"The Rookie Phenom" - 32 x 62 in. - Oil on Linen - 2008 - SOLD

NEW YORK –Yankee manager Casey Stengel claimed that the young Mickey Mantle could “hit balls over buildings” and “run as fast as Ty Cobb”. The young prodigy was merely 5’10” and around 165 pounds, but had the arms and shoulders of a blacksmith. During Stengel’s pre-season rookie camp in Phoenix, Arizona, veterans alike watched in awe of the long arching drives Mantle smashed, that would later return to earth with a bang against the distant outfield bleachers. Even more surprising to these veteran coaches was that Mantle was the same kid who had been easily winning the footraces that opened up the camp that spring.

With a sensational run against the teams of the Pacific Coast League, Mantle, who hit .402 in exhibition play, was touted as the most exciting newcomer since Jackie Robinson. The Yankee brass concluded that Mantle was to be the next Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, and Joe DiMaggio all rolled up into one package. Upon coming up with the team as a rookie that April, he was given jersey #6, following right behind DiMaggio’s #5, Gehrig’s #4, and Ruth’s #3. The wunderkind started off the 1951 season with impressive power from both sides of the plate, hitting home runs at both Comiskey Park and Sportsman’s Park in early May that traveled in excess of 420 feet. However, as veteran pitchers learned his weaknesses – especially his inability to lay off of high fastballs - his batting average slowly began to dip with increasing strike outs. Under the enormous weight of the swelling pressure from the New York fans and media, the ‘Commerce Comet’ was in the midst of a frustrating slump by June. He was sent down to the Kansas City Blues farm team by Manager Stengel on July 15 of that same year, in the hopes that he would find himself under less pressure to succeed.

In Kansas City, Mantle started slowly, getting only three hits in his first 22 at-bats. Though his hitting would improve to .345 after a long road trip, the phenom felt like he could do no right. The draft-board had ordered another physical - as he had received a 4-F classification in the late 1940s due to osteomyelitis, a rare bone disease - and his concentration and confidence troubles only seemed to deepen. With catcalls of ‘coward’ and ‘bust’ ringing in his ears, the 19-year old kid considered quitting baseball altogether. It took a stern hardline reaction from Mantle’s father Mutt to inspire the kid to pick up both his courage and his bat. Mickey would hit 2 more home runs the next game, and for the 39 games that followed, Kansas City saw Mantle bat in 50 runs and end his Blues stint batting .361. When Mantle returned to the Yankees for good in late August, it was Pete Sheehy, the longtime clubhouse attendant of the Yankees, who gave the young player #7 to wear, in the hopes that it would relieve the pressure of being the next Yankee legend in line.

Upon his return, the Bombers had picked up steam coming into the second half of the season. Though Boston had tied the White Sox for the American League lead on July 20, pushing the Yankees and Indians one and a half games back, the turning point of the year came with Casey’s decision to bench the slumping Jerry Coleman, and move Gil McDougald from third to second, while inserting Bobby Brown at third. This sparked a 17-3 streak for New York, and catapulted them past Boston and Chicago. During their run, the rookie McDougald was leading the team in hitting, and Yogi Berra had picked up the slack of a slumping Joe DiMaggio. Hank Bauer and Gene Woodling were also contributing tremendously. Mantle had begun to come to life as well, hitting five more home runs coming into mid-September, one of which was a monstrous shot into the left-centerfield bleachers at Municipal Stadium in Cleveland.

By the end of the summer though, the Yanks were jockeying for first place with the Indians. The last Stadium series between the two American League powerhouses found the Bombers dominating the Tribe during regular season, winning 13 out of 20 games played. It was not until this pictured game at the Stadium on September 16 that the Yanks pulled away for good.

In front of 68,760 screaming fans, Cleveland’s pitcher Bob Feller is shown firing a 2-2 pitch to the Yankee freshman, Mantle, in the first frame of the afternoon. Catcher Jim Hegan is poised behind the plate, as is umpire Bill Summers. Also visible that warm afternoon is Indian shortstop Ray Boone, third baseman Al Rosen, first basemen Luke Easter, leftfielder Sam Chapman, and centerfielder Larry Doby, with umpire Bill Grieve between first and second. The 19-year old switch-hitting Yankee would fly out on the play.

Facing ‘Rapid Robert’ that afternoon was Allie Reynolds, who at the time was pitching the best baseball of his career. ‘Super Chief’ pitched brilliantly, allowing only 5 hits, two of which came in that same fifth for a run – the only scare of the afternoon for New York. In that same inning, Feller intentionally walked Berra to face the seemingly weary DiMaggio, who had been dropped to the fifth spot by Stengel. Casey’s batting order gamble had worked in the first inning with Berra driving in a run, while DiMaggio feebly grounded out afterwards. However, this time Joe met the challenge with a thunderous wallop that ignited the crowd. The ball was belted into cavernous left-centerfield, scoring Mantle and Berra, and leaving Joe with a triple. Feller and the Indians were finished for the day.

Allie Reynolds picked up his fifteenth win, and the fifth against the Tribe that year. Outscoring the Cleveland Indians 5-1, the Yanks found themselves in first place by .003 percentage points, a lead they would never relinquish. That year, Mantle’s rookie numbers were a respectable .267 batting average, 13 home runs, and 65 RBIs. Though his season was abbreviated by the Kansas City stint, he was an instrumental part in the Yankees capturing their third straight pennant in as many years. Moreover, this first season proved to be only a glimpse of what was to come for this future Hall of Famer, one who would come to be synonymous with the Yankee dynasty and the city of New York for the next 17 years.