If you look at Baseball Reference WAR, pitcher Duke Maas was technically a below-replacement level pitcher during his seven-year MLB career. He finished with a -0.2 rWAR, including -2.2 with the Yankees. FanGraphs differs wildly, placing it above par 6.1. The difference likely comes from the fact that he had high ERAs over his career, but lower FIP numbers. No matter which way you look at it, Maas is not a household name in Yankees or baseball history.
That being said, Maas still has a place in it and is the answer to at least one notable trivia question. Today would have also been his 97th birthday, so let’s take a look back at his career.
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Duane Frederick “Duke” Maas
Born: January 31, 1929 (Utica, Michigan)
Deceased: December 7, 1976 (Mount Clemens, Michigan)
Yankee Mandate: 1958-61
Born in 1929 in Michigan, Duane Maas took the nickname “Duke” as a child. he didn’t like his first name. He grew up working on the family farm and said milking the farm’s cows helped strengthen his wrist. Farm work also kept him from playing organized baseball until he was on his high school team when he was a senior.
Maas apparently got into baseball pretty quickly after that, because at the end of that season his high school coach wrote to the Detroit Tigers offering him a tryout and the team eventually signed him before the 1949 season. Although he was signed very quickly, it took him a while to work his way to the majors.
Not counting two seasons in 1951-52 when he served in the Army during the Korean War, Maas played parts of five seasons in the minor leagues before being called up. However, steady improvement during those seasons eventually earned him a trip to the Tigers’ spring training in 1955 and eventually earned him a spot in Detroit’s rotation.
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Maas ended up appearing in 18 games – making 16 starts – for the Tigers in 1955, going 5-6 with a 4.88 ERA. He ended up being sent back to the minors and was replaced on the big league roster by future Hall of Famer Jim Bunning. Maas got another chance in 1956, but struggled even more, going 0-7 with an ERA over six.
Another stint in the minor leagues allowed Maas to get back on track and he returned to the major leagues with Detroit in 1957. This time he took his chances, putting up a 3.28 ERA in 219.1 innings. While he still started the majority of his games (and was 10-14 in an era when that would have mattered a lot), the Tigers also gave him work in the bullpen and he recorded six saves as well.
Despite this, Maas found himself traded to the Kansas City Athletics after the season. He was part of a big 13-player contract that included Billy Martin to the Tigers. After getting off to a good start in Kansas City in 1958, Maas ended up being traded to the Yankees. a lot of A’s from that era did it.
After the trade, Maas was decent down the stretch, posting a 3.82 ERA in 22 games, including 13 starts. He started on September 14 against his former Athletic teammates. That day, he put up a solid 8.1 innings as the Yankees won and clinched the AL pennant. In that year’s World Series, Maas would have been in contention to start for the Yankees in Game 3, but he ended up being needed to clean up. Game 2 after starter Bob Turley was eliminated after just 0.1 innings. Maas also struggled and ended up recording just one takedown, after allowing three runs. This ended up being his only appearance in the Series, although the Yankees ended up winning it in seven games, giving Maas his only World Series ring.
Maas never reached those heights again. His 4.43 ERA in 1959 was below average, then he dealt with arm injury problems in 1960. He made an appearance out of the bullpen in Game 1 of the 1960 World Series, but the Yankees would lose that game and, famously, the Series in seven.
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After the 1960 season, Maas found himself unprotected for the expansion draft of the Angels and new Senators teams. The Angels ended up selecting him with one of their picks. The Yankees were not happy about having to leave him unprotected, however, and ultimately bought him out before he appeared in a game for the Angels.
However, he only appeared in one other game as a Yankee. After allowing two runs in just 0.1 innings in an April 1961 game, the Yankees sent Maas back to the minors. He continued to deal with arm injuries there and struggled with the Triple-A Richmond Virginians. The Yankees cut bait with him and Mass gave up baseball and returned to his native Michigan. He lived and worked there until he died of congestive heart failure at the too-young age of 47 in 1976.
Maas was clearly well-liked by his Yankees teammates. Although he only recorded one out during the 1961 season, the Yankees still gave him a share after he won that year’s World Series. He was also invited to an Alumni Day game after his playing career. He may not be a household name, but you don’t have to be to make an impact.
See more of the “Anniversary of Yankees Day” series here.
