression in an unpainted, two-room house in Spavinaw, Oklahoma. Spavinaw is a tiny town in northwestern Oklahoma near Commerce.

OCTOBER 21

October 21, 1953: Mickey is named to the Associated Press’ Major League All-Star team, compiled with American and National League players.

OCTOBER 22

October 22, 1953: Fan Ed Lynch of Buffalo receives a check from Mickey that pays off  a 5¢ bet he made with his aunt, a Dodger fan. Lynch had a premonition in the 3rd inning of Game 5 that Mickey would hit his grand slam. His aunt wrote on the check that it couldn’t be cashed, “without the signature of Mickey Mantle.” Mickey signed it and wrote, “What about the four times I struck out?”

OCTOBER 23

Oct. 23, 1952: Due to pressure on the draft board from right-wing extremists, Mickey is given an unprecedented third draft physical at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. Already classified “4F” due to his osteomyelitis, he is also exempt as the sole supporter of his family. A decision is due in two days. Afterward he told doctors he was in a hurry to get back to his off-season construction job.

Oct. 23, 1957: Mickey is a unanimous choice for the UPI All-Star team. Fellow Yankees Yogi Berra and Gil McDougald are also chosen.

OCTOBER 24

Oct. 24, 1960: Commissioner Ford Frick announces the Yankees’ World Series share is $5,214.64 ea. The Pirates winning share is $8, 417.94.

Oct. 24, 1962: Commissioner Ford Frick announces the Yankees’ winning World Series share is $9,882.74. The Giants losing share is $7,291.49. Adjusted for inflation it’s equivalent to $86,110.97 in 2011. In contrast, the Giants’ winning share last year was $317,631.29.

OCTOBER 25

Oct. 25, 1961: Mickey Mantle is named Major League slugging leader for 1961 with a percentage of .687 by UPI. He also was named slugging leader in 1955 and 1956.

OCTOBER 26

Oct. 26, 1955: Mickey pounds two doubles to lead the Yankees to an 11-0 win on their exhibition tour of Japan. They are 3-0 with one tie.

OCTOBER 28

Oct. 28, 1964: Baseball Commissioner Ford Frick announces that the Yankees’ losing World Series share is $5,309.29 ea. The Cardinals’ winning share is $8,622.19 only $747.84 more than the Yankees’ record losing share of $7,847.32 in 1963. Curiously, taxes on admissions exceeded the amounts received by either the contending teams, the clubs in the World Series or either league.

OCTOBER 29

Oct. 29, 1953: Surgery to remove cartilage from Mickey’s right knee by Drs. Bertram & Yancey is set for Monday, Nov. 5  in Springfield, MO.

OCTOBER 30

Oct. 30, 1956: Mickey is chosen by Baseball Writers to the AP Major League All-Star team. The team is made-up of players from both leagues. Yogi Berra from the Yankees is also selected. The outfielders are Mickey, Hank Aaron and Ted Williams.

OCTOBER 31

Oct. 31, 1957: The Yankees refund fines assessed against Mickey and five other players for their involvement in the Copacabana incident, a brawl during a celebration of Billy Martin’s birthday in May at the nightclub in NY. A $250,000 lawsuit against Hank Bauer was thrown out. Billy Martin was traded to Kansas City largely in reaction to the incident by GM George Weiss.

NOVEMBER:

NOVEMBER 1

Nov. 1, 1955: Mickey, homesick on the Yankees exhibition tour of Japan, is advised by Billy Martin to claim his wife is due to have a baby at any moment and that he needs to race home. The team relents and allows Mickey to fly back to Oklahoma. While his wife Merlyn is expecting, she is months away from the birth of their son David. When the club finds out Mickey is fined.

NOVEMBER 2

Nov. 2, 1953: Mickey undergoes right knee surgery in Springfield, MO. Doctors find effects from his 1951 Series and July 1953 injuries.  Both ends of his semilunar cartilage are damaged so it is removed.

Nov. 2, 1955: A homesick Mickey arrives home in Oklahoma from the Yankees’ exhibition tour in Japan after telling the Yankees’ brass that his wife was expecting a baby any day

Nov. 2, 1955: Mickey is named to the AP All-Star team along with teammates Whitey Ford and Yogi Berra. Berra is 1st in votes, Mickey and Nellie Fox of the White Sox tie for 2nd. The AP team is compiled with the best players from both the American and National leagues.

NOVEMBER 3

Nov. 3, 1952: The Army classifies Mickey physically unfit (4-F) for military service for the third time. Previously rejected due to his history of osteomyelitis (bone infection), the Surgeon General says he is now disqualified due to a chronic knee defect from the injury he suffered in the 1951 World Series. Unfortunately Mickey continues to receive hate mail and death threats.

NOVEMBER 5

Nov. 5, 1966: In its in-house newsletter, NY Yankees’ owner CBS announces that new Yankees’ head Michael Burke has begun a search for the next “Mickey Mantle.”

NOVEMBER 8

Nov. 8, 1956: The NY Times reports that Mickey will demand a big salary increase for 1957 after winning the Triple Crown and MVP in 1956. Mickey made $32,500 in 1956 (equivalent to $272,000 in 2011). He tells the Times he is dissatisfied he only hit .353. He thinks he should have hit .380. “I tried to hit too many home runs late in the season and went after a lot of bad pitches.”

DECEMBER:

Mickey Mantle's 1957 MVP Award

DECEMBER 2

Dec. 2, 1957: The Baseball Writers Association of America announces that Mickey has won his second straight Most Valuable Player Award. Mickey hit .365 with 34 home runs and 94 rbi, and led the league in runs with 121 and walks with 146. The previous year, 1956, Mickey was unanimously selected MVP after winning the Triple Crown with a .353 average, 52 homers and 130 rbi. (Mickey's 1957 MVP Award plaque is shown on the right.)

DECEMBER 4

Dec. 4, 1968: Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays both pledge their support for a holdout if the owners don’t revamp players’ pensions.

DECEMBER 5

Dec. 5, 1957: Mickey's third son Billy is born. He's named after Mickey's best friend, player and manager Billy Martin.

Mickey Mantle and Teresa Brewer recording the song "I Love Mickey" in the recording studio.

DECEMBER 6

Dec 6, 1956: Mickey records the song, “I Love Mickey” with Theresa Brewer. It breaks into the BILLBOARD Top 100, peaking at #87. (Mickey and Teresa Brewer recording "I Love Mickey" in the recording studio in the photo on the left.)

DECEMBER 10

Dec. 10, 1961: Mickey signs his contract with the Yankees for the 1962 season. His salary? $82,000, the equivalent of $603,000 in 2011 after adjusting for inflation.

DECEMBER 11

Dec. 11, 1951: Joe DiMaggio announces his retirement from baseball, leaving Mickey to play center-field full-time for the Yankees.

Dec. 11, 1959: The Yankees trade Hank Bauer, Don Larsen, Norm Siebern & Marv Throneberry to the KC A's for Joe DeMaestri, Kent Hadley and... Roger Maris!

DECEMBER 13

Dec. 13, 1956: After winning the Triple Crown and leading both leagues in batting, home runs and rbi, Mickey signs his 1957 contract with the Yankees for $60,000. The $27,500 raise is the largest raise of his career. Adjusted for inflation, $60,000 is the equivalent of $469,000 in 2010.

Mickey Mantle poses with high-school sweetheart Merlyn Johnson. Mickey and Merlyn married on December 23, 1951.

DECEMBER 16

Dec. 16, 1973: Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris head the list of first year eligible players on the Baseball Hall of Fame ballot. Whitey Ford also appears.

DECEMBER 23

Dec. 23, 1951: Mickey marries his high school sweetheart, Merlyn Johnson. (Mickey and Merlyn are shown in the photo on the right.)

DECEMBER 25

Dec. 25, 1989: Mickey's best friend and teammate, Billy Martin, dies in a motor vehicle accident.

DECEMBER 26

Dec. 26, 1955: Mickey's second son, David, is born.

© Copyright 1998- 2010 - Lewis Early

 

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We highly recommend Mickey's Videography Program:
Mickey Mantle: The American Dream Comes To Life
®
The Deluxe Lost Stories Edition
(2 hours)
Now on DVD with nearly 200 on-screen pages of bonus features!
"The best baseball program ever made!" - USA Today, The Washington Post, The NY Daily News, Newsday, The Los Angeles Times, The TODAY Show, ESPN, Larry King Live...


Click Here for Details!

We also recommend the second Videography Program
in the Comes To Life® Program Series:

John Madden: The American Dream
Comes To Life® (1 hour)
Now on DVD! The original program in its entirety - not one frame has been omitted.
"60 delightful minutes - A must!" - USA Today, The Washington Post, The Oakland Tribune, The San Francisco Chronicle, The Sacramento Bee, The TODAY Show, ESPN...


Click Here for Details!

 

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