There have been six players in the long history of the Yankees to be born on January 8th. Of them, there’ve been two career minor leaguers who made brief, one-year appearances (Breyvic Valera, Kevin Whelan), a World Series champion reliever (Brian Boehringer), a veteran starter who threw a total of 1.2 innings in pinstripes (Jeff Francis), a monumental free agent bust (Carl Pavano), and our man today, Jason Giambi.
The Giambino played 20 seasons in the majors, spending seven in New York. The titanic
slugger’s tenure was ill-timed, as he arrived two years after the end of the dynasty and departed a year before the franchise’s 27th title, but he was a staple in the Yankees lineup for much of the 2000s.
Jason Giambi
Born: January 8, 1971 (West Covina, California)
Yankees Tenure: 2002-08
Giambi was drafted out of high school in the 43rd round by the Brewers in 1989, but elected to go to Long Beach State, re-entering the draft three years later and being selected in the second round by the Athletics in 1992.
He made his major league debut in May 1995 at the age of 24, playing 54 games, split between first and third base. It didn’t take the slugger very long to become a mainstay in the heart of the lineup, especially after Mark McGwire was traded to St. Louis in 1997 to allow him to assume the full-time first base job.
After making two All-Star teams, leading the majors in OBP twice, and putting the 2000 AL MVP on his mantle, Giambi hit free agency after coming runner-up in MVP voting in 2001, promising to be one of the biggest free agents of all time after a sensational .342/477/.660 season. He, like many others on small-market teams throughout history, found his salvation in the Bronx, signing a seven-year, $120 million deal at the expense of his long hair and goatee.
The Yankees were looking to get back on track after losing in Game 7 of the 2001 World Series and made a splash with Giambi, whose stats went down in New York, but still posted a .314/.435/.598 slashline with 41 home runs, a third All-Star appearance, and a third straight top-five MVP performance in 2002. He had a solid postseason, going 5-for-14 with a home run and three RBI, but the Yankees’ four-year pennant streak ended in the ALDS.
Giambi led the American League in both walks and strikeouts in 2003 as a three true outcome pioneer, but hit a career low .250 despite another All-Star appearance. He came up big in October, hitting two home runs in Game 7 of the ALCS against the Red Sox, although he was overshadowed by Aaron Boone.
The next year was an extremely rough one for Giambi, who suffered through an internal parasite and a benign tumor that destroyed his season after a strong start. Despite this, his popularity got him voted into the 2004 All-Star Game, although he didn’t participate due to being on the injured list. There was also this thing called the BALCO scandal that permanently tarnished his legacy, as Giambi admitted to steroid usage. The Yankees tried to use this to their advantage after 2004 to get out of his contract after the 33-year-old’s rough season, but they shot themselves in the foot by removing language in his contract that would’ve allowed them to do so.
Still, his woes in 2004 were truly just because of his medical issues, as he rebounded to post a 161 OPS+ in 139 games, blasting another 32 homers and leading the AL in OBP for the third time in his career, winning Comeback Player of the Year. He got downballot MVP votes in both 2005 and 2006, but never made another All-Star team. As he entered his mid-to-late-thirties, he gracefully declined, staying an above average player through the conclusion of his contract in 2008 despite missing time with injuries.
He ended his Yankees tenure with a .260/.404/.521 slash with 209 home runs, 604 RBI, and a 143 OPS+ in seven seasons before signing a one-year deal to rejoin the Athletics for 2009. He even had the last hit at old Yankee Stadium before it closed in September 2008.
Giambi had a mediocre half-season back in Oakland before playing 19 games with Colorado to end the season after a midseason release. He signed an extension in the offseason, producing one more great season (albeit in 64 games) at age 40 in 2011 before playing 97 games with Cleveland from 2012-13 to end his career.
He truly had a career that was worthy of Hall of Fame consideration, but he never had a chance with the BALCO scandal. He’s done well in retirement life, even returning for Old Timer’s Day on a few occasions.
See more of the “Yankees Birthday of the Day” series here.
