Editor’s Forenote: I have decided to make an article series highlighting the players of the West Haven Yankees. A total of 28 players recorded at least 0.1 inning of play time throughout West Haven’s inaugural season in 1972.
This series will start with each individual player of the 1972 Yankees, showcasing their season and where their career(s) went post-West Haven.
We will begin this ‘Forgotten West Haven Yankees’ series with Yankees’ starting pitcher Richard Earle, who was just 20-years-old when he came to West Haven.
Richard Earle was New York’s second-round pick of the 1970 draft. At 18-years-old, Earle’s name was called straight out of high school by the Yankees.
Earle posted a 6-win season in 9 possible decisions, while in rookie ball in 1970, making a quick impression on the Yankees front office.
A 2.49 ERA in 188.0 Single-A innings was impressive and dominant. Now add in his 167 strikeouts for his 1971 season and that was more than enough to send the righty up to New York’s new Double-AA club in 1972, the West Haven Yankees.
His 6-foot-1 stature stood tall on the mound of Quigley, but over 26 games (25 started), Earle recorded a wild pitch to make up more than half of them.
The New Jersey native was never a big strikeout guy post-1971, and his debut West Haven season showed for it: 78 strikeouts in 160.0 innings.
Earle relied more on soft contact outs, which obviously plays with fire. Nevertheless he was able to keep his WHIP below 1.500, but did allow at least 1 hit per inning on average.
Richard Earle’s 1972 stat line features a 11-5 record, 3.88 ERA (69 ERs), 1.406 WHIP over 26 games and 188.0 innings, which featured 6 complete games and 1 save.
Earle would only be used on 9 occasions over the course of 1973 between AA and AAA.
A combined 6.75 ERA is made up from only 20 innings pitched between levels. Earle battled injury for the majority of the ‘73 season, which impacted his performance and ultimately led to him being out of the league entirely post-1974.
Earle’s 1973 time with West Haven featured 16.0 innings pitched and allowing 8 earned runs in 7 games, but only 3 of which were starts.
Richard found himself back with Fort Lauderdale in Single-A ball in 2974.
His brief time back in West Haven, only consisted of him pitching 22.0 innings over 7 appearances, which once again only featured 3 starts.
Earle would be out of the league entirely post-1974, having spent 40-out-of-94 of his career games with West Haven.
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