Frank Fernández

A strong-armed power hitter who “swung so hard he raised dust clouds,” Frank Fernandez spent parts of six seasons in the major leagues (1967-72) as a backup catcher and occasional outfielder.1 As a Staten Island, New York, high schooler, the multisport athlete competed on New York’s biggest stages. He signed with the Yankees at the height of Roger Maris’s pursuit of Babe Ruth’s single-season home-run record. Recurring military obligations and inability to hit for average limited Fernandez to a platoon role on the mediocre New York teams of the late 1960s. Playing before the dawn of baseball analytics, Fernandez found his above-average talents at drawing walks and producing runs weren’t valued enough to save his job after Thurman Munson arrived.

The pattern repeated itself at Fernandez’s next stop, with the early-1970s Oakland Athletics. The arrival of Gene Tenace – who became even better at drawing walks – made him expendable. He was sent to the Washington Senators as part of a five-player deal that brought future World Series stalwart Darold Knowles.2 After a brief stay in Washington and an even briefer return to Oakland, Fernandez ended his big-league career as a Chicago Cub. Disheartened by the lack of faith shown in his offensive abilities, Fernandez retired with 39 homers and 116 RBIs over 285 games, a 114 OPS+, and a .199 career batting average.3

Frank (no middle name) Fernandez was born on April 16, 1943, in the New York City borough of Richmond, aka Staten Island. He was the first child of Frank and Connie Fernandez, natives of Spain who emigrated to the United States with their families at the ages of 2 and 12 respectively.4 A longshoreman when young Frank was born, Frank Sr. spent several years as a stateside artilleryman during World War II and afterward.5 Upon leaving the service he worked various jobs before becoming a city bus driver for 25 years. Connie was a seamstress in Manhattan’s garment district during the war. The couple’s second son, Arthur (Artie), arrived in 1948.

As a youngster, Fernandez was a standout at both basketball and baseball. An elementary school hoops all-star, he played for one youth baseball team that reached the 1955 NYC Police Athletic League city championship and another that won a Staten Island league crown in 1956.6 As a 14-year-old he caught for a winning Catholic Youth Organization baseball team that had future major-league pitcher Larry Bearnarth at shortstop.7 Later that year, Fernandez faced Bearnarth on the basketball court as a member of the Curtis High School varsity, a team that won the Staten Island Public School Athletic League (PSAL) title.8 In the March 1958 PSAL citywide playoffs at Madison Square Garden, Fernandez went scoreless as Curtis lost to a team from the borough of Queens.9 Returning to the Garden two years later, Fernandez contributed 8 points as the Warriors were drubbed by Brooklyn’s Boys High, a team featuring future Basketball Hall of Famer Connie Hawkins.10 A “fine rebounder and shooter,” Fernandez was the high scorer for a Staten Island high-school all-star team in a battle with Bronx All-Stars in March 1960.11

Fernandez also competed at several revered New York ballparks while in his teens. Two months after his first Garden visit, he was behind the plate at Ebbets Field, playing for the 1958 PSAL baseball championship.12 He returned to the former home of the Brooklyn Dodgers for the 1959 PSAL finals, going hitless in one of the last competitions held there before it was torn down.13 In between those title tilts, Fernandez hauled in a 52-yard touchdown pass as a wide receiver in  Curtis’s 1958 Thanksgiving Day clash with rival New Dorp High. He also manned the plate for a Kiwanis Club team that won a New York State championship at Abner Doubleday Field in Cooperstown.14

Fernandez led Curtis to its third consecutive PSAL championship berth as a senior in 1960, earning a PSAL All-Scholastic selection at catcher.15  He homered in the season opener and again in the PSAL semifinals, the latter a walk-off in extra innings.16 During the summer, Fernandez performed well enough in a tryout to get invited to the Hearst Sandlot Classic, an annual all-star game held at Yankee Stadium that showcased the nation’s top ballplayers under the age of 19.17 However, he elected to play in an American Legion playoff game in New Hampshire that day instead.18

In the fall of 1960, Fernandez enrolled at Villanova University on a basketball scholarship and started at forward on a freshman team that included future NBA shooting guard Wali Jones.19 After an unremarkable spring catching for the Villanova freshmen baseball team, Fernandez, by then 6-feet-1 and 180 pounds, began receiving offers to turn professional from major-league clubs. He turned down several before reaching agreement with Yankees scout Art Dede. The contract, announced the day after Maris hit his 59th home run of the 1961 season, provided Fernandez with a “sizable bonus” – $25,000 according to The Sporting News.20

Assigned to Greensboro in the Carolina League (Class B) to start the 1962 season, Fernandez homered in his professional debut, the day after he turned 19.21 Later that week, he made several sterling defensive plays in a shutout thrown by 20-year-old Mel Stottlemyre.22 Fernandez ended the month with a game-winning extra-inning three-run homer.23 Even so, hitting only .167 after 13 games, he was sent to Class D Fort Lauderdale.

Prone to letting bad games get to him, Fernandez realized while in Fort Lauderdale that he needed to “[conquer] himself.”24 His attitude improved and he took over as the everyday catcher for the Florida State League pennant winner. He hit .251 in 102 games, with 2 home runs, including a grand slam off Darrell Osteen.25 The league leader in catcher putouts and assists, he also topped the circuit in passed balls (25).26

Promoted to Idaho Falls of the Class A Pioneer League, Fernandez spent the first few months of the 1963 season catching every other day. Wanting more playing time, he persuaded manager Loren Babe to let him play the outfield on days that he didn’t catch. Babe and minor-league batting instructor Wally Moses taught Fernandez how to consistently hit to the opposite field, enabling him to post a career-high .269 batting average with 13 homers. He left both instructors impressed. “Frank has good wrist action, a live bat, an outstanding arm and good power,” said Moses. Babe, who would manage Fernandez several times over the next few years, raved that he had “one of the best arms in the organization … the whole organization, including the [big-league club].” He added, “As an outfielder … no one can run on him.”27 Fernandez was the hitting star of the league’s best-of-three championship playoffs, going 8-for-12 as the Yankees took the crown.28

Promoted to Double-A Columbus in 1964, Fernandez struggled on offense. Hitting only .181 after 96 plate appearances, he was reassigned to Class B Greensboro, where he finished out the season playing for Babe. In the fall, Fernandez played in the Florida East Coast Instructional League, backing up Jake Gibbs, who had finished the 1964 season where Fernandez hoped to soon be – behind the plate at Yankee Stadium.29

Back with Columbus in 1965, Fernandez blossomed as a power hitter under the Confederate Yankees’ recently elevated manager, Babe. He got off to a shaky start, but by the all-star break, he was leading the Southern League in home runs.30 Splitting his time between catching and the outfield, Fernandez finished the season with a team-high 21 homers for the Southern League pennant winners. He hit two of those in a game off Asheville’s Jim Shellenback, and the last three in a contest with the Lynchburg White Sox.31 In August, Fernandez caught part of a seven-inning no-hitter tossed by Rich Beck, the first of several abbreviated no-hitters that he caught during his minor-league career.32

When he first turned pro, Fernandez decided that if he didn’t reach the majors in four years (by 1965), he would quit and move on. Before the 1965 season, he lowered the bar to reaching Triple A. When he failed to achieve that revised goal, Fernandez considered becoming a policeman but didn’t.33 The Yankees organization validated Fernandez’s decision to keep at it by putting him on the major-league 40-man roster and inviting him to spring training. “I realize I’ll never be a .300 hitter or hit near it,” Fernandez admitted, but he was certain he could be a major-league catcher.34 That confidence didn’t keep Fernandez from being awed during his first big-league camp when meeting Mickey Mantle, a player whom he’d idolized since he was 10.35

Fernandez opened the 1966 season as the Yankees’ third-string catcher behind veteran Elston Howard and Gibbs, but manager Ralph Houk never called his number.36 In early May, when rosters had to be reduced from 27 to 25, Fernandez was sent to Triple-A Toledo along with lightly used 19-year-old  Bobby Murcer (then still a shortstop). Before that, Fernandez was approached by eccentric hurler Jim Bouton during an exhibition game at West Point with mischief in mind. Knowing that Fernandez was to catch that day, Bouton asked him to engage batters from the US Army team in “political discussions,” suggesting that Fernandez “take the Viet Cong point of view” as a way to “break their hitters’ concentration.”37

Reunited with Babe in Toledo, Fernandez hit the ground running, delivering a game-ending single in his first game as a Mud Hen.38 On August 26 he hit his career-high 23rd four-bagger, a grand slam that temporarily kept Toledo in the International League playoff hunt.39 That same day in New York, a broken thumb knocked Gibbs out for the rest of season. Asked by a reporter if Fernandez would be brought up, Houk said he couldn’t take him away from Toledo. Why? “He’s doing too well down there” was Houk’s confounding answer.40 The next day, Fernandez broke his right leg in a collision at home plate; like Gibbs, he was done for the year.41 Playing 93 games behind the plate and 29 in the outfield, he topped the team in home runs, slugging, and OPS.42 After the season he was named the IL all-star catcher and voted “best arm among catchers” by IL managers.43

The Yankees’ last-place finish in 1966, their first since 1912, offered Fernandez hope of winning a spot on the 1967 squad, but he never got the chance. He was inducted into the US Army in late January and sent to Fort Jackson (South Carolina) for a six-month hitch.44 Discharged after four months, he was optioned to the Triple-A Syracuse Chiefs.45 A month later, Fernandez caught a seven-inning perfect game thrown by Stan Bahnsen in a doubleheader with the Buffalo Bisons. Bahnsen gave his batterymate credit, pointing out that he didn’t shake off Fernandez once.46

In August New York traded away 39-year-old Howard, who had been losing playing time to Gibbs. This created a roster opening but Fernandez wasn’t available to fill it – days earlier he had begun two weeks of Army Reserve training.47 The Yankees traded for veteran backstop Bob Tillman to meet the immediate need, then promoted Fernandez when Syracuse’s season ended.

Fernandez made his major-league debut on September 12, 1967, starting behind the plate at Yankee Stadium in the nightcap of a doubleheader with the California Angels. He singled in his first at-bat, off southpaw Clyde Wright in a complete-game victory by Fritz Peterson. Happy with Fernandez’s performance, Houk told reporters, “I will use him quite a bit against left-handed pitchers, except against the contenders.” The manager added, “I want him to get his feet on the ground now instead of next year.”48 Over the final weeks of the season, Fernandez caught seven games to completion and manned right field for two others, impressing at each position. He had neither a passed ball nor an error behind the plate and threw out the only baserunner who attempted to steal against him – three-time defending AL stolen-base leader, Bert Campaneris. In his first game in the outfield, Fernandez gunned down pinch-runner Vic Davalillo at home plate. As a hitter, Fernandez went 6-for-28 (.214) with one home run, off 21-year-old Catfish Hunter in the season finale, but against left-handers was just 2-for-18 (.111).

During the offseason, New York traded Tillman. Yankees vice president (and fellow Staten Island native) Johnny Johnson described it as “the greatest opportunity of [Fernandez’s] life.”49 “A smoldering volcano of desire as he struggled up the farm ladder,” Fernandez played winter ball in Venezuela for a team managed by Luis Aparacio, looking to “‘get in shape’ for an all-out bid” for playing time in New York.50 His hard work paid off: He not only made the Yankees’ 1968 roster, he was their Opening Day catcher.

Fernandez charmed the Yankee Stadium crowd by planting a kiss on the cheek of poet Marianne Moore after she threw him the ceremonial first pitch, then homered to left field off California’s George Brunet for the only run in a 1-0 Mel Stottlemyre shutout. “I thought it was gone,” Fernandez explained afterward, “but when I saw Whitey (Ford) waving at me to run I wondered where it had gone. How sweet it was to see the ball in the seats.”51

Yet the rest of Fernandez’s season proved largely sour. Platooned with the lefty-hitting Gibbs, he compiled comparable defensive stats but finished the year hitting only .170. It didn’t help that on five separate occasions he missed multiple games while fulfilling obligations to the Army, including two weeks of artillery training in June.52 On the rare occasions when he did connect for a hit, Fernandez produced runs, driving in 30 on only 23 hits, seven of which were home runs. No major leaguer had ever driven in that many runs on so few base hits.53 Fernandez also demonstrated a keen eye at the plate, drawing 36 walks in 171 plate appearances. Individual highlights from his season included:

• Hitting a grand slam off Dick Ellsworth at Fenway Park.
• Connecting off Chicago White Sox hurler Tommy John for a go-ahead solo home run in a win that spoiled John’s unblemished 7-0 record.
• Diving over the low fence in right field at Yankee Stadium to rob Baltimore Oriole Don Buford of a home run – a feat captured on the back cover of the New York Daily News.54

Shortly after the 1968 World Series, the American League held an expansion draft to stock its two new franchises, the Kansas City Royals and Seattle Pilots. The Yankees made Fernandez available, but they pulled him back (as draft rules allowed) after Kansas City selected pitching prospect Jim Rooker. Houk, who expected “big things” from the now 25-year-old backstop, was elated – but Fernandez was openly disappointed.55 “Let’s face it, as long as I’m with the Yankees the best I can hope to do is platoon,” he told the Staten Island Advance. “You don’t make any money that way and your baseball life is short. I want the opportunity to play every day.”56

Once again Uncle Sam had other plans. As Grapefruit League play got underway before the 1969 season, Fernandez was summoned to weekend Army Reserve duty. He missed only a handful of games, but his absence opened the door for 21-year-old Thurman Munson, the Yankees’ 1968 first-round draft pick out of Kent State University. Munson started behind the plate in the team’s first spring-training game, facing the Washington Senators in rookie manager Ted Williams’s first game at the helm.57 Though Munson started the regular season in Triple A, the die had been cast.

Three games into the season, Fernandez aced his first starting assignment, homering twice off a pair of Washington right-handed pitchers. The first, off Jersey City native Jim Hannan, was a grand slam. The next day, Fernandez left for weekend military duty and Munson was called up in his place.58 On August 8, with Fernandez about to head out for another Army weekend, Munson made his major-league debut, going 2-for-3 with two RBIs in a win over Oakland.59 In early September, Munson returned as Fernandez was again summoned for weekend duty. When Fernandez returned, he found himself in right field, platooned with lefty Frank Tepedino, as Munson had become New York’s everyday catcher.60 Fernandez’s 133 OPS+ and .381 rOBA went unappreciated as Gibbs, his defensive equal but markedly less potent at bat (65 OPS+, .261 rOBA), was tabbed to back up Munson.61

In the offseason, Fernandez asked to be traded and was, bundled with pitcher Al Downing in a deal with Oakland for first baseman Danny Cater and infielder Ossie Chavarria.62 Though he had mixed feelings about leaving his hometown, Fernandez saw the move as “a real good opportunity,” adding, “I’m gonna go out there with the idea I’ll catch every day.”63 A’s owner Charlie Finley considered Fernandez a significant upgrade to the club’s catching corps, sarcastically noting, “We got a catcher who can throw the ball to second base without bouncing it two or three times.”64 Campaneris offered his own endorsement, calling Fernandez the second-toughest catcher in the league to run on, after Paul Casanova.65

Dubbed “Broadway” in spring training by A’s All-Star infielder Sal Bando,66 Fernandez earned the 1970 Opening Day nod from manager and former catcher John McNamara – and praise from his skipper afterward. “[Fernandez] took charge of the game and handled our toughest-to-handle pitcher [two-time All-Star John “Blue Moon” Odom] well – and in the shadows.”67 Yet after Fernandez went 1-for-8 in his next four starts, McNamara handed the starting job to Dave Duncan for the next 10 games. From that point until August 19, Fernandez and Duncan shared the catching duties more or less equally. On that day, with Duncan hurt and Fernandez 0-for-his-last-15, McNamara had recent call-up Gene Tenace catch for Diego Seguí, who twirled a four-hit shutout. Tenace was anointed the A’s starting catcher, and Fernandez had once again been displaced by a future All-Star.

Relegated to part-time status, Fernandez hit a ninth-inning pinch-hit, three run walk-off home run off reliever Wilbur Wood on September 3 to give Oakland a 4-3 come-from-behind win – his second pinch-hit walk-off blast of the season.68 Finley was so excited that he called down to the clubhouse to tell Fernandez he was getting a $1,000 bonus. When Fernandez pointed out that Finley had agreed during contract negotiations to pay him $2,000 if he “had a good year,” the A’s owner came through with the larger amount.69 After the game, Fernandez told the Oakland Tribune that he wanted to be traded– “I have no value here.”70

Fernandez finished the 1970 season with the best fielding percentage among A’s backstops, but hit only .214, with 15 homers, 44 RBIs, and 76 strikeouts in 294 plate appearances. He was the first player in franchise history to hit 15 or more home runs in a season which he had under 300 plate appearances. He also tied for the AL lead with three pinch-hit homers.71

Convinced that a firmer hand was needed to guide a team filled with talented youngsters like Catfish Hunter and Reggie Jackson, Finley replaced McNamara in the offseason with former Red Sox manager Dick Williams.72 Fernandez lost a three-way competition for the starting catcher’s job to Duncan in training camp, ending up as number three behind Tenace.73 Appearing in only two of Oakland’s first 30 games, Fernandez was traded to Washington along with first baseman Don Mincher, reliever Paul Lindblad, and $300,000 cash (reportedly) for reliever Darold Knowles and first baseman Mike Epstein.74

Used primarily as a pinch-hitter and backup left fielder by manager Ted Williams, Fernandez went 3-for-30 over the next six weeks. In late June, shortly before news broke that Senators owner Bob Short planned to move the franchise to Arlington, Texas, Fernandez’s contract was sold back to Oakland – specifically, the A’s affiliate in the American Association, the Iowa Oaks.75 Fernandez let it be known that he needed just 28 more days on a major-league roster to earn a pension, then set about getting back to that level. Inserted at backstop by manager Warren Spahn, he homered in his first game with Iowa, hit a grand slam and tied Joe Rudi’s club record with six RBIs in his next game, and a week later became the first Oak to hit three home runs in a game.76 After three weeks with Iowa, Fernandez got back to Oakland.

Happy at parachuting into an AL Western Division race with the first-place A’s, Fernandez told the Staten Island Advance, “I know we’re going to win this thing.”77 He was right, but wouldn’t be around for the celebration. After playing two games in Oakland’s trademark Kelly green and California gold, Fernandez was traded once again, this time to the Cubs for infielder Adrian Garrett and an undisclosed amount of cash.

Chicago manager Leo Durocher looked for Fernandez to reinforce a catching corps that had lost All-Star Randy Hundley to a season-ending knee injury. As Chicago’s regular catcher for the month of September, Fernandez nailed 6 of 12 potential basestealers and drilled four home runs, but hit only .171 (7-for-41).78

Coming out of spring training in 1972, Fernandez was assigned to Double-A Wichita, where he handled a pitching staff that included future All-Star Rick Reuschel and his brother Paul. When former Yankees teammate Joe Pepitone temporarily retired in early May, Fernandez was called up to Chicago. Used sparingly, he was sent back down a few weeks later.79 In what proved to be his final major-league at-bat, Fernandez grounded out pinch-hitting for starting pitcher Bill Hands in a 14-inning loss at Wrigley Field to the New York Mets on May 25.80

In June Fernandez was optioned/loaned to the Yankees’ Triple-A farm team in Syracuse. Playing 71 games split among catching, the outfield, and third base, he hit .213 and walked 51 times for the seventh-place Chiefs.81

Still a member of the A’s organization, Fernandez attended 1973 spring training with the defending World Series champions as a nonroster invitee.82 He started the season as a catcher, first baseman. and “designated pinch hitter” (DH) for the Tucson Toros of the Triple-A Pacific Coast League. In May he was outrighted to the Detroit Tigers and assigned to their Triple-A affiliate in Toledo.83 A week after joining the Mud Hens in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, Fernandez went AWOL. Toledo suspended him, then returned him to the A’s, who shipped him to Tucson.84

Confused about why he was being loaned out to other organizations, Fernandez felt that he wasn’t getting a fair shot anywhere. “I know I’m not going to hit for an average,” he admitted, “but I can hit the ball out of the park. That’s better than most of the catchers in the big leagues now. They hit .220 with nothing.”85 Fernandez finished the season with Tucson, stroking a game-winning pinch-hit homer in the 10th inning of the Toros’ regular-season finale.86

Before the start of the 1974 season, Tucson released him. According to manager Sherm Lollar, “Mr. Finley … didn’t want to continue paying a salary for a player who wasn’t going to help the major league team.87

Rather than find a position with another organization, Fernandez retired. He went back home to Staten Island, where he instructed at a baseball camp run by his former high-school coach and worked on his golf game.88 Over the next four decades, Fernandez won various local tournaments, typically competing in foursomes or pairs, sometimes with his brother, Artie.89

In 1979 Fernandez married Joyce Ann Lombardi; six years later the couple had a daughter, Christin.90 Active in various community organizations, including the New Dorp Moravian Church, Joyce was president of the Staten Island Ballet company in the 1990s.91

In 1999 Fernandez was named to the Staten Island Advance’s All-Century baseball team, along with a number of fellow Islanders who had reached the majors, including fellow Curtis graduates Terry Crowley, Hank Majeski, and Bobby Thomson.92 That honor was followed by Fernandez’s induction into the Staten Island Sports Hall of Fame as a member of the Class of 2000.93 Since then, Fernandez has led a quiet life with his family in the Staten Island neighborhood of Grasmere, not far from where he grew up.

Last revised: December 17, 2025

Author’s Note

Like Fernandez, I was raised in the East Shore section of Staten Island and graduated from Curtis High School, 15 years after he did. As an elementary-school student in the late 1960s, I was convinced that my second-grade teacher, Ms. Fernandez, was the mother of the Yankees backstop. She wasn’t. During my time at Curtis, Fernandez’s high-school teammate, shortstop Jack Tracy – who got as far as Triple A in seven minor-league seasons – was the school’s varsity baseball coach and one of my gym teachers.

Acknowledgments

This biography was reviewed by Rory Costello and Len Levin and fact-checked by Dan Schoenholz.

Photo credit: Frank Fernández, Trading Card Database

Sources

In addition to the sources cited in the Notes, the author consulted FamilySearch.com, Sports-Reference.com, Baseball-Reference.com, Retrosheet.org, Statscrew.com, Baseball-Almanac.com, and stathead.com.

Notes

1 “Get Well, Frank,” Staten Island (New York) Advance, January 25, 2015: S3.

2 Knowles, who relieved for Oakland in all seven games of the 1973 World Series against the New York Mets, earned saves in both Game One and the deciding Game Seven.

3 Baseball-Reference.com identifies Ryan Schimpf, a utility player with the San Diego Padres and California Angels in the 2010s, as the only other major leaguer with over 500 plate appearances to have an OPS+ of over 110 and a career batting average below .200.

4 Raymond A. Wittek, “These Are the Men Who Get You There,” Staten Island Advance, December 29, 1959: 24; Frank Fernandez, 78, a retired bus driver,” Staten Island Advance, May 14, 1995: A37; “Connie Fernandez, 92,” Staten Island Advance, December 13, 2012: A15.

5 1950 US Census, Richmond County, New York, Enumeration District 43-207A, Sheet 75.

6 “O’Connor Names Schoolboy Squad,” Staten Island Advance, March 20, 1956: 16; “P.A.L. Ball Teams Had Fine Season,” Staten Island Advance, September 21, 1955: 27; Staten Island Advance, October 3, 1956: 20.

7 “CYO Junior Box Scores,” Staten Island Advance, July 8, 1957: 20; “CYO Flashes,” Staten Island Advance, April 15, 1960: 18.

8 “St. Peter’s Tops Curtis, 67-53,” Staten Island Advance, December 19, 1957: 34; Staten Island Advance, February 21, 1958: 33.

9 “Curtis Five Bows in Garden,” Staten Island Advance, March 5, 1958: 14.

10 “Curtis Bows to Boys High, 72-43, in Playoffs,” Staten Island Advance, February 17, 1960: 16.

11 “Stars Selected for CP Game,” Staten Island Advance, March 17, 1960: 31; Bob Smith, “Visitors Edge Local Stars in 57-56 Thriller,” Staten Island Advance, March 26, 1960: 13.

12 “Van Buren Tops Curtis, 5-3,” Staten Island Advance, June 24, 1958: 15.

13 “Curtis Loses in PSAL Title Game,” Staten Island Advance, June 6, 1959: 14. Jay Price, “The Final Days of Ebbets Field,” Staten Island Advance, July 1, 2007: S1.

14 John E. Concevitch, “Records Fall in Grid Classic,” Staten Island Advance, November 29, 1958: 14; Frank Bower, “Violets Win, 9-5, at Cooperstown,” Staten Island Advance, September 2, 1958: 15. Years later, Fernandez’s father recalled his son winning the Cooperstown game for his team with a home run over the center-field fence. Michael Iachetta, “Ex-Curtis Ace Wins Post at Yank Plate,” New York Daily News, October 8, 1967: SI.2.

15 “Islanders Gain All-Star Posts,” Staten Island Advance, June 30, 1960: 25; “Curtis Loses to Bryant, 3-0,” Staten Island Advance, June 13, 1960: 21. Under coach Bert Levinson, who also steered the school’s basketball program while Fernandez was there, Curtis High participated in every city baseball championship between 1958 and 1963. Charlie De Biase Jr., “Warriors Owned Winning Formula,” Staten Island Advance, August 2, 2020: F1.

16 “Curtis Defeats McKee, 5-1,” Staten Island Advance, April 9, 1960: 12; “Curtis Wins 1-0 in 11 Innings,” Staten Island Advance, June 7, 1960: 16.

17 For background on the Hearst Sandlot Classic, see Alan, Cohen, “The Hearst Sandlot Classic: More Than a Doorway to the Big Leagues,” SABR Baseball Research Journal, Fall 2013, https://sabr.org/journal/article/the-hearst-sandlot-classic-more-than-a-doorway-to-the-big-leagues/.

18 “Sandlot Stars Play at Stadium,” Staten Island Advance, August 18, 1960: 21; “H-P Post Wins on Young’s HR,” Staten Island Advance, August 19, 1960: 15. Fernandez’s American Legion team had won the New York state American Legion title earlier that week. Frank Bower, “H-P Post Wins State Title, 4-3,” Staten Island Advance, August 15, 1960: 15.

19 See, for example “Villanova Frosh Down Temple,” Philadelphia Inquirer, February 22, 1961: 42; “Travelers Had Scholarly Nine,” Staten Island Advance, November 11, 1960: 17.

20 “Chiefs Win T-M Heavy Junior Baseball League Title,” Staten Island Advance, September 5, 1961: 26; Jim Ogle, “Fernandez Rates High in Future Book,“ Staten Island Advance, March 10, 1964: 18. “Frank Fernandez Signed by Yanks,” Staten Island Advance, September 21, 1961: 21; “Scouts to Wave Fat Checkbooks at Hearst Game.” Marsi’s home run came during a game in which the Yankees clinched their sixth AL pennant in seven years, a 4-2 win over the Baltimore Orioles. As the game was New York’s 154th of the season, Maris failed to meet the 154-game threshold that Commissioner Ford Frick had set for matching Babe Ruth’s record of 60 home runs without an asterisk being placed next to a new record. Joe Trimble, “Yankees Wrap It Up, 4-2; Maris 59; Ruth Mark Safe,” New York Daily News, September 21, 1961: 76; Mike Rathet (Associated Press), “Asterisk Looms in Maris’ Destiny,” Greenwood (South Carolina) Index-Journal, September 20, 1961: 7.

21 Moses Crutchfield, “G-Yankees Bow to Winston-Salem 7-3 in CL Opener,” Greensboro (North Carolina) Record, April 18, 1962: B2. Also debuting in that game was future Yankees teammate Roy White.

22 Moses Crutchfield, “Stottlemyre’s Shutout First For Rapp As Pilot,” Greensboro News, April 22, 1962: C4.

23 “Fernandez Obtains Triumph on Homer,” Greensboro News, April 30, 1962: B3; “Fernandez Leaves,” Greensboro Record, May 3, 1962: D2. Earlier in the game, fellow 19-year-old Tony Perez hit a two-run home run for the losing Rocky Mount team.

24 Jim Ogle, “Fernandez Rates High in Future Book.“

25 “Lauderdale Win, in 1st,” Miami Herald, July 8, 1962: 1-C.

26 “Fernandez Eyes Major Leagues,” Columbus (Georgia) Ledger, May 2, 1964: 4.

27 Ogle, “Fernandez Rates High in Future Book.”

28 Ogle, “Fernandez Rates High in Future Book”; “Idaho Falls Evens Pioneer League Playoff Series with Billings,” Idaho Statesman (Boise), September 9, 1963: 17; “Idaho Falls Blasts Mustangs, 10-0, to Win Pioneer League Playoffs,” Idaho Statesman, September 10, 1963: 14.

29 “Braves Fall Before Bucs,” Palm Beach (Florida) Post, October 31, 1964: 18; “Cardinal Win Led by Deras,” Fort Lauderdale News, November 4, 1964: 50..

30 Cecil Darby, “Frank No Joke for Pitchers,” Columbus Ledger, July 19, 1965: 12; Paul Cox, “Pitchers Now Leery of Frank Fernandez,” Staten Island Advance, July 21, 1965: 42.

31 “Tourists Win,” Lynchburg (Virginia) News, May 9, 1965: 24; Cecil Darby, “Asheville Pitching Staff Potent Too,” Columbus Ledger, May 27, 1965: 42; Cecil Darby, “Fernandez Stars as Yanks Romp,” Columbus Ledger, August 15, 1965: C-1. Fernandez’s first home run off Shellenback ended a string of 28 consecutive scoreless innings that the lanky southpaw had racked up against Columbus.

32 Cecil Darby, “Aggravation Turns to Pure No-Hit Delight for Beck,” Columbus Ledger, August 14, 1965: 11.

33 Paul Cox, “Fernandez Looks Ahead, Finds His Future Cloudy,” Staten Island Advance, May 5, 1964: 22; Chuck Slater, “S.I.’s Fernandez at the Crossroads,” Staten Island Advance, April 25, 1965: S3; Paul Cox, “Frank Hit 21 Home Runs, But …” Staten Island Advance, September 12, 1965: S4.

34 Jim Ogle, “Fernandez’ Arm, Bat Put Him on Roster,” Staten Island Advance, October 1, 1965: 20; Tom Valledolmo, “3 Islanders, 1 Goal: The Majors,” Staten Island Advance, February 6, 1966: S3.

35 Jim Ogle, “Fernandez Awed, Confident With Yanks,” Staten Island Advance, March 13, 1966: S3.

36 “Opening-Day Major League Rosters and Numbers,” The Sporting News, April 23, 1966: 24; Joe Donnelly, “Jim Bouton Has Eyes Right on Army Lineup,” Newsday (Long Island, New York), April 29, 1966: 51C. Houk’s reluctance to use Fernandez stood in contrast to his preseason praise of the catcher’s “excellent arm and great power.” Dick Young, “Howard Paid Repeat 70G; Lame Arm ‘Perfect Now,’” New York Daily News, January 20, 1966: C22.

37 Joe Donnelly, “Jim Bouton Has Eyes Right on Army Lineup.”

38 “Mud Hens Score Twin Victories Over Syracuse,” Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, May 7, 1966: 42.

39 Gene Granger, “Fernandez Delivers,” Toledo Blade, August 27, 1966: 17.

40 “Fernandez ‘Too Good’ For Yanks,” Staten Island Advance, August 28, 1966: S1.

41 Shelley Rolfe, “Hens Thrown For Loss By Grid Tactic,” Toledo Blade, August 30, 1966: 22; Jack Minogue, “Broken Leg KOs Fernandez for ’66,” Staten Island Advance, September 1, 1966: 22. Fernandez was run into by Bill Southworth, a former high-school running back and cousin of Hall of Fame manager Billy Southworth. Southworth flew into Fernandez as he reached for a weak throw from Bobby Murcer that he couldn’t handle.

42 In addition to his official home runs, Fernandez also won a home-run hitting contest in which Bob Feller delivered each pitch, one of dozens that the Hall of Famer participated in between 1961 and 1980. “Fernandez Rips Feller’s Pitches, Too,” Staten Island Advance, August 13, 1966: 11. See, for example Dick Herbert, “Wilson Clips Caps In Opener By 12-8,” Raleigh (North Carolina) News and Observer, April 19, 1961: 13, and “Laribee to appear at derby,” Meriden (Connecticut) Morning Record and Journal, August 15, 1980: 23. 

43 “Fernandez Named to All-Star 9,” Toledo Blade, September 30, 1966: 46; Neil MacCarl, “Bahnsen Leads Int’s Skipper Poll As Loop’s Top Pitching Prospect,” The Sporting News, September 17, 1966: 35.

44 Tom Valledolmo, “Detour for Fernandez,” Staten Island Advance, February 19, 1967: S1.

45 “Fernandez Back From Service,” Staten Island Advance, May 31, 1967: 35.

46 Bob Snyder, “Hot Bahnsen Burner Stones Bisons,” Syracuse Herald-Journal, July 10, 1967: 22. This was the second Bahnsen no-hitter that Fernandez caught. The first, also a seven-inning gem that came in a doubleheader, happened 12 months earlier, while the pair were with Toledo. Fernandez drove in the lone run in that game. “Stan Selects Good Time for No-Hitter,” Toledo Blade, July 18, 1966: 17.

47 Jack Minogue, “Bad Luck Still Haunts Fernandez,” Staten Island Advance, August 4, 1967: 22.

48 Jim Ogle, “Fernandez a Hit in His Yankee Debut,” Staten Island Advance, September 13, 1967: 45.

49 Chuck Slater, “Yank Deal Gives Fernandez ‘Greatest Opportunity of Life,’” Staten Island Advance, December 8, 1967: 27.

50 Jim Ogle, “Fernandez Taking Venezuelan Route On Way to Yanks,” The Sporting News, December 30, 1967: 40; Eddy Moncada, “Dissatisfied Fernandez at .324 in Venezuela,” Staten Island Advance, January 7, 1968: S4. Fernandez played winter ball the next offseason as well, manning six positions and hitting .210 in Puerto Rico for the San Juan Senators, a team managed by then-Southern League skipper Sparky Anderson. “Fernandez to Catch in Puerto Rico,” Staten Island Advance, November 1, 1968: 31; Chuck Slater, “Winter Play Repeat of Yankee Season for Fernandez,” Staten Island Advance, February 9, 1969: S4; Jim Ogle, “Fernandez’ Plea – More Work in ’69,” The Sporting News, February 22, 1969: 36.

51 Jim Ogle, “An Unlikely Yankee Hero: Catcher Frank Fernandez,” The Sporting News, April 27, 1968: 20.

52 “Eyes on Fernandez at Army Camp, Too,” Staten Island Advance, June 13, 1968: 38.

53 Bobby Hofman of the 1954 New York Giants had driven in 30 or more runs on 28 hits. Rougned Odor of the Texas Rangers tied Fernandez’s mark in 2020, also collecting 30 RBIs on 23 hits.

54 “Yanks Blow 6-Run Lead, Bow to Red Sox, 11-10,” Elmira (New York) Star-Gazette, May 17, 1968: 18; Dick Young, “2 Yankee HRs Fade Sox, 2-1,” New York Daily News, July 13, 1968: 28; “Landing on His Seat,” New York Daily News, July 8, 1968: 80.

55 Jim Ogle, “Houk Ecstatic Fernandez Survived Draft,” Staten Island Advance, October 16, 1968: 41.

56 Chuck Slater, “… but Frank Doesn’t Share Joy,” Staten Island Advance, October 16, 1968: 41.

57 Lou Hatter, “Senators Inept, Fall to Yankees,” Baltimore Sun, March 7, 1969: C1. The game also marked the debut of the “designated pinch-swinger,” an innovation introduced that spring by the American League on a trial basis. Four years later, it was adopted for AL regular-season games as the designated hitter rule. A pair of backup catchers handled pinch-swinging duties in this game: John Orsino for New York and Jim French for Washington.

58 Bill Reddy, “Chiefs Shade Richmond by 2-1,” Syracuse Post-Standard, April 12, 1969: 11.

59 “Catcher Called,” Asbury Park (New Jersey) Press, May 17, 1969: 13; Jim Ogle, “Kinston to Yankee Stadium: ‘Just Like Dream,’” The Sporting News, June 7, 1969: 15. In mid-May Fernandez had another weekend Army commitment but Munson was unavailable due to military obligations of his own. Twenty-year-old catching prospect John Ellis was called up from Class A Kinston and did well in his major-league debut, hitting the first inside-the-park home run at Yankee Stadium by a New York catcher since Bill Dickey in 1933. By July, Fernandez, Munson, and Ellis were all juggling military obligations. Joe Trimble, “Diamond Dust,” New York Daily News, July 12, 1969: 29.

60 “Player Traffic,” Binghamton (New York) Press, September 5, 1969: 2-B.

61 Fernandez finished the year hitting .233 with 12 home runs, 29 RBIs, and 65 walks in 298 plate appearances. His 21.8 percent walk rate was the highest among AL batters with at least 100 plate appearances Not until Mickey Tettleton of the 1994 Detroit Tigers and later Moneyball fame did another AL ballplayer with at least 100 plate appearances match Fernandez’s 1969 walk rate.

62 Joe Trimble, “Trades Change Yankees Into Contender – Houk,” New York Daily News, February 20, 1970: 27C; Ron Bergman, “Fernandez Hates N.Y. – That Suits the A’s,” The Sporting News, March 21, 1970: 22.

63 Chuck Slater, “Traded Fernandez has mixed emotions,” Staten Island Advance, December 6, 1969: 11.

64 Lowell Hickey, “Moore Knows How Avis Feels,” Fremont-Newark (California) Argus, January 21, 1970: 12. In 1969 Oakland catchers collectively led the AL in errors and had the circuit’s second-lowest caught-stealing rate,

65 Bucky Walter, “Westward Ho: Bonanza for New Oakland Catcher,” San Francisco Examiner, February 28, 1970: 24.

66 Jim Ogle, “Bench Is Seat of Frank’s problem,” Staten Island Advance, April 27, 1970: 16.

67 Ron Bergman, “Fernandez Earns Start, Pilot’s Praise,” Staten Island Advance, ???? should this be Oakland Tribune? April 8, 1970: 38.

68 Ron Bergman, “Fernandez Power Wins,” Oakland Tribune, September 4, 1970: 39. The first came on June 22 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum off reliever Tom Burgmeier of the Kansas City Royals

69 Ron Bergman, “Finley Gives Fernandez $$ Reluctantly,” Staten Island Advance,???? Oakland Tribune? September 8, 1970: 22.

70 “Fernandez Power Wins.”

71 In 1989 José Canseco became the second Athletic to hit 15 or more homers in under 300 plate appearances. Rick Reichardt, of the California Angels and Washington Senators and Ted Uhlander of the Cleveland Indians also connected for three pinch-hit home runs in 1970.

72 Mark Armour, “John McNamara,” SABR Biography Project, https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/john-mcnamara/.

73 Ron Bergman, “Duncan Wins A’s Catching Battle,” Oakland Tribune, April 1, 1971: 37.

74 Merrell Whittlesey, “Bat Is Hot but Mincher’s Unhappy,” The Sporting News, September 18, 1971: 20.

75 “Washington Sells Fernandez to Iowa,” San Francisco Chronicle, June 23, 1971: 56; “Nats to Texas?” Baltimore Evening Sun, June 30, 1971: 29. The Des Moines Tribune reported that Fernandez was traded for Iowa infielder Jim Driscoll, but Baseball-Reference identifies the exchange of the two players as separate transactions. Bill Bryson, “3-Run Homer in 9th Stops Oaks’ Streak, 4-3,” Des Moines (Iowa) Tribune, June 27, 1971: 1-S. Short secured approval in September from AL owners to relocate the club for the 1972 season, when they became the Texas Rangers.

76 Bill Bryson, “Vida Bawls Out Oaks’ Brooks,” Des Moines Tribune, June 28, 1971: 1-S; Ron Maly, “6 Fernandez RBIs Aid 20-5 Romp by Oaks,” Des Moines (Iowa) Register, June 29, 1971: 1-S; “Fernandez Hits Three Home Runs,” Tulsa World, July 4, 1971: 76; Bill Bryson, “The Star!” Des Moines Tribune, August 16, 1971: 1-S.

77 Ron Bergman, “Even Frank Surprised by Recall to A’s,” Staten Island Advance, July 16, 1971: 23.

78 The last of the four home runs that Fernandez hit between September 10 and 18 was the last hit that Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Rick Wise allowed before retiring a major-league record-tying 32 consecutive batters in a 12-inning win over Chicago. Allen Lewis, “Wise’s Hill and Swat Feats Rate Salute,” The Sporting News, October 9, 1971: 31.

79 “Pepitone Gives Up Baseball,” Arizona Star (Tucson), May 3, 1972: 1-C.

80 In that game Willie Mays, reccently acquired from the San Francisco Giants, collected the game-winning RBI and Jerry Koosman, a stalwart of the Mets starting rotation since 1968, earned his first career save.

81 Fernandez was manning the hot corner on June 30 when lefty Rich Hinton no-hit the Toledo Mud Hens. “Hinton’s No-Hitter Gives Chiefs a Split,” Syracuse Herald-Journal, July 1, 1972: 9.

82 Ron Bergman, “A’s Start Arriving at Camp in Mesa,” Oakland Tribune, February 27, 1973: 31.

83 Dave Kellogg, “Toros Explode in Fifth, Rip Wildcats, 8-0,” Arizona Star, April 4, 1973: 1-C. “Meet the Toros: Frank Fernandez,” Tucson Citizen, April 19, 1973: 52; Bill Hayes, “Gardner Gets By with Help from Friends, Foot,” Tucson Citizen, May 9, 1973: 51.

84 Bill Fox, “Hens’ Sanders Delivers Order,” Toledo Blade, May 18, 1973: 32; “Visitors Miss LCRC Show,” Toledo Blade, May 24, 1973: 42.

85 Bill Hayes, “Fernandez: ‘I’m Not Doing Anything … Not Going Anywhere,” Staten Island Advance, June 24, 1973: S5.

86 Don Ketchum, “Toros Bombard Giants,” Arizona Republic (Phoenix), September 4, 1973: 33.

87 Bill Hayes, “Cat Hitters Too Much for Toros,” Tucson Citizen, April 3, 1974: 45.

88 “Hall of Fame Baseball School,” Staten Island Advance, June 23, 1974: S2.

89 See, for example Andy Lagomarsino, “Tellefsen Crew Puts It Together,” Staten Island Advance, March 28, 1976: S2; “Gonzalez, Pair Win Two-Man,” Staten Island Advance, April 12, 1998: S2; Tom Flanagan, “LaTourette Takes Charge in Interclub,” Staten Island Advance, October 6, 2008: B8; Tom Flanagan, ”Fernandez, Schmidt Win Fall Classic,” Staten Island Advance, October 27, 2013: S7.

90 “Frank Fernandez & Joyce A Lombardi,” New York City Marriages 1950-2017, https://www.myheritage.com/research/record-10540-2563639/frank-fernandez-and-joyce-a-lombardi-in-new-york-city-marriages; Tom Flanagan, “Chip Shots,” Staten Island Advance, April 6, 1986: B8; “Father-Daughter Dance,” Staten Island Advance, April 27, 1997: A23; John Reha, “What’s in Store for You?” Staten Island Advance, December 5, 1999: C1.

91 “2 Chairing Luncheon at Botanical Garden,” Staten Island Advance, March 8, 1996: D5; Rollanda Cowles, “Come Enjoy the Sweet Sounds of Opera,” Staten Island Advance, August 4, 2004: C5. “S.I. Ballet Schedule Fund-Raiser,” Staten Island Advance, April 10, 1996: C5.

92 “The All-Century Baseball Team,” Staten Island Advance, December 26, 1999: M143.

93 Jay Price, “Legends 1 and All,” Staten Island Advance, June 26, 2000: B1; Cormac Gordon, “Hometown Heroes,” Staten Island Advance, November 20, 2000: B1. Fernandez was inducted alongside high-school teammate Jack Tracy, a two-time International League all-star infielder.