1960s Timeline

Feb. 21, 1962 - A member of the American Rocket Society lectured briefly today to the New York Mets on propulsion, life on other planets, and the problems of re-entry. Then he went out and pitched batting practice. The thinking man’s pitcher was Jay Hook, a 6-foot-1-inch righty who has been working on his master’s degree in mechanical engineering and his earned-run average for the past three years. Hook, who graduated from Northwestern University, was plucked from the Reds th

Feb. 18, 1962 - Salary negotiations between Roger Maris and the Yankees took a turn for the worse today. Actually, Maris does not have to sign his contract until a week from today, when the infielders and outfielders report for spring training. And since Roger has been busy with the motion picture “Safe at Home,” in which he is co-starring with Mickey Mantle, General Manager Roy Hamey has not pressed the matter. However, when asked today whether he expected to come to terms t

Feb. 17, 1962 - Casey Stengel made his public debut as an author today. The 71-year-old manager of the New York Mets autographed copies of his book, “Casey at the Bat,” at the Maas Brothers department store in St. Petersburg, Fla. Despite only two hours’ sleep this morning after an uncomfortable plane trip from California, Stengel was alternately folksy, magisterial and heckle-proof as hundreds of residents and tourists shuffled up for signatures, handshakes and 30-second cha

Feb. 16, 1962 - Pitcher Clem Labine (pictured left with Jackie Robinson during the 1956 World Series) became the fifth former Brooklyn Dodger to sign with the New York Mets for the 1962 National League season. Labine, a free agent after his release by the Pittsburgh Pirates at the end of last season, notified George M. Weiss, the Mets president, that he had accepted the contract. Labine, who will join his former Dodger teammates, Gil Hodges, Charlie Neal, Don Zimmer and Roger

Feb. 8, 1962 - The 61 homers Roger Maris hit for the Yankees last season have brought him a lot of glory. They also have brought troubles. For one, Maris and the Yankees front office still haven’t agreed on salary terms. Also, Maris is overweight. Maris revealed today that despite his precautions, he has succumbed to the almost continuous round of dinners and social functions thrust on him since October. “I have gained about 10 pounds over the winter,” said Roger, who arrived

Feb. 7, 1962 - The New York Mets have acquired such former Brooklyn Dodger favorites as Gil Hodges, Charlie Neal, Billy Loes, and Roger Craig. The Yankees, on the other hand, are raising their own Brooklyn-breds. The world champions have three Brooklyn boys in their advanced camp in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. They are Joe Pepitone, Ron Solomini, and Louis Romanucci. Pepitone is a first baseman-outfielder and Solomini an outfielder. Romanucci is a right-handed pitcher. Pepitone has

Feb. 5, 1962 - Roberto Clemente (left), the National League batting champion, today signed his 1962 contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates. His salary was estimated at $50,000. “We reached an agreement with no trouble,” said Joe L. Brown (right), the Pirate general manager. “Obviously, Roberto felt it was a fair offer because he signed readily.” Clemente had a batting average of .351 last season and replaced a teammate, Dick Groat, as the National League’s top hitter. Clemente

Jan. 27, 1962 - Bill Skowron, the regular first baseman for the Yankees since 1954, appeared last season in more games, went to bat more times, and walloped more home runs than in any one of his previous seven years in the majors. For these accomplishments, Moose was rewarded today with a $3,000 raise in salary. That increase elevates the solidly built but sometimes brittle infielder to the $35,000 class, even though his 1961 batting average of .267 was the lowest of his big-

Jan. 23, 1962 - Bob Feller and Jackie Robinson were elected today to the Hall of Fame. Feller, who pitched for the Cleveland Indians from 1936 through 1956, was an overwhelming first-ballot choice. Feller joined the Indians at the age of 17 and won 266 games, despite missing 4 years during his prime for World War II service. Robinson, the first Negro to play in the major leagues, was a Brooklyn Dodger infielder from 1947 through 1956. He reached his peak in 1949, when he was

Jan. 22, 1962 - Johnny Podres (far right), who had the best winning percentage among National League pitchers with an 18-5 record for .783 last season, today signed for close to $30,000 with the Los Angeles Dodgers. General Manager E.J. (Buzzie) Bavasi reported that the southpaw received a sizable salary increase for 1962. Podres was said to have received $25,000 last season. “In many respects, 1961 was Podres’ best year even if he didn’t get a chance at some world series her

Jan. 20, 1962 - Don Drysdale’s signed contract for the 1962 season was received today by the Los Angeles Dodgers, who said his salary would be about the same as last season. Drysdale won only 13 games last season and lost 10. He is believed to have received $23,000. The 25-year-old Drysdale struck out 182 batters last year to put him third in the National League behind his teammates, Sandy Koufax and Stan Williams. He has a three-year strikeout total of 670, the best league m

Jan. 20, 1962 - Henry Aaron (pictured) and Eddie Mathews, the one-two punch of the Milwaukee Braves, signed their 1962 contracts today. “I don’t know of any two sluggers who have been as devastating over the years as these two,” said John McHale, president of the Braves. McHale, however, would not say whether the two players received raises. Reportedly, their salaries are between $55,000 and $60,000. Mathews, 30, smashed his 270th home run last season — his 10th campaign in t

Jan. 18, 1962 - Warren Spahn, the highest-salaried pitcher in baseball history, signed for his 18th season with the Braves today. The 40-year-old left-hander is believed to have received a token increase over his 1961 figure of $75,000. Last season, Spahn led the National League with an earned-run average of 3.01, had the most complete games, and the longest winning streak — 10 games — and tied Joey Jay of Cincinnati for the most victories (21) and the most shutouts (4). Spah

Jan. 17, 1962 - The New York Yankees beat the Green Bay Packers by 1 percentage point in a poll to determine the top professional sports team of 1961. The Boston Celtics finished third, with the Cincinnati Reds fourth. The poll of 45 of the nation’s top sports editors and writers was conducted by Ten at the Top, an independent polling organization. The Yankees, who won the American League pennant and then the world series from the Reds, wound up with a percentage of 92. The P

Jan. 16, 1962 - While downstairs at Toots Shor’s the “poor people” were having lunch today, Yogi Berra and Whitey Ford (pictured with Roy Hamey, Yankees general manager), a couple of upper-bracket ballplayers, were upstairs affixing their signatures to contracts assuring them of slightly more than $100,000 in salary between them in 1962. Berra, who hit 22 homers and had 61 runs batted in last year, received a raise of $2,000. The 32-year-old Ford received an increase of $13,0

Jan. 7, 1962 - A better bat, not a livelier ball, helped Roger Maris to his record total of 61 home runs last year. The 27-year-old Yankee outfielder expressed this belief today while attending the Sporting Goods Fair at the Hotel New Yorker. “The bats we use nowadays are comparatively light, with slender handles. You can ‘whip’ them with greater facility and speed. Last year, I met a fellow who had one of the bats used by Ruth, when he was blasting home runs out of American

Jan. 5, 1962 - Stan Musial took a pay cut to about $70,000 today as he signed his 21st contract with the St. Louis Cardinals. “I think this will be my last year as a baseball player, and I’ll try to end up with a good year,” he said. “You can’t go on forever, you know.” Musial, who started at $65 a month in 1938 and worked up to $100,000 in 1958, signed his first Cardinal contract in 1941. But he played only 12 games for the Redbirds that year. He did not play in 1945 because

Dec. 18, 1961 - Ping Bodie (pictured left in 1920), the slugging outfielder who was a former roommate of Babe Ruth (right), died of cancer today in San Francisco. He was 74. In 1910, playing with the San Francisco Seals, he hit the then-fantastic total of 30 home runs, and quickly broke into the big leagues with the White Sox in 1911. Though he was Babe Ruth’s roommate after he became a Yankee, he always denied it. “It isn’t so,” he would say. “I room with his suitcase.” His

Dec. 16, 1961 - The return of National League baseball to New York moved a little closer today when the Mets announced their 1961 home dates. Following the opening of their season in St. Louis on April 10, the Mets, with Casey Stengel as manager, will play the Pirates at the Polo Grounds (pictured) on April 13. New Yorkers haven’t seen the Pirates since they appeared in the 1960 world series against the Yankees. That series marked Stengel’s farewell as manager of the Bombers.

Dec. 15, 1961 - Roger Maris, baseball’s home run king, normally quiet and unemotional, appeared deeply moved today when told he had been named The Associated Press male athlete of the year for 1961. “It’s got to mean a lot when they rank you ahead of every athlete in the world,” he said. “There are some mighty good ones on that list.” The Yankee slugger, who hit 61 homers, was the overwhelming choice in the voting by 253 sportswriters in the annual A.P. poll. Paul Hornung of