If you look at Baseball Reference WAR, pitcher Duke Maas was technically a below replacement level pitcher over his seven year MLB career. He finished with a -0.2 rWAR, -2.2 of which came with the Yankees. FanGraphs vastly differs, having him at an above par 6.1. The difference likely comes from having high ERAs over the course of his career, but having lower FIP numbers. However you look at it, Maas is hardly a household name in Yankees or baseball history.
That being said, Maas still has a place there, and is the answer to at least one notable trivia question. Today also would’ve been his 97th birthday, so let’s look back at his career.
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Duane Frederick “Duke” Maas
Born: January 31, 1929 (Utica, MI)
Died: December 7, 1976 (Mount Clemens, MI)
Yankee Tenure: 1958-61
Born in 1929 in Michigan, Duane Maas took on the nickname “Duke” as a child, as he disliked his given first name. He grew up working on his family’s farm and said that milking the farm’s cows helped strengthen his wrist. The farm work also kept him from playing any organized baseball until he made his high school’s team when he was a senior.
Maas apparently took to baseball quite quickly after that, as by the end of that season, his high school coach was writing to the Detroit Tigers to get him a tryout and the team eventually signed him before the 1949 season. While he got signed very quickly, it then took awhile for him to make his way to the majors.
Not including two seasons in 1951-52 where he served in the military during the Korean War, Maas played parts of five seasons in the minor leagues before he was called up. However, steady improvement over the course of those seasons eventually earned him a trip to Tigers spring training in 1955, and eventually got 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 getting 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 minor league stint allowed Maas to get back on track and he returned to the majors with Detroit in 1957. This time, he took his chance, putting up a 3.28 ERA in 219.1 innings. While he was still starting in the majority of his games (and went 10-14 in an era where that would’ve mattered a lot), the Tigers also gave him some bullpen work, and he recorded six saves as well.
Despite that, Maas found himself traded to the Kansas City Athletics after the season. He was part of a large 13-player deal that most notably sent Billy Martin to the Tigers. After getting off to a decent start in Kansas City in 1958, Maas ended up traded to the Yankees, as many A’s of that era did.
Following the trade, Maas was decent down the stretch, putting up a 3.82 ERA in 22 games, 13 of which were starts. He was the starter on September 14th against his former Athletics teammates. That day, he went 8.1 solid innings as the Yankees won and clinched the AL pennant. That year in the World Series, Maas was reportedly in line to start for the Yankees in Game 3, but ended up being needed to clean up in Game 2 after starter Bob Turley was knocked out after just 0.1 innings. Maas also struggled and ended up recording just one out as well, having allowed three runs. That 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 quite reached those highs again. His 4.43 ERA in 1959 was below average, and then he dealt with arm injury issues in 1960. He did make 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 was left unprotected for the expansion draft for the Angels and new Senators teams. The Angels ended up selecting him with one of their picks. The Yankees weren’t thrilled at having to leave him unprotected though, and eventually reacquired him before he ever appeared in a game for the Angels.
However, he appeared in just one more game as a Yankee. After giving up two runs in just 0.1 innings in one April 1961 game, the Yankees sent Maas back to the minors. He continued to deal with arm injuries down 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 passed away from congestive heart failure at the too young age of 47 in 1976.
Maas was clearly liked by his Yankees’ teammates. Despite recording just one out in all of the 1961 season, the Yankees still awarded him a share after they won that year’s World Series. He also got invited to a Old-Timers’ Day game after his playing career. He may not be a household name, but you don’t need to be to make an impact.
See more of the “Yankees Birthday of the Day” series here.
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