November 22, 1977: The New York Yankees sign free agent pitcher Rich Gossage. The fireballing "Goose" had been a star reliever for the Chicago White Sox from 1972 to 1975. The White Sox tried him as a starting pitcher in 1976, with less success. In 1977, they traded him to the Pittsburgh Pirates for slugging outfielder Richie Zisk, knowing that they would lose Gossage to free agency, and wanting to get something for him.
Yankees owner George Steinbrenner offered Gossage $3.6 million over 6 years, even though the Yankees had the American League's reigning Cy Young Award winner, Sparky Lyle. Lyle didn't like that, and, as 3rd baseman Graig Nettles put it, "Sparky went from Cy Young to Sayonara."
Yankee manager Billy Martin didn't like the acquisition, either, and didn't trust Gossage. But when the Yankees fell to 14 games behind the Boston Red Sox in the AL Eastern Division in 1978, Martin resigned one step ahead of Steinbrenner's axe. The new manager, Bob Lemon, was a Hall of Fame pitcher, and he trusted Gossage.
The results were staggering. Gossage led the AL in saves. On September 3, he came into the 9th inning of a home game against the Seattle Mariners with a 1-run lead, the bases loaded, and nobody out, and struck out the side.
He pitched the last 2 1/3rd innings of the Playoff for the Division title against the Red Sox, the Bucky Dent Game. He also closed out the clinching Game 4 of the AL Championship Series against the Kansas City Royals, and the clinching Game 6 of the World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers. He thus became the 1st pitcher ever to get the final out of a Division title clincher, a Pennant clincher, and a World Series clincher in the same year.
He led the AL in saves again in 1980, and helped the Yankees win another Pennant in 1981. His contract having run out after the 1983 season, he signed with the San Diego Padres, and helped them win their 1st Pennant in 1984. He retired in 1994, during that season's strike. He was the only player to have been active during every MLB work stoppage, from 1972 to 1994.
He finished his career with a record of 124-107, 310 saves, 9 All-Star Game berths, 5 trips to the postseason, and a 1978 World Series ring. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, and the Yankees gave him a plaque in their Monument Park. He remains beloved by Yankee fans.
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November 22, 1977 was a Tuesday. Baseball was out of season. Football was in midweek. There were 6 games in the NBA:
* The New York Knicks lost to the Buffalo Braves, 102-101 at Madison Square Garden. Bob McAdoo scored 36 in defeat for the Knicks.
* The Philadelphia 76ers beat the Houston Rockets, 105-99 at The Spectrum in Philadelphia.
* The Denver Nuggets beat the Washington Bullets, 119-114 at the Capital Centre in the Washington suburb of Landover, Maryland.
* The New Orleans Saints beat the Indiana Pacers, 123-108 at the Superdome in New Orleans. "Pistol" Pete Maravich scored 34 points.
* The Milwaukee Bucks beat the Golden State Warriors, 109-88 at the Milwaukee Exposition & Convention Center Arena, a.k.a. The MECCA. (It's now the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena.)
* And the Phoenix Suns beat the Los Angeles Lakers, 118-107 at the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix.
There were 3 games in the NHL:
* The New York Islanders beat the Colorado Rockies, 4-2 at the Nassau Coliseum.
* The Atlanta Flames beat the Minnesota North Stars, 4-2 at The Omni in Atlanta.
* And the Pittsburgh Penguins and Vancouver Canucks played to a tie, 3-3 at the Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver.
And there were 2 games in the World Hockey Association. The Quebec Nordiques beat the New England Whalers, 5-4 at the Colisée de Québec. And the Edmonton Oilers beat the Winnipeg Jets, 4-2 at the Northlands Coliseum in Edmonton.
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