Eight seasons in the Minnesota farm system paid off for Gary Ward when he was named
AL Rookie of the Year by Baseball Digest in 1981 and followed as Twins Player of the Year and Most Improved Player in 1982. In 1983 he led all outfielders with 24 assists, the most for an AL outfielder since 1944.
Ward started slowly with Texas in 1984 but came on to set a club record with seven triples and a personal high with 97 runs scored. He led the Rangers in batting in 1985 and 1986, then signed with the Yankees as a free agent. A clutch hitter who was best when hitting to all fields, Ward had a great first half in 1987 but slumped badly upon trying to pull everything. He never reclaimed his spray-to-all-fields mentality, failing to crack the .260 mark the rest of his career.
(ME/GL)
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FROM THE BASEBALL CHRONOLOGY
»September 18, 1980:
At Milwaukee, the Twins lose 9–8 to the Brewers, wasting Gary Ward's hitting for the cycle.
»December 24, 1986: Two free agents sign, OF Gary Ward with the New York Yankees, while Reggie Jackson signs with the Oakland A's. With Jackson's signing, the Angels receive the A's 2nd round draft pick.
»June 2, 1990: Seattle's Randy Johnson, at six feet 10 inches the tallest pitcher in ML history, pitches the first Mariners' no-hitter, a 2–0 win over the Tigers. He walks six and strikes out 8. Fifty of the pitches are clocked at 94 MPH or above as the only threat is a Gary Ward deep flyball to CF.
»October 3, 1990:
Cecil Fielder becomes the 11th player ever to hit 50 home runs when he belts his 50th and 51st in the Tigers' season finale, a 10–3 win over New York. He is the first AL player since 1961 to reach the 50 mark. Kevin Maas and Gary Ward also homer as Jack Morris (15–18) is the winner. Maas ends the season with 21 homers and 41 RBI, the only player, till Barry Bonds in 2001 to not double his homer total in RBI.
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