4/07 in Yankee History
2008: Mike Mussina makes his second start of the year, and allows just two hits in six innings of a 6-1 victory over the Tampa (no longer Devil) Rays. Bobby Abreu leads the offense, with a two-run bomb in the 1st along with a triple, a
single, a walk, three runs scored, and two RBI. Nursing a sore hand
after being hit by a pitch a few days earlier, Derek Jeter leaves the game in the 3rd, with first baseman Wilson Betemit moving over to short and leaving his position to Morgan Ensberg. New Jersey Devils players Zach Parise and Travis Zajac advance the home-games-left counter down from 75 to 74 in the fifth inning.
http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/2008/VNYA02008.htm
2002: Alfonso Soriano, Derek Jeter and Jorge Posada all double
in a three-run first inning in a 7-2 win over the Devil Rays. Both Jeter and Soriano add two singles apiece, and the Captain collects 3 RBI, varrying Roger Clemens to the win. The Bombers jump on future Yankee Tanyon Sturtze for an early barrage. The only earned Devil Rays run is driven in by catcher John Flaherty, who signed with TB over the winter after a two-year stint as Posada’s backup in New York. This is also the day that the Yankee players are presented with their 2001 American League Championship rings.
http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/2002/B04070NYA2002.htm
1977: Before a crowd of 43‚785 in the season opener at the Stadium‚
Reggie Jackson makes his first start as a Yankee.
Catfish Hunter holds the Brewers to five hits‚ three by Von Joshua‚ as
the Yankees win 3-0.
Von’s last hit strikes Catfish in the instep and
the hurler leaves after 7 innings of work. Sparky Lyle pitches the last
two innings. Jim Wynn has two hits for New York‚ including a homer in
his first Yankee at-bat. Reggie Jackson‚ in his first start as a
Yankee‚ also has two hits and two runs‚ one on a suicide squeeze by
Willie Randolph. With the recent addition of Bucky Dent to the lineup‚
the Yankees start an all-star at every position (Catfish Hunter‚
Thurman Munson‚ Chris Chambliss‚ Willie Randolph‚ Dent‚ Graig Nettles‚
Roy White‚ Mickey Rivers‚ Reggie Jackson and Jimmy Wynn). They will
duplicate this on Opening Day 2005.
http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1977/B04070NYA1977.htm
1970: At the Stadium‚ Mel Stottlemyre makes his 4th straight Opening
Day start‚ joining Lefty Gomez and Jack Chesbro as the only Yankee
pitchers to take a first day bow that many times. The Red Sox counter with newly acquired Gary Peters‚
who allowed no earned runs in 32 spring training innings. Boston jump
out to a 4-0 lead by the fifth inning‚ but the Yanks score 3 in the 6th
to chase Peters. That’s all the scoring, though, as Boston win‚ 4-3.
(In
the ‘How times have changed’ department, the game took 2:19 to play,
with 21,379 in attendance… Can you imagine a game against the Red Sox
taking less than 3 hours to play, or the Stadium less than half full on
opening day?…)
http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1970/B04070NYA1970.htm
1969: The Yankees begin their year on the road, as the guests of the Washington Senators for the RFK Stadium home opener, The visitors spoil the party, handing the Nats and starter Camilo Pascual an 8-4 loss. Jerry Kenney and Bobby Murcer hirt back-to-back homers off Pascual in the 3rd, and Mel Stottlemyre goes the distance for the Yanks.
http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1969/B04070WS21969.htm
1874: John Ganzel, who hit the first home run in the history of the Yankee franchise (as a first baseman for the Highlanders on the 16th of May, 1903) is born.
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