Feb. 27, 1963 - The world champion Yankees, who break a record almost every time they win a game, hit another home run, or turn around, performed another astonishing feat today. They signed a famous ballplayer, and they let the world know the exact amount they were paying him. The Yankees announced that Mickey Mantle would draw an even $100,000 in 1963, a pay raise of $15,000. Photographs of the contract, with even the minute detail of Mickey’s Social Security number standing out sharply, were taken for posterity. Only once before had the Yankees revealed the actual salary of a celebrity player. That was in the days when the late Col. Jacob Ruppert owned the Bombers. The Colonel would proudly wave the contracts Babe Ruth would sign amid considerable fanfare in St. Petersburg each spring. The Babe’s high was $80,000 in 1930 and 1931. Roger Maris, the forgotten man of 1962, also signed today for the same $72,000 he earned last year. Enjoying today’s show as much as anyone was the Yankee Clipper, Joe DiMaggio, now a guest instructor in the Yankee camp. Asked whether he had any particular advice for Mantle, Joe replied: “Save your money.”
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