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Little Known Facts:
Team Accomplishments
•The New York Yankees have had more World Series appearances (39) and more World Series Championships (26) than any other team.
•On July 6, 1920 the New York Yankees set a team record for runs scored with 14 runs scored in the fifth inning against the Washington Senators.
•The Yankees are considered one of the most iconic teams in all of professional baseball.
Player Records
•Babe Ruth hit his first home run at Polo Grounds playing for the Boston Red Sox against the New York Yankees. His last home run was hit at Polo Grounds playing for the New York Yankees against the Boston Red Sox.
•Many media members believe that Joe DiMaggio would have had more home runs under his belt had the first Yankee Stadium’s left field been smaller. Many teams playing at Yankee Stadium lost their chance at home runs because of the large distance between home plate, left-center field (399 ft) and center field (408 ft).
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Famous Players/Retired Numbers
Babe Ruth was a former pitcher prior to his Yankees days. His multitude of home runs brought more fans and more puchased New York Yankees tickets to their games than the New York Giants (their landlords at the time). Ruth’s 39 year baseball career tallied a total of 714 home runs prior to his retirement in 1935. This record stood strong until Hank Aaron hit his 755th by the end of 1974. In 1927, Babe set a record of 60 home runs in a single season that stood alone for 34 years. In 1931, Babe Ruth had his famous “Called Shot” during Game Three of the World Series at Wrigley Field against the Chicago Cubs.
Lou Gehrig played first base for the Yankees, and his first season with the team in 1923 showed a strong start with a batting average of .373 and 175 RBI’s. He played with the Yankees all the way until his last game on April 30, 1939 after contracting amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease). His number (4) was the first number to be retired in professional baseball.
Joltin’ Joe DiMaggio (also known as “The Yankee Clipper”) played for the Yankees from 1936-1951, giving him a chance to step outside of Babe Ruth’s shadow and shine. DiMaggio currently holds the record for the most consecutive games played with 56. After Pearl Harbor in 1941, DiMaggio left to serve in the military and eventually became a sergeant. He returned to baseball but received many injuries during that time making it painful for him even to walk. He retired on December 11, 1951.
Reggie Jackson hit three consecutive home runs against three different Dodgers pitchers, giving him the nickname “Mr. October” during the 1977 World Series. When Jackson faced Burt Hooton in the second inning he was walked. When he met him again in the 4th inning, Jackson swung at the first pitch launching it into the right field stands and caused Hooton to grab some bench. Jackson faced Elias Sosa in the 5th inning, again sending the first pitch to the right field stands. In the eighth, Jackson faced pitcher Charlie Hough but sent the ball soaring through the park for yet another home run. “Reg-gie! Reg-gie!”
Stadium/Championships
Stadium
The Baltimore Orioles (prior to their move and renaming) played at Oriole Park in Baltimore, Maryland for a brief stint from 1901-1902. The team was relocated to Manhattan and renamed the New York Highlanders, given that their new stadium was built on the highest part of New York called Hilltop Park. The team remained there from 1903-1912. The rivals and neighbors, the New York Giants, played at Hilltop Park after Polo Grounds burned in 1911. Once Polo Grounds was rebuilt a year later, the Highlanders moved out of Hilltop Park and into Polo Grounds. Because the team was no longer located at the highest point in New York, the name “Highlanders” no longer suited them. The media had often referred to the team as the “Yankees,” given that the term Yankee was another word for American (since the team was in the American League). The Yankees played at Polo Grounds (also known as Brush Stadium) from 1913-1919. Yankee Stadium was the new home of the Yankees in 1923. It was a triple-deck venue seating more than 58,000. In historic fashion, Babe Ruth hit the first home run at the new stadium, giving it the nickname “The House That Ruth Built.” The Yankees remained at this stadium from 1923-1973, but many attempted home runs were cut short because the left field was so large. The new owner of the team, George Steinbrenner, wanted to renovate Yankee Stadium, so the team moved in with the New York Mets at Shea Stadium during the time of reconstruction. They played at Shea for one season, and in 1976, the Yankees moved into the newly reconstructed Yankee Stadium where they remain to this day. Dimensions of the field include Left Field: 318 ft, Left-Center: 399 ft, Center Field: 418 ft, Right-Center: 385 ft, and Right Field: 314 ft.
Championships
1923, 1927, 1928, 1932, 1936, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1941, 1943, 1947, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1956, 1958, 1961, 1962, 1977, 1978, 1996, 1998, 1999 and 2000.
Yankees History
The New York Yankees were established in 1901 in Baltimore, Maryland initially known as the Baltimore Orioles, and began playing in New York in 1903 as the New York Highlanders. It wasn’t until 1913 that the team was renamed to the “Yankees.” They are members of the Eastern Division in the American League of professional baseball. The New York Yankees are the most successful franchise in professional baseball with 26 World Series Championships.
Western League president Ban Johnson was looking to reorganize the league at the end of 1900. He decided to add teams from the eastern cities to form the new American League. The National League already had a team in New York known as the New York Giants who had enough political power to keep Johnson’s AL out. Johnson decided to put a team in Maryland and call them the Baltimore Orioles who began playing in 1901. In 1903, after the Giants gained the controlling interest of the team, the American League stepped back in to take control of the Orioles. The National League and the American League decided to have a conference to settle any issues about ownership and placement, which resulted in the NL agreeing to allow a junior circuit set up a franchise in New York.
The team moved to a ballpark located on the highest point of Manhattan, known as Hilltop Park. The team became known as the New York Highlanders. Their successful years were in 1904, 1906 and 1910 with 1904 being their closest chance at an AL pennant. They lost to the Boston Americans in 1904 (who would later become the Boston Red Sox). In 1911, the home to the New York Giants, Polo Grounds, burned to the ground, and the Highlanders allowed them to play at Hilltop Park during reconstruction of the ballpark. The Highlanders moved to the newly built Polo Grounds in 1913 after some heated moments with the two teams. With the team located on the Harlem River, a far reach from their once high ground, the name Highlanders no longer applied. During their first few years at Hilltop Park, fans and members of the media had referred to the team as the Yankees (another word for Americans, since they were members of the AL) and after their move in 1913 they became known exclusively as the New York Yankees.
During the 1920’s a lot happenedwith the pro baseball teams, specifically with the Chicago White Sox, Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees. During this time, Harry Frazee, owner of the Boston Red Sox, tradied players from the team for large sums of money, including the infamous Babe Ruth, known later as the source of the “Curse of the Bambino,” a 100 year World Series drought for the Red Sox. The young and talented Babe Ruth was the source of many World Series Championships for the New York Yankees. They became extremely popular during this time that they actually took fans away from their landlords, the New York Giants. The two teams played each other in the World Series in 1921, and were told by the Giants that they had to move out after the 1922 season. The Yankees responded by building a new ballpark in the Bronx, directly across the Harlem River from Polo Grounds.
Their new stadium was known as Yankee Stadium, and was the first triple-deck venue capable of seating 58,000. During their first game at their new stadium, Babe Ruth hit a home run, giving it the nickname “The House That Ruth Built.” That same year, the Yankees faced the Giants for the third time in the World Series and finally triumphed over them, causing the Giants to transfer out of the city. The 1923 World Series was the first in a string of 26 World Series wins for the seemingly unstoppable New York Yankees. Their last World Series Title was in 2000, making them one of the most consistent championship teams in professional baseball. Many fans know going into a game that they are seeing a winning team, and that always makes Yankees tickets one of the best items to have for this astounding and historical team.
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