Originally signed by the Yankees in 1946, it did not take him long to reach the Major Leagues. He made his debut on August 8, 1948 at the age of 24. He showed some promise in his rookie season, going 5 and 3 with a 4.50 ERA in 78 innings of work. Although he walked 34 and struck out only 30 batters, he threw only one wild pitch in that time so his control must not have been too much of a concern. While in the minors in 1948, he led the International League in ERA.\n', '

He spent the next couple years with the Yankees, never playing a full season with them. In his time with them, he wore the number 18, except in 1951, he wore 23.\n', '

On June 15, 1951, he was sent with Tom Ferrick and Fred Sanford to the Senators for Bob Kuzava. The Senators would end up getting the better of the deal. In less than three seasons with the Yankees, Kuzava would go 15 and 19 as a starter/reliever. In contrast, Ferrick went 6 and 3 with a 2.73 ERA in 49 relief appearances with the Senators. Although Stanford did not amount to much, Bob Porterfield was the gem of the trade. In 1952, he posted a mediocre 13 and 14 record, but he did post solid 2.72 ERA, which was good for seventh in the league.\n', '

Return to Bob Porterfield Autograph Profile