NEW YORK — The Yankees have never honored a third baseman in Monument Park. Not one. In a franchise that spans more than a century, with seven outfielders enshrined and five managers immortalized behind the center-field wall, no player who manned the hot corner has ever received a plaque.
That absence has a name. It is Graig Nettles. And with the 50th anniversary of the landmark 1976 season approaching, the time to fix this has never been more urgent.
Nettles is 81 years old. He is dealing with physical struggles at his home in Tennessee. He has not been invited to Old-Timers’ Day in years. He was among the first spring training guest instructors cut during budget reductions. And he still has no idea why the franchise he helped resurrect in the 1970s has never given him the recognition that teammates with lesser credentials have received.
The career that built the case decades ago
Nettles arrived in New York through a November 1972 trade from Cleveland, engineered by Gabe Paul, the astute general manager who would soon join George Steinbrenner’s front office. Paul was later accused of conflict of interest for the deal, though he maintained that outfielder Charlie Spikes, the main piece going back to the Indians, was the Yankees’ top prospect at the time.
Over 11 seasons in the Bronx, Nettles became the greatest third baseman in Yankees history. He slashed .253/.329/.433 with 250 home runs, 834 RBIs and a 44.4 rWAR across 1,535 games. He earned five All-Star selections and two Gold Gloves. When he was traded to the Padres in May 1984, only Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio and Yogi Berra had hit more home runs as a Yankee.
In 1976, the season that ended the Yankees’ 12-year World Series drought, Nettles led the American League in home runs with 32. Reggie Jackson, then with the Orioles, was second at 27. That same year, Nettles became the central figure in the infamous May 20 brawl with the Red Sox, body-slamming Boston lefty Bill Lee and dislocating his shoulder.
His defensive masterpiece came in the 1978 World Series. With the Yankees trailing the Dodgers two games to none, Nettles put on one of the greatest fielding performances in Fall Classic history during Game 3. He made four spectacular diving stops at third base and recorded five assists, saving at least four and possibly seven runs in a 5-1 victory that turned the entire series. The Yankees won four straight from there.
In the 1981 ALCS, he hit .500 with two homers and nine RBIs against the Oakland A’s in a three-game sweep to earn series MVP honors. But a broken thumb in Game 2 of the World Series against the Dodgers limited him, and the Yankees lost that Fall Classic.
The only captain since Munson left off the wall
This is where the snub moves from puzzling to indefensible.
The Yankees have had only seven captains since Lou Gehrig was named to the role in 1923. Every captain since Thurman Munson’s death in 1979 has been honored in Monument Park or has had their number retired, with two exceptions: Aaron Judge, who is still active, and Graig Nettles.
In 1982, Steinbrenner named Nettles the first Yankees captain since Munson. It was a mark of deep respect from an owner who feuded with Nettles regularly but recognized his baseball intelligence and quiet clubhouse authority. After Nettles, the captaincy passed to Willie Randolph, then Ron Guidry, Don Mattingly, Derek Jeter and now Judge. All except Nettles and Judge have plaques behind the wall in center field.
His No. 9 is already retired by the Yankees, though it was retired for Roger Maris. As veteran columnist Bill Madden recently noted, the number could be shared, just as the Yankees retired No. 8 for both Yogi Berra and Bill Dickey.
The 1976 anniversary gives the Yankees the perfect stage
The 2026 season marks 50 years since Steinbrenner’s Yankees returned to the World Series for the first time since 1964. It was a defining moment. Steinbrenner had purchased the franchise from CBS in 1973 for $8.8 million and vowed to be back in the Fall Classic within five years. Paul got them there in three.
The roster Paul built through trades and signings, starting with Catfish Hunter in 1974, formed the core of three consecutive World Series teams from 1976 to 1978. Chris Chambliss and Dick Tidrow came from Cleveland. Willie Randolph and Dock Ellis arrived from Pittsburgh. Mickey Rivers and Ed Figueroa were acquired for Bobby Bonds. And Nettles, the quiet anchor at third base, was already in place.
The Yankees recently hired Randolph for pregame shows on the YES Network this summer, a development that creates a natural window to celebrate the 1976 season. Randolph himself made the case for his former teammate.
“Can’t tell you how thrilled I am be doing these pre-game shows for YES,” Randolph said. “Seven decades with the Yankees! I’ve seen a lot and I think I have a lot of knowledge to share. Those ’70s teams were really special and Graig was such a big part of them. It’s time for the Yankees to give him a little love.”
The divorce
The Yankees traded Graig Nettles to the San Diego Padres in March 1984 despite his role as captain. While age and declining offensive production at 39 were factors, the deeper issue centered on his strained relationship with owner George Steinbrenner.
Tension escalated after Nettles published his book Balls, which sharply criticized the Yankees’ front office and clubhouse environment. The release further fractured trust between player and ownership. At the same time, Nettles was facing a reduced role as the organization looked to get younger at third base.
He also preferred playing closer to his California home, aligning with San Diego as a logical destination. The trade became less about statistics and more about ending a deteriorating relationship, resolving clubhouse friction, and allowing both sides to move forward.
A franchise that knows its history should act like it
The Yankees pride themselves on tradition more than any franchise in professional sports. The Monument Park plaques, the retired numbers, the Old-Timers’ Day celebrations. These rituals are what separate the Yankees from every other team in baseball.
But tradition without accuracy is just pageantry. And right now, the Yankees are telling an incomplete story. No third baseman has ever been honored behind the wall. The man who ranks 15th in franchise history by WAR, who anchored the defense on two championship teams, who was trusted enough to carry the captaincy after Munson, remains on the outside.
In 1971 with Cleveland, Nettles set major league records for most assists (412) and most double plays (54) by a third baseman in a single season. Those records still stand more than five decades later. He finished his career with 390 home runs, the most by any American League third baseman at the time of his retirement.
The 50th anniversary of 1976 will come and go. The YES Network pregame shows with Randolph will air. Fans will remember the pennant, the Big Red Machine sweep, the promise of what was coming next.
The question is whether the Yankees will use this moment to finally give Graig Nettles what he earned a long time ago. He is 81. He is struggling physically. And the wall in center field still has a hole where his plaque should be.
What do you think? Leave your comment below.
