Managed by Buck Showalter, the team finished with a record of 79–65, seven games behind the Boston Red Sox, and returned to postseason play for the first time since the 1981 season.
Infielders Manager Coaches Shortly before his death, Mantle videotaped a message to be played on Old-Timers' Day, which he was too ill to attend.
The words were indeed carved on the plaque marking his resting place at the family mausoleum in Dallas.
Mantle received a liver transplant at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, on June 8, 1995, after his liver had been damaged by years of chronic alcoholism, cirrhosis and hepatitis C. In July, he had recovered enough to deliver a press conference at Baylor, and noted that many fans had looked to him as a role model.
The Yankees played the rest of the season with black mourning bands topped by a small number 7 on their left sleeves.