NICKNAMES OF THE 1970'S: "STICK" GENE MICHAEL

The next nickname card in the long line I’ve posted on this blog over the years is the “Stick” Gene Michael, New York Yankees shortstop during the “lean years” of the late-1960’s and early 1970’s, and future co-architect of the Yankee dynasty teams of the late-1990’s:

Michael came to the Yanks after two partial seasons in the National League: 1966 with the Pittsburgh Pirates and 1967 with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
He would remain a constant at Yankee Stadium for the next seven years, playing alongside guys like Bobby Murcer, Roy White, Thurman Munson and Horace Clarke.
After the 1974 season he would go on to play one year for the Detroit Tigers before retiring as a player and eventually moving into coaching, managing, and front office positions.
He is often credited alongside Bob Watson as one of the architects of the Yankee World Champion teams of the late-90’s, stressing youth, smart drafting and development, leading to players like Bernie Williams, Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera and Andy Pettitte.
A true baseball “lifer” and Yankee!

MISSING IN ACTION- 1976 GENE MICHAEL: "1976 PROJECT"

Up next in my ongoing "1976 Project" is a card of former Yankee infielder Gene Michael, this time as a Detroit Tiger player.

Check it out:

"Stick" played seven of his ten seasons for the Yankees, and eventually moved to managerial and front office capacities for George Steinbrenner later in his life.

But in 1975 he found himself in Detroit, and played in 56 games, good for 158 plate appearances while manning the infield, mainly shortstop.

I think that warrants a card for the guy in the 1976 set, don't you?

Consistent to the end, Michael hit .214 in Motown, with 15 runs scored, two doubles, three homers and 13 runs batted in among his 31 hits.

A light-hitting midfielder, Michael was one of those players (like Horace Clarke, Mel Stottlemyre, etc) that played for the Yankees during their "dark years" between 1965 and 1975. 

But later on he found much more success as a general manager for the Yankees, often being credited as one of the architects of the Yankees dynasty teams of the late-1990's/early-00's, thanks in large part to owner George Steinbrenner being suspended from any MLB activities for a few years, freeing Michael from any "meddling" by "King George".

Hey, whatever it takes!

Look for a "Stick" nickname card for Michael in the not-so-distant future!