This Week In Yankees Baseball

We have a special edition of This Week In Yankees Baseball this week. With the Hall of Fame festivities just completed, let’s give some special recognition to some special Yankees Hall of Famers.

Now, every New York Yankee who has made The Baseball Hall of Fame is special, of course. But the extraordinary feat of making the Hall on the first ballot is sometimes overlooked.

You really don’t get the full appreciation of how special the feat is, until you realize all of the names that are not on the list.

Before we recognize these gentlemen, let’s first honor Joe Torre and Bobby Cox. They both made major contributions to the game of baseball.

“Competing at the highest level is not about winning, Torre said according to BrainyQuote, It’s about preparation, courage, understanding and nurturing your people, and heart. Winning is the result.”

“My 12 years in New York were very, very special, and it’s something I will take with me wherever I go and into retirement, Torre said.

Now, courtesy of Baseball Reference, here are the Yankees players who have made The Hall on their first year of eligibility. The year that they were inducted and the percentage of the vote that they received is also included. Congratulations to all of them:

Rickey Henderson 2009 94.8%

Wade Boggs 2005 91.9%

Dave Winfield 2001 84.5%

Reggie Jackson 1993 93.6%

Mickey Mantle 1974 88.2%

Babe Ruth 1936 95.1%

So that is it. Of course, there will be a couple of names added to the list in the coming years. That’s because the list is destined to include Mariano Rivera and Derek Jeter. And it would be great to see them joined by their pals Jorge Posada and Andy Pettitte too.

How about that!