Former Yankee Luis Arroyo passes away at 88

The following is from Adam Moss, who goes by Roadgeek Adam in the comments.

Yankees power lefty reliever and member of the 1961 championship team, Luis Enrique “Tite” Arroyo, has died at the age of 88 in the city of Ponce, Puerto Rico from cancer, which he had been diagnosed with in December. A reliever for the St. Louis Cardinals, Pittsburgh Pirates and Cincinnati Reds before coming to the Yankees in 1960, Arroyo surprised many people by getting off to a hot start in 1955 despite his portly-size and extended length in the minors. By the time the 1955 season ended, Arroyo (an All-Star) went downhill and finished with a 4.19 ERA and an 11-8 record. He continued to pitch around the minors and with the Pirates before reaching the Reds. The Reds sent him to Havana to play for the Sugar Kings in the International League. The team won the playoffs for the International League, finishing with a 1.15 ERA and Fidel Castro said it was a “happy day for Cuba.”

In 1960, Arroyo returned to the Havana Sugar Kings, but soon ended up in Jersey City, New Jersey. The Yankees selected his contract on July 20, 1960 after purchasing him from the Reds. Casey Stengel noted at the end of the season that Arroyo along with Billy Stafford did more than ever expected of him, helping in winning the 1960 American League pennant. Arroyo, despite his work in the late season (2.88 ERA), only appeared once in the 1960 World Series (Game 5, specifically). At that time in baseball, it was rare a 34-year-old was considered nothing less than old, especially for one with no specialty.

In 1961, the Yankees expected the same of Arroyo, despite the prediction of Sports Illustrated, stating that he would fall back. Arroyo was injured in Spring Training of 1961 when hit by a line drive by Jesse Gonder. He quickly returned, and Arroyo found himself facing the West Point cadets on April 14. Arroyo quickly established himself as the ace of the Yankees bullpen, and they decided that Ryne Duren was expendable. (Duren himself was on a flight to face the Angels when he because inebriated and grabbed the breasts of a flight attendant.) Duren was traded to the Angels along with several others for Bob Cerv and Truman Clevenger. Ford established himself as the personal reliever for Whitey Ford because of the fact that Whitey could not go nine innings anymore. Arroyo replaced Ford 24 times in 1961 and got saves in 13 of the wins Whitey started. At the end of the 1961 season, the left-handed Arroyo pitched in 65 games (a league lefty record at the time) with 29 saves, 15-5 record and a 2.19 ERA, helping Ralph Houk tremendously.

The 1962 season was different, Arroyo could not stand up the numbers he had posted in late 1960 and 1961, appearing in only 27 games and accumulating a 4.42 ERA. The next season, his arm completely gave out and he finished with a 13.50 ERA in just six games. On September 27, 1963, the Yankees released Arroyo and he never appeared in a Major League Baseball game ever again.

Thoughts and prayers go to the Arroyo family in this hard time, though Arroyo’s reputation as a portly old reliever that could never fully establish himself remains. He was vital for the 1960 and 1961 teams, but became just another arm with a 40-32 record and a 3.93 ERA. Arroyo was also the first player from Puerto Rico to play for the Yankees. Rest in peace, Tite.