Rich Yett
A right-handed reliever who carved out a six-year major league career, primarily with the Cleveland Indians.
Born 1962 (age 64)·American baseball player·Birthday: October 6·Baby Boomers
Biography
Rich Yett's baseball journey is one of persistence and the specialized craft of relief pitching. Drafted by the Cleveland Indians in 1983, he made his major league debut two years later and became a fixture in their bullpen for much of his career. Yett wasn't a flamethrowing closer but a dependable arm often called upon in the middle innings, a role that requires a specific mental fortitude. His best season came in 1986 when he appeared in a career-high 54 games, posting a 3.86 ERA over 91 innings of work. After parts of five seasons with Cleveland, his career moved through brief stops with the Toronto Blue Jays and the Baltimore Orioles organization. While his statistics may not leap off the page, Yett's decade-long professional tenure, with six seasons at the game's highest level, represents a tangible success story in a field where only a small fraction ever make it to the big leagues.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Rich was born in 1962, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Rich Was Born
The biggest hits of 1962
#1 Movie
Lawrence of Arabia
Best Picture
Lawrence of Arabia
#1 TV Show
Beverly Hillbillies
Rich's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1962Born
Cuban Missile Crisis brings the world to the brink
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,800Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Stranger on the Shore" — Acker BilkBest Picture: Lawrence of Arabia
1967Started school
Summer of Love in San Francisco; first Super Bowl
Gas: $0.33/galHome: $14,250Min wage: $1.40/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"To Sir, with Love" — LuluBest Picture: In the Heat of the Night
1975Became a teenager
Fall of Saigon ends the Vietnam War
Gas: $0.57/galHome: $27,600Min wage: $2.10/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Love Will Keep Us Together" — Captain & TennilleBest Picture: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
1978Could drive
First test-tube baby born
Gas: $0.63/galHome: $35,300Min wage: $2.65/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Shadow Dancing" — Andy GibbBest Picture: The Deer Hunter
1980Could vote
John Lennon shot and killed in New York
Gas: $1.19/galHome: $47,200Min wage: $3.10/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Call Me" — BlondieBest Picture: Ordinary People
1983Turned 21
Internet adopts TCP/IP, creating the modern internet
Gas: $1.16/galHome: $57,700Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Every Breath You Take" — The PoliceBest Picture: Terms of Endearment
1992Turned 30
LA riots after Rodney King verdict
Gas: $1.13/galHome: $84,300Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"End of the Road" — Boyz II MenBest Picture: Unforgiven
2002Turned 40
Euro currency enters circulation
Gas: $1.36/galHome: $137,800Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"How You Remind Me" — NickelbackBest Picture: Chicago
2012Turned 50
Curiosity rover lands on Mars; Sandy Hook shooting
Gas: $3.64/galHome: $143,200Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Somebody That I Used to Know" — GotyeBest Picture: Argo
2022Turned 60
Russia invades Ukraine; Queen Elizabeth II dies
Gas: $3.97/galHome: $348,700Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Joe Biden"As It Was" — Harry StylesBest Picture: Everything Everywhere All at Once
2026Age 64 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Pitched in 187 major league games over six seasons, primarily for the Cleveland Indians.
- Recorded a career-best 3.86 ERA over 91 innings during the 1986 season.
- Appeared in 54 games in 1986, leading the Indians pitching staff in relief appearances that year.
Did You Know?
He was drafted in the 3rd round of the 1983 MLB draft out of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
His final major league appearance was for the Toronto Blue Jays in 1990.
He shares his birth year (1962) with fellow MLB players like David Cone and John Smoltz.
“My job was to get the ball to the next guy and keep the game close.”
