Top 5 New York Yankees Players of All Time

Statistically, no other team comes close to the New York Yankees in Major League Baseball. The fact that the team have won twenty seven Series’ speaks volumes about their success over the years and while their last triumph may have come several years ago in 2009, they are still regarded as a huge threat in the sport.
Considering their fruitful history, it would be fair to say that there have been several major stars who have turned out for the Yankees. Bearing this in mind, we’ll take a look at the five top players who have ever played for the team.

Babe Ruth

At 53-years-old, a lot of today’s followers of baseball will have unfortunately not seen Babe Ruth in action. However, those that did will probably name him as one of the best ever players in baseball full stop, never mind the Yankees. He also turned out for bitter rivals the Boston Red Sox, although it was undoubtedly his fourteen year career with the Yankees that resulted in his biggest successes. This spell prompted him to be named as the top player on the list of “Baseball’s 100 Greatest Players” in 1998, after he broke several records for the team. At the time of writing, he holds records for the highest batting average, highest number of runs, highest number of home runs as well as holding the best slugging average up until 2001. He was awarded numerous accolades for his achievements within baseball and few Yankees fans believe that anyone will manage to surpass his achievements.

Whitey Ford

Whitey Ford is a player that even fewer people will have seen, with the former pitcher playing in the 50s and 60s. One thing that makes him a favourite amongst Yankees fans is the fact that he only represented them, and did not turn out for any other team. However, even though he was a one-team player, it’s probably his playing statistics that make him more of a legend. No other player has won more games for a team than Ford, after winning 236 clashes for the Yankees. After playing in so many encounters, one may not be surprised to see that Ford has a superb strikeout record having recorded 1956 in total – more than any other player.

Derek Jeter

A more recent addition can be Derek Jetter, a shortstop who as everyone knows still plays for the Yankees. While he is coming to the end of his career, after first making his debut in 1995, nobody can argue that Jeter is something of a legend for the team. Many regard him as one of the most marketable athletes the sport has ever seen, while it’s not just off-the-field that he boasts marvellous success after topping the hits chart for the Yankees following an unprecedented number of 3304. This puts him almost 600 ahead of 2nd place.

Mariano Rivera

Another recent addition, many fans of baseball were disappointed that Rivera decided to retire from the sport in 2012. When it comes to pitchers, no other player comes close to the number of times Rivera has played. He played twice the amount of games as the next player in the list, while he also boasts the record as the MLB’s all-time leader in saves.

Alex Rodriguez

Rodriguez is another player on the list who has always grabbed front page headlines, although that should not take anything away from the fact that he is one of the best baseball players of all time – never mind for the Yankees. He has triumphed in many records, including being the youngest player to reach 500 home runs, while the fact he is the highest paid player to ever appear in baseball speaks volumes about his ability.

Author Biography

This article was written by Liam, who likes to follow baseball in his spare time. He also likes soccer, golf and tennis and tries to help other sports enthusiasts by publishing the latest betting promotions on his website.