They might have called it the Bronx Zoo, but hidden in the fancy nickname was a heck of a team. The Yankees had gone 11 years without a first-place finish but that all changed in Billy Martin’s first full season as manager in 1976. Chalk up 97 wins and a division title as the balanced Bombers (they topped the league in runs per game and ERA) made it all the way to the Series.
They’d fall there to Cincinnati, but all that did was set the stage for two of the most dramatic finishes in baseball history. In the ’77 Series, the Yankees stormed past the Dodgers behind Reggie Jackson’s triumphant masterpiece in the clinching Game 6 – three pitches, three homers. Afterwards, even LA’s Steve Garvey admitted to secretly applauding Jackson’s feat in his glove.
That kind of drama was nothing compared to what went down in 1978. In July the Yankees trailed the first-place Red Sox by 14 games. By Oct. 2, 1978, they had topped them in a one-game playoff for the AL East and turned Bucky Dent into a cult hero. You shouldn’t have to ask why.
The Yankees took the Series again that season, then won another division in 1980 and a pennant in 1981. That was the end of the dynasty, one low on championships (two) but high on drama.
1978
THE REGULARS
POS. … PLAYER … HR … RBI … AVG.
C … Thurman Munson … 6 … 71 … .297
1B … Chris Chambliss … 12 … 90 … .274
2B … Willie Randolph … 3 … 42 … .279
SS … Bucky Dent … 5 … 40 … .243
3B … Graig Nettles … 27 … 93 … .276
OF … Mickey Rivers … 11 … 48 … .265
OF … Reggie Jackson … 27 … 97 … .274
OF … Lou Piniella … 6 … 69 … .314
DH … Cliff Johnson … 6 … 19 … .184
TOP STARTERS
PITCHER … W-L … ERA
Ron Guidry … 25 … 3 … 1.74
Ed Figueroa … 20 … 9 … 2.99
Catfish Hunter … 12 … 6 … 3.58
Dick Tidrow … 7 … 11 … 3.84
Jim Beattie … 6 … 9 … 3.73
TOP RELIEVERS
PITCHER … W … L … ERA … SV
Goose Gossage … 10 … 11 … 27 … 2.01
Sparky Lyle … 9 … 3 … 9 … 3.47
Ken Clay … 3 … 4 … 0 … 4.28
AL STATISTICAL RANKINGS
CATEGORY … NO. … RANK
RUNS … 735 … 4th
HITS … 1,489 … 4th
HR … 125 … 6th
RBI … 693 … 4th
AVG. … .267 … 4th
OBP … .328 … 7th
ERA … 3.18 … 1st
WINS … 100 … 1st
SAVES … 36 … 1st
Ks … 817 … 2nd
AL EAST STANDINGS
TEAM … W … L … PCT. … GB
Yankees100 … 63 … .613 …
Boston … 99 … 64 … .607 … 1
Milwaukee … 93 … 69 … .574 … 6½
Baltimore … 90 … 71 … .559 … 9
Detroit … 86 … 76 … .531 … 13½
Cleveland … 69 … 90 … .434 … 29
Toronto … 59 … 102 … .366 … 40