About the Off-Season: A Few of My Favorites
By Tim Kabel
January 22, 2024
***
As I am packing for my move to the proverbial deluxe apartment in the sky much like George and Weezy, I am going through a lot of boxes of things from my office and my home. I worked at my job for 30 years and I have lived in this home for 20 years. There are a lot of items to sort through. Much of it is headed for the dump, as quite frankly, it is garbage, Think of Jonathan Winters' pronunciation as you read that word. As they say, one man's garbage is another man's trash.
However, I am also finding things that always brought a smile to my face or I simply enjoyed. It brought to mind the song, A Few of My Favorite Things. In my opinion, the best version of that song is by Julie Andrews. That thought naturally led me to another and I have decided to make a list of my favorite Yankees. I will go through my memory bank and list a team of my favorite players by position. They are not necessarily the best players I have ever seen at the position.
These are simply my favorite Yankees at each position. That is another qualifying factor. I need to have actually seen the player in action. Therefore, I don't want to be chastised for omitting Babe Ruth since I am not actually 123 years old.
Catcher- Thurman Munson. He was not only my favorite catcher but also my favorite player of all time. I don't see anyone ever replacing him as my favorite.
First Baseman- Don Mattingly. Before he was injured, he could absolutely dominate the game. He was equally as good in the field as he was at bat.
Second Baseman - Willie Randolph. He was a solid player and a class act. I enjoyed watching him and always felt that he should have been a Yankee for life.
Shortstop- Fred "Chicken" Stanley. I was just seeing if you were paying attention. In the words of the Hound on Game of Thrones, "I think I'll take two chickens." I don't see how I can ever pick anyone other than Derek Jeter.
Third Baseman- Graig Nettles. I did like Mike Pagliarulo but there was only one Nettles.
Leftfield- This one may come as a bit of a surprise. I always liked Melky Cabrera. I know he played all three outfield positions, but the other two spots were taken. He never became a great player and his Yankees' career was not very long, but I have a soft spot in my heart for the Melkman.
Centerfield- Bernie Williams. I like Mickey Rivers too but Bernie was a better player and was with the Yankees for a much longer period of time.
Rightfield- Aaron Judge. He is climbing up the ranks of my all-time favorite Yankees, because of his talent, work ethic, and class.
Designated Hitter-Giancarlo Stanton. Although he does frustrate me fairly often, he is still capable of being a dominant offensive player when he is on. Unfortunately, he was not on very often last year. Let's hope he rebounds this year.
Starting Rotation- Ron Guidry, Andy Pettitte, Roger Clemens, Gerrit Cole, and Nestor Cortes. An Honorable Mention to Luis Tiant. Although he didn't pitch for the Yankees for very long, I always enjoyed watching him, which is probably why I like Nestor Cortes so much.
Bullpen- Mariano Rivera, Sparky Lyle, Jeff Nelson, Dick Tidrow, Joba Chamberlain, David Robetson, and Dave LaRoche, who provided some entertainment out there.
Manager- Joe Torre
This group brought me the greatest amount of pleasure as a Yankees' fan and I always enjoyed watching them. Match them up against your own list and see what you think
