In the summer of 1990, Yankees fans were struggling through a season where nothing seemed to be going right. Their star first-baseman saw his power evaporate, Dave Winfield was traded out of town, and the team fell out of the race early in the season. Then unheralded prospect Kevin Maas arrived from the minors and went on a hot streak that has became the measuring stick for offensive breakouts until Gary Sanchez’s 2016 outburst.
The Yankees entered 1990 set at first base, as Don Mattingly was coming off six straight All-Star appearances and was among the best players in the game.