The early 1990s were a bit of a wasteland for the Yankees as a franchise. By winning percentage, the 1990 and ‘91 teams are two of the worst in franchise history, and they mostly continued the story of the 1980s, where the Yankees made the playoffs just once. By 1993, they began to show signs of returning to form, and then of course by the end of the decade, they were a dynasty again.
That’s not to say there were no good players around in the dark periods though. For instance, they got two solid years
in there from reliever Rich Monteleone.
Richard “Rich” Monteleone
Born: March 22, 1963 (Tampa, FL)
Yankees Tenure: 1990-93
Monteleone was born and raised in Tampa, Florida attending Tampa Catholic High School. It was out of high school that the Tigers selected him with their first round draft pick in 1982, which was the 20th overall pick. Relatedly, another Tampa high school pitcher was selected fifth that year, with a certain Dwight Gooden going to the Mets.
While Monteleone did sign with the Tigers, he would never actually appear for them in the majors. Initially a starter in the minor leagues, he was a bit of a slow developer, as he never posted an ERA under four in any of his first six MiLB seasons. After his first couple, he ended up as part of a trade in December 1985, sending him to the Mariners organization. His first season there still saw him struggle to put up good numbers, and Seattle eventually moved him to the bullpen in 1987. He was briefly called up to the big leagues that April, getting his first taste of the majors before getting sent back down.
In 1988, Monteleone was still struggling to find his footing and the M’s eventually just released him that May. A couple days later, he signed with the Angels, where he finally began to figure things out. He made a cameo at the major league level in 1988, but then got an extended run the following season. In 1989, Monteleone posted a 3.18 ERA (121 ERA+) in 39.2 innings.
Despite that, Monteleone started 1990 back in the minors. However, just after the new season started, he and Claudell Washington — a former Yankee returning to the Bronx — were sent to the Yankees in exchange for Luis Polonia. The trade for the Yankees was more about reacquiring Washington, as they were still trying to get something going and contend again, but they also got a pitcher who had shown some positive signs. The Yankees also sent Monteleone to the minors, before recalling him for a sub-par cup of coffee that September.
Monteleone returned to the big league roster in 1991 and found some success, at least stats-wise. Often used in a multi-inning role, he posted a 3.64 ERA (115 ERA+) in 47 innings. The following year, he was even better. Pitching in over 90 innings, he put up a 3.30 ERA. He recorded seven wins, which was third on the team in total, starter or reliever.
The next season wasn’t as good, though, as Monteleone’s ERA was just under five in over 80 innings pitched. The Yankees let him walk in free agency after that year, and he signed with the Giants. He bounced back in the strike-shortened 1994 season, with a 126 ERA+. He also served as San Francisco’s player representative in the MLBPA throughout that turbulent time.
With the 1995 season still in flux to start, Monteleone went to Japan and joined the Chunichi Dragons. However, he didn’t have the best of years there and returned to his old Angels team later in the year. A free agent again to start 1996, Monteleone re-signed with the Yankees. However, he never actually appeared again with the team, starting in the minors before being sent back to the Angels for Mike Aldrete, who would be a bench option for the ‘96 World Series-winning Yankees. Monteleone pitched a handful of innings for the Angels in ‘96 before retiring following that season.
After giving up playing, Monteleone got into coaching, where he would end up back with the Yankees. He was the pitching coach in the organization at various minor league levels, and was the big league team’s bullpen coach from 2002-04. After that, he stayed with the organization through 2008 as a special instructor.
Monteleone’s numbers were hardly ever dominant, but at least for a couple years in the early 1990s, they were decent enough for a Yankees team that often wasn’t getting even that.
See more of the “Yankees Birthday of the Day” series here.
