Baseball Powerhouse; The Yankees

Monday, October 6th, 2008
by Kaitlyn

When asked who is better, the Yankees or the Red Sox, there is no question who the power house of all time is; The Yankees.  It is often debated between fans which team has the greater franchise.  The Yankees have won more championships than the Red Sox have and have contributed more players to the Hall of Fame than their Boston rivals, with stars dating back to the early 1900’s.  Another testament to their success is that the Yankees have the largest payroll of any major league team because of the success they have had.  Fans can be found across the country, and as much as Red Sox fans would like to argue, because of these qualities, the New York Yankees are the greatest baseball franchise of all time.

When debating the greatness of a franchise, it is important to look at the success that it has had over the years. The New York Yankees are ranked first with twenty-six World Series titles.  The reign started in 1923 for the Yankees when they won their first World Series title, but surprisingly the Red Sox had already won their first World Series title, which came in 1903.  Despite becoming World Champions first, they have only won six since then.  The New York Yankees have won 25 since their first World Series title in 1923, proving their dominance as a franchise over the Red Sox. This discrepancy is not only seen in championships, but in playoff experiences themselves.  The Red Sox have had made twenty appearances in the playoffs, and the Yankees have made forty-seven appearances in their history.
Furthermore, the success of the Yankees is seen not only in the championships that they have won, but in the legends who have themselves worn the timeless pinstripes. The New York Yankees have had fifteen Hall of Famers in their time compared to the Boston Red Sox with only seven. The Yankees have Hall of Famers like Yogi Berra who was a catcher for the team for about fourteen years.  Another Hall of Famer that was from the Yankees franchise is Lou Gehrig who holds the all-time Grand Slam record. Following Gehrig with the grand Slams record is the Los Angeles Dodgers’ current left fielder, Manny Ramirez, who was just traded from the Red Sox.  Carlton Fisk is a Hall of Famer on the Red Sox side, as a catcher.  Comparing the two Hall of Fame catchers, Yankees catcher Yogi Berra hit .285 to Red Sox Hall of Famer Carlton Fisk’s .269, and also posted more RBI’s and a greater On-Base Percentage.

The franchise does not only pride itself on past achievements, however, as the franchise continues to thrive behind the highest payroll in all of major league baseball and with the support of millions of fans. The Yankees pay roll is 209 million dollars.  They have the highest pay roll in Major League Baseball.  The second highest pay roll team is the Boston Red Sox with 133.4 million dollars.  This year the Yankees are opening up a new stadium.  The Yankees always sold out games in their old stadium that seated over 70,000 people.  This year, when they open the new stadium, it is holding less seats so tickets are going to be worth a lot more, increasing the value of the already wealthy Yankees franchise.

Photo Credit: Tear The Apathy

Popularity: 3% [?]