Nicknamed the "Bahnsen Burner", he once made 118 starts over a three-year stretch while playing with the Chicago White Sox in the mid-1970s.

He made the club, and went 17–12 with a team-best 2.05 ERA and struck out a career-high 162 batters to be named the American League Rookie of the Year.

Perhaps the most famous moment of his Yankee career from that point forward was a brawl with the Cleveland Indians' Vada Pinson in which he was knocked down with one punch.

[3] Bahnsen was traded from the Yankees to the Chicago White Sox for Rich McKinney at the Winter Meetings on December 2, 1971.

[4] White Sox manager Chuck Tanner employed a unique strategy with his starting rotation for the 1972 season.

In one of those 18 wins, a 4–0 shutout over the Cleveland Indians on August 21 at Municipal Stadium, Bahnsen had a no-hitter broken up with two out in the ninth on a single by former teammate Walt Williams.

He was 4–6 in twelve starts when he was dealt along with Skip Pitlock from the White Sox to the Oakland Athletics for Dave Hamilton and Chet Lemon at the non-waiver trade deadline on June 15, 1975.

Shortly afterwards, he signed a minor league deal with the Philadelphia Phillies, and went 4–3 with a 4.89 ERA for the triple A Oklahoma City 89ers.