Card-by-Yankees Card: 1977 Topps - Len Randle (Article 38)

by Paul Semendinger

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Yes, Lenny Randle was a Yankee. He was a Yankees for all of 20-games in 1979.

In 1979, Lenny Randle played in a grand total of just 20 games in the big leagues. That year he spent most of the season playing in the Pacific Coast League in the Giants and Pirates organizations. (The Giants traded Randle, then in the minors, to the Pirates in the trade that also sent Bill Madlock to the Pirates. One of the players the Giants received in return in that trade was Ed Whitson.)

As a big leaguer, 1979 wasn’t all that pretty for Lenny Randle. He had a -0.5 bWAR. He batted just .179. His slugging percentage that year was .179. (No, that’s not a typo.) Randle walked three times to make his On Base Percentage .238.

In 1979, Lenny Randle had seven hits. They were all singles.

And, because these types of things are too much fun to research, the following were the pitchers Lenny Randle singled off of in 1979:

1. Rich Wortham (White Sox) – August 9

2. Darrell Jackson (Twins) – August 19

3. Larry Gura (Royals) – August 22

4. Geoff Zahn (Twins) – August 24

5. Geoff Zahn (Twins) – August 24 (yes, he had two hits that day)

6. John Henry Johnson (Rangers) – August 28

7. Larry Gura (Royals) – August 30

   
   

And that was it. Four of his hits came off pitchers who were considered “Yankee killers” in that era (Geoff Zahn and Larry Gura).

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I found it interesting that Lenny is named "Len" on his 1977 baseball card. I always knew this player as "Lenny." That forced me down another rabbit hole...

In regard to Randle's Topps regular card issues his name appears in the following ways:

• 1972 - Lenny Randle

• 1973 - Lenny Randle

• 1974 - Len Randle

• 1975 - Len Randle

• 1976 - Len Randle

• 1977 - Len Randle

• 1978 - Len Randle

• 1979 - Len Randle

• 1980 - No Card Issued (maybe due to the season with only seven singles in 1979)

• 1981 - Lenny Randle

• 1982 - Lenny Randle

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Lenny Randle appeared (as "Lenny") as a Yankee on a baseball card only once - in a 1991 set produced for the appliance store The Wiz.

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After the 1979 season, Randle was signed by the Seattle Mariners, but he then was sold to the Chicago Cubs. He did well that year – batting .276 and appearing in 130 games. He then went to the Mariners where he finished out his career as an American big leaguer in 1982.

Lenny Randle then went to Italy where he became a superstar winning a batting title with a .477 batting average. But that’s not my story to tell. My story was above.

For the rest of the Lenny Randle story, you should read the following: Lenny Randle: SABR Biography Project