Rookie of the Year: Steve Sax, 1982

Second Baseman, Los Angeles Dodgers

Age:  22

Bats – Right, Throws – Right

Height: 5’11” Weight: 185 

Prior to 1982:

A native of Sacramento, California, Sax was All-City and All-State as a junior in high school playing shortstop and third base. He hit .357 as a junior and was named MVP of the Golden Empire League. Chosen by the Dodgers in the ninth round of the 1978 amateur draft, he signed (along with his undrafted brother Dave). Assigned to Lethbridge of the Rookie-level Pioneer League in ‘78, Sax batted .328 with a .405 on-base percentage in 39 games. Initially playing shortstop, he was tried in the outfield and at third base in 1979 with Clinton of the Class A Midwest League, finally being placed at second base for the first time. He hit .290 with 19 extra base hits and a .380 OBP. A full-time second baseman with Vero Beach of the Class A Florida State League in 1980, he hit 283 with 18 doubles, 8 triples, 33 stolen bases, and a .349 OBP. Promoted to San Antonio of the Class AA Texas League in 1981, he batted .346 with 23 doubles, 8 home runs, 34 stolen bases, and a .400 OBP prior to being called up to the Dodgers in August due to an injury to veteran second baseman Dave Lopes. In his first 31 games of major league action, he hit .277 and, with Lopes back in action at second base saw limited action in the postseason, which ended with a Dodger World Series title. With Lopes dealt to Oakland in February of ’82, Sax won the starting job in spring training, and he quickly became a popular player due to his hustling style of play.

1982 Season Summary

Appeared in 150 games

2B – 149, PH – 1, PR – 1

[Bracketed numbers indicate NL rank in Top 20]

Batting

Plate Appearances – 699 [7]

At Bats – 638 [7]

Runs – 88 [16]

Hits – 180 [7]

Doubles – 23

Triples – 7 [11, tied with six others]

Home Runs – 4

RBI – 47

Bases on Balls – 49

Int. BB – 1

Strikeouts – 53

Stolen Bases – 49 [5]

Caught Stealing – 19 [4]

Average - .282

OBP - .335

Slugging Pct. - .359

Total Bases – 229

GDP – 10

Hit by Pitches – 2

Sac Hits – 10 [17, tied with four others]

Sac Flies – 0

Midseason snapshot: 3B – 5, HR – 0, RBI – 28, AVG - .279, OBP - .341

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Most hits, game – 3 on thirteen occasions

Longest hitting streak – 16 games

Most HR, game – 1 on four occasions

HR at home – 2

HR on road – 2

Multi-HR games – 0

Most RBIs, game – 3 vs. Atlanta 6/8, at Houston 6/27, at Atlanta 9/8 – 10 innings

Pinch-hitting – 1 for 1 (1.000) 

Fielding

Chances – 818

Put Outs – 347

Assists – 452

Errors – 19

DP - 83

Pct. - .977

Awards & Honors:

NL Rookie of the Year: BBWAA

All-Star

NL ROY Voting (Top 6):

Steve Sax, LAD: 63 points – 9 of 24 first place votes, 53% share

Johnny Ray, Pitt.: 57 points – 6 first place votes, 48% share

Willie McGee, StL.: 39 points – 5 first place votes, 33% share

Chili Davis, SF: 32 points – 3 first place votes, 27% share

Luis DeLeon, SD: 10 points – 8% share

Ryne Sandberg, ChiC.: 9 points – 1 first place vote, 8% share

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Dodgers went 88-74 to finish second in the NL Western Division, 1 game behind the division-winning Atlanta Braves. The Dodgers were unimpressive during the season’s first half and were in third place in the NL West, 10.5 games behind the Braves on July 30. Winning 12 of their next 13 games propelled the club into first place. The lead proved tenuous to hold but as they finished the season with a series in San Francisco which they entered two games out of first, they lost the season finale to end up just behind Atlanta.

Aftermath of 1982:

Impressive in the field during his rookie season, Sax began to experience difficulty making routine throws in 1983. By the All-Star break he had committed 24 errors, but he committed only six more the rest of the way. His hitting production was steady at .281 with 18 doubles, 5 triples, 5 home runs, and 41 RBIs. He also scored 94 runs, stole 56 bases (although he was caught stealing a league-leading 30 times), and had a .342 OBP. Prior to the 1984 season, Sax received a five-year contract extension from the Dodgers. He again was briefly bothered by making errant throws, but he ended up committing fewer errors than in ’83. His batting declined to .243 with a .300 OBP. Rebounding along with the club in 1985, his defense was steady at second base, and he hit .279 with 27 stolen bases and a .352 OBP. In 1986, a 25-game September hitting streak pulled Sax up to a .332 average for the year along with a .390 OBP, 43 doubles, 6 home runs, 56 RBIs, 91 runs scored, and 40 stolen bases. Following off-season foot surgery, Sax had another solid season in 1987, hitting .280 with a .331 OBP, 22 doubles, 7 triples, 6 home runs, 46 RBIs, and 37 stolen bases. Following several disappointing seasons, the Dodgers returned to the top of the NL West in 1988 and Sax contributed by batting .277 with 175 hits, 5 home runs, 57 RBIs, 42 stolen bases, and a .325 OBP. He further added key hits as LA defeated the Mets in the NLCS and upset the Oakland Athletics in the World Series. A free agent in the offseason, Sax signed with the New York Yankees. An American League All-Star in 1989, he batted .315 with 205 hits, 88 runs scored, 26 doubles, 5 home runs, 63 RBIs, 43 stolen bases, and a .364 OBP while performing well defensively as he led the league with a .987 fielding percentage while committing only 10 errors. With a last-place club that was offensively challenged in 1990, Sax hit .260 with a .316 OBP and stole another 43 bases. In one final season in the Bronx in 1991, Sax boosted his average to .304 and his on-base percentage to .345, while slugging a career-high 10 home runs along with 56 RBIs and 31 stolen bases. In the offseason he was traded to the Chicago White Sox for three pitchers. He struggled in 1992, batting .236 and leading all AL second basemen by committing 20 errors. Losing his starting job to Joey Cora in 1993, Sax appeared in just 57 games, mostly in left field or as Designated Hitter, and hit .235. Released by the White Sox in 1994, he finished his career with the Oakland Athletics. For his major league career, Sax batted .281 with 1949 hits that included 278 doubles, 47 triples, and 54 home runs. He scored 913 runs and compiled 550 RBIs, 444 stolen bases, and a .335 OBP. With the Dodgers he batted .282 with 1218 hits, 159 doubles, 35 triples, 30 home runs, 333 RBIs, 574 runs scored, 290 stolen bases, and a .339 OBP. Appearing in 26 postseason games, he hit .276 with 4 RBIs and 7 stolen bases. Sax was a five-time All-Star (three with LA) and was awarded a Silver Slugger in 1986. Among other things following his playing career, Sax worked as a commentator for ESPN and was a baseball analyst for Fox. Remembered as an intense, hustling, and durable player who was typically a solid second baseman despite occasional lapses. His brother Dave played for the Dodgers and Red Sox between 1982 and ’87.

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Rookie of the Year Profiles feature players who were recipients of the Rookie of the Year Award by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (1947 to present). The award was presented to a single major league winner from its inception through 1948 and from 1949 on to one recipient from each major league.