The Bronx Stop: A Yankees Blog

Allan Barra/Wall Street Journal:

One way of looking at Bobby Murcer's career is to say that it was plagued by bad luck. Murcer, who passed away Saturday at age 62 from brain cancer, was the last Yankee prospect to be cursed with the title of "The Next Mickey Mantle." Born, like Mantle, in Oklahoma and also signed by legendary scout Tom Greenwade, Bobby Ray, as his friends called him, made it to the major leagues in 1965, the year the Yankee dynasty collapsed. A shortstop when he signed his pro contract, as Mickey had been, Murcer was converted, also like Mantle, to the outfield and learned to play alongside his idol. But he spent two years in the Army and by the time he returned to the Yankees as a regular in 1969, Mickey had retired.

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