The 1950s were a hugely successful stretch for the Yankees organization. Although the rosters were often headlined by future Hall of Fame members and generational greats, they were rosters full of talented players, a necessity for winning multiple World Series. Among the players with smaller roles was Bob Cerv, who had limited playing time in pinstripes, but would later prove himself as a talented player in his own right.
Although his most significant mark may have been made with other clubs, Cerv
was a legitimate big league bat for much of his 12 years in The Show, even if it didn’t always come with New York. Either way, the outfielder filled a role on the successful Yankees teams of the early 1950s, one of the franchise’s most impressive runs of dominance.
Bob Cerv
Born: May 5, 1925 (Weston, NE)
Died: April 6, 2017 (Blair, NE)
Yankees Tenure: 1951-56, 1960, 1961-62
Born in Nebraska in 1925, Robert Henry Cerv played baseball in college as a Cornhusker and fought in World War II, before eventually signing with the Yankees prior to the 1950 season. A year later, at the age of 26, Cerv would make his Major League debut with New York. The big right-hander was called up in August of 1951, kicking off just a cup of coffee with the club. Although this was more in the style of a late-season call-up, the part-time role he had in ‘51 became the norm for Cerv for much of his Yankee career.
After just 12 games and 33 plate appearances in that debut season, Cerv combined for barely over 100 combined plate appearances over the next two seasons with the Yankees. The results were not particularly convincing, but enough to keep him around going into the 1954 season, when he would really begin to prove himself.
That ‘54 campaign kicked off a really good run for Cerv, though it notably took place in a limited role, as he spent much of his time on the field in a part-time capacity and as a pinch-hitter. That being said, for the final three years of his first stretch with New York, Cerv was an All-Star level hitter, who likely would have earned himself a lot more time in the modern game. He had a 121 OPS + in ‘54 across 112 plate appearances, and would only come to improve on that number. In the following season, he posted a terrific .341/.411/.541 slash line and was worth 1.2 bWAR in less than 100 plate appearances. And in 1956, he was just as good, in a then career-high 155 plate appearances. He was also a postseason contributor during that impressive run, which included a home run in their losing 1955 Fall Classic, as well a 1-for-1 line in the victorious ‘56 Series, both against the Dodgers.
Shortly after that World Series win, Cerv’s services were purchased by the Kansas City Athletics. It was clear that the A’s planned on giving Cerv a more substantial shot, and although the experiment was disappointing in 1957, the veteran turned in a massive career-year in the following season. In that 1958 season, Cerv was a star, exploding for 38 home runs, and hitting to the tune of a near-MVP-level 159 OPS+. Reasonably so, he was rewarded with his first and only All-Star selection, and finished fourth in MVP voting that season — not too bad for a former part-timer relegated to pinch-hitting duty.
The powerful outfielder had a couple of good seasons left in him as he entered his mid-30s, including another with KC in ‘59, and a season split between teams in 1960. Despite the post-World Series departure, Cerv’s time in pinstripes was also far from done. In 1960, he was traded back to the Bombers and played 87 solid games with them that season, before being selected by the Angels in the expansion draft that winter.
He returned to the club once again via trade in 1961 for 51 solid games with the Yankees, and would spend the beginning of the ‘62 season with the club as well. By this point, Cerv was entering his late-30s, and was once again largely occupying a part-time role. He wrapped up his big league career in 1962, with his final time coming with Houston in the middle of that season.
After a dozen seasons, Bob Cerv’s big-league career was over, and though his role was limited for much of it, he was able to briefly reach significant heights. Born on this day 101 years ago, he lived in his native Nebraska into his 90s, before passing in 2017. Like many players featured in this series, today marks a good opportunity to look back on an interesting and at times very good career in Yankees history — and one that got to be celebrated at several futures Old-Timers’ Days. Happy birthday, Bob.
See more of the “Yankees Birthday of the Day” series here.
