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Ending Yankees Myths #2 - Steinbrenner and the 1990s Yankees

Writer's picture: Paul SemendingerPaul Semendinger

Updated: Jan 28

by Paul Semendinger

FROM April 19, 2024

***

I have been writing (almost) daily posts and talking (almost daily) with Yankees fans and baseball fans here at Start Spreading the News since October 2017. We've been at this for a long time. We've had close to 10,000 articles published and have had millions and millions of page views. In total there have been tens of thousands of comments on the site.


Over the years, I have heard a host of myths about the Yankees. This article continues a new series where I prove that certain myths are untrue.


Here is the first article in the series:


Today, I'll take on the myth that great Yankees teams of the 1990s were primarily constructed while George Steinbrenner was suspended.


That myth is false and is easily proved false with simple facts. To do this, I'll simply demonstrate how many of the championship Yankees players came after George Steinbrenner's return to baseball.


George Steinbrenner's second suspension from Major League Baseball ended in 1993. He returned to running the Yankees on March 1, 1993.


The following important Yankees from the 1996 Championship team were brought up from the minor leagues or acquired only after George Steinbrenner returned to the Yankees:


C- Joe Girardi

1B- Tino Martinez

2B- Mariano Duncan

SS- Derek Jeter

DH - Ruben Sierra

LF- Tim Raines

LF- Darryl Strawberry

DH/1B- Cecil Fielder

INF- Andy Fox

OF- Ruben Rivera

INF - Luis Sojo

C- Jorge Posada

3B- Charlie Hayes

SP- Andy Pettitte

SP- Kenny Rogers

SP- Dwight Gooden

SP- David Cone

P- Ramiro Mendoza

RP- John Wetteland

RP- Mariano Rivera

RP- Jeff Nelson

RP- Graeme Lloyd

RP- David Weathers


That, quite simply, is the bulk of the team. 23 players in all.


This idea that George Steinbrenner was someone who made irrational decisions, didn't listen to his baseball people, traded away all of the talent, and such, is patently false in regards to the Yankees Championship Teams of the 1990s.


In addition to those players, the following other players were acquired or brought up from the minor leagues during the championship era, all who played significant roles in the Yankees' four World Series wins in five years (1996, 1998, 1999, 2000);


2B- Chuck Knoblauch

3B- Scott Brosius

DH- Chili Davis

OF- Ricky Ledee

INF- Homer Bush

OF- Shane Spencer

OF- David Justice

2B- Alfonso Soriano

UT- Clay Bellinger

SP- Hideki Irabu

SP- Orlando Hernandez

SP- David Wells

SP- Roger Clemens

SP- Denny Neagle

RP- Mike Stanton

RP- Darren Holmes

RP- Jason Grimsley


It's absolutely impossible to claim that the players who made up the championship core were all acquired pre-Steinbrenner. That narrative is completely false.


Along with the "They built the championship core while Steinbrenner was suspended myth" is the one that says, "Steinbrenner traded away all the Yankees' young talent."


Look over the list above. The Core Four is there. They weren't traded away. But note something else, there are a host of other young players who played big roles and who came through the minor league system: Ramiro Mendoza, Ricky Ledee, Shane Spencer, Homer Bush. The fact is, Steinbrenner didn't trade away that young talent.


Now, sure he traded some young players. Eric Milton went for Chuck Knoblauch. Ricky Ledee went for David Justice. But, many of the times when the kids were traded, they were part of deals that made the Yankees' core even better.


Once this is pointed out, the reply that many who want to hold onto the false Steinbrenner myth give is, "Well, he wanted to trade them." Ok. But he didn't. The fact that he didn't negates the false premice that somehow he did a bad job in this period because he discussed trading players. Again, the fact is that he did not trade those key players. Period.


The fact is, a host of young Yankees came up from the minor leagues and were given chances to succeed after George Steinbrenner returned to the Yankees in 1993. The facts show this clearly.


One cannot claim that George Steinbrenner acted recklessly post-1993 when presented with this data. It's clear that he did not. That might have been true in the 1980s. It might have been true in the 1970s. But it wasn't true once he returned.


People change. People grow. It is clear that George Steinbrenner changed his thinking and his approach. And it worked!


The Yankees Championship Teams of the 1990s were built, primarily, under George Steinbrenner's watch.


What is also clear is that the fact that since George Steinbrenner died, the Yankees have never reached the World Series. (Updated - to "never won")


Hopefully this myth can now go away forever.

***

Note to all sportscasters, bloggers, writers, reporters, podcasters, and the like, thanks for reading my article and coming to Start Spreading the News. You are here because you know we write well, report well, and do a great job covering the Yankees and sharing original points of view. If you're going to use or share any of our ideas, it is only proper to give credit to the writer and the website. Thank you.

13 comments

13件のコメント


fantasyfb3313
1月29日

in my perspective, George clearly did make some mistakes. for a period of time, maybe a lot of mistakes (I think there can be some debate about luck- such as how much better would early 90s Yankees have been minus Mattingly getting hurt. just to name one).


but taking his entire tenure he did FAR MORE good than bad and was an excellent owner. and for me the HUGE thing i loved about George, especially compared to his son, is that George really, really, really wanted to win above anything else!! he definitely cared more about winning than he cared about a budget. he also cared about winning more than he cared about his ego, or getting his way.

いいね!

Robert Malchman
Robert Malchman
1月28日

You're not reading what I said: I give George credit for the free agents he signed. That's him and his wallet. The trades are all Gene Michael. Steinbrenner never said, "Hey, get me Tino Martinez and Jeff Nelson for Russ Davis and Sterling Hitchcock." He presumably approved it, but there is no way he engineered it, unlike, say, Buhner for Phelps.


So my bottom line: Steinbrenner gets credit a) for the '76-'81 teams; b) for Cone, Hernandez and Wells (Irabu is a wash because while Steinbrenner signed him, he also tried to destroy Irabu mentally), and the fill-in pieces of Strawberry and Raines; and c) for not screwing up Gene Michael's efforts to create a great team. As I not…


いいね!
yankeesblog
1月28日
返信先

I agree with your analysis. How about GMS chickening out of signing Jack Morris (yes he's a weak HOF candidate but he was a really good pitcher that the Yankees really could have used). because he wouldn't buck the owner's collusion (which they were convicted of).?


It didn't stop there. GMS had to be talked out of trading Mariano Rivera, trading for Felix Fermin instead of giving Jeter the SS in1 1996, trading Bernie Williams for Juan Gonzalez and I'm sure some other potential blunders that I can't recall off the top of my head.


I will give GMS the credit he deserves for listening to reason and not giving into his impulses as easily after he returned from suspension…


編集済み
いいね!

jjw49
1月28日

George was the lightning rod and Gene Michael was the calming everyday influence who put everything together and George signed off .... as you noted credit to George and putting to rest the false narrative on the boss GS!

いいね!

etbkarate
1月28日

Great point Paul. Man oh man, I wish they had that roster these days. That team was so fun to watch!!

いいね!
Paul Semendinger
Paul Semendinger
1月28日
返信先

Thank you!

いいね!

Alan B.
Alan B.
1月28日

The biggest thing that happened since his Tisha B'Av 1990 (also Thurman Munson's yahrtzheit) suspension was that Gene Michael seized control of the day to day of the franchise, and when George came back, he, George, allowed himself to be talked out of doing things that pre suspension he would've just gone ahead and done, like Mariano for Fermin (Willie), or Pettitte just off loaded to the Phillies (Torre), and instead reacquired Jimmy Leyritz to be #46 personal catcher.


It is my opinion, at the end of the day, Gene Michael was the only one that never cowered and just folded when George barked, all the way back to Stick telling him NO to firing Dick Howser after the 1980…

いいね!
Paul Semendinger
Paul Semendinger
1月29日
返信先

No, you're wrong.


Del Topping got lots of credit. Jacob Ruppert got lots of credit.


You're just trying to find ways to make your point and ignoring the facts.


The Mara family gets credit when the Giants win and the blame when they lose. Woody Johnson doesn't make the trades and such, but he gets the blame when the Jets lose. Ditto the Dolans. Ditto every owner. Is Steve Cohen making the moves for the Mets or is it his GM? On and on and on and on...


On one hand, people want to say, "The Boss controlled everything. Steinbrenner made all the decisions." But, at the same time, they want to say, "But the good decisions were all ma…


いいね!
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