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Birth of a Dynasty: Yankees honor 1996 World Series champs
- Updated: August 13, 2016
NEW YORK — The championship rings grew more ornate as the Yankees morphed into what would be referred to as “the team of the decade,” but for those lucky enough to score more than one of those diamond-encrusted treasures, 1996 stands apart as one of the most special seasons in franchise history.
It was the birth of a dynasty, and on a day in which the Yankees peeked at a pair of power-hitting prospects in Tyler Austin and Aaron Judge, the organization rolled the clock back with an on-field ceremony reuniting key contributors of the club’s 23rd World Series title.
“It was the first. You never forget your first,” Derek Jeter said. “That was the beginning. The Yankees hadn’t won in a long time. You remember the excitement in the stadium, you remember the excitement in the city. ‘The Boss’ [principal owner George M. Steinbrenner] said if we won, he’d keep us together, and we continued to win.”
One by one, 32 members of the team that enjoyed a ticker-tape parade down Manhattan’s Canyon of Heroes donned pinstripes emblazoned with their old uniform numbers, walking through a gate in center field prior to Saturday’s game against the Rays before taking their positions on the field.
The “Core Four” of Jeter, Jorge Posada, Andy Pettitte and Mariano Rivera drew some of the loudest ovations, as did Wade Boggs, David Cone, Dwight Gooden, Paul O’Neill, Darryl Strawberry, Bernie Williams and manager Joe Torre, who oversaw the comeback against the favored Braves in that year’s Fall Classic.
Coming off a heartbreaking loss to the Mariners in the 1995 American League Championship Series, those 1996 Yanks found their identity in a blend of proven veterans and promising rookies. They adopted a rallying cry from infielder Mariano Duncan, who coined the phrase, “We play today, we win today, that’s it.”
And they did plenty of that, finishing 92-70 before powering past the Orioles and Rangers in the playoffs. Aiming to end an 18-year title drought, Steinbrenner dismissed Buck Showalter and entrusted the lineup card to Torre, who hadn’t yet compiled anything resembling what would be a Hall of …
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