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New York Yankees: Ten Unsung heroes from the 2000s

By Ryan Doyle

NEW YORK - APRIL 29: Chien-Ming Wang #40 of the New York Yankees delivers the pitch against the Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium on April 29, 2007 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Nick Laham/Getty Images)
NEW YORK - APRIL 29: Chien-Ming Wang #40 of the New York Yankees delivers the pitch against the Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium on April 29, 2007 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Nick Laham/Getty Images) /
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New York Yankees 2nd baseman Alfonso Soriano is hoisted up by his teammates after he hit in the game winning run in the bottom of the 12th inning of Game 5 of the World Series at Yankee Stadium in New York 01 November, 2001. The Yankees defeated the Arizona Diamondbacks 3-2 and took a lead of 3-2 in the series. AFP PHOTO/Timothy A. CLARY (Photo by Timothy A. CLARY / AFP) (Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images)
New York Yankees 2nd baseman Alfonso Soriano is hoisted up by his teammates after he hit in the game winning run in the bottom of the 12th inning of Game 5 of the World Series at Yankee Stadium in New York 01 November, 2001. The Yankees defeated the Arizona Diamondbacks 3-2 and took a lead of 3-2 in the series. AFP PHOTO/Timothy A. CLARY (Photo by Timothy A. CLARY / AFP) (Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images) /

2B Alfonso Soriano (1999-2003)

Alfonso Soriano was one of the Yankees last “homegrown” talents. New York acquired him from the Hiroshima Toyo Carp in 1998 and he made his MLB debut a year later. By 2001, Soriano became the Yanks’ everyday second basemen and was a key contributor during the team’s run to the World Series that year.

In the 2001 World Series, Soriano set himself up to become a legend in the city. In the wake of the tragedy on 9/11, Soriano saved the day in Game Three with his glove, something no fan at the time could expect. In the top of the 11th, with the bases juiced, he made a diving stop. The next inning, he hit a walk-off single.

Four games later, with the game tied in the top of the 8th with Yankee villain Curt Schilling on the bump, he crushed a home run into left field. Soriano was that close to hitting one of the most legendary home runs in franchise history.

Unfortunately, that highlight remains hard to watch as those final innings marked the end of the late-90 pinstripe dynasty and an extremely painful defeat in the desert of Arizona.

The next season, Soriano had an MVP-caliber season, as he posted a .300/.332/.547, with 39 homers and 41 stolen bases, falling just short of a historic 40-40 season. He would follow that campaign up with a similar performance in 2003 before he was traded for Alex Rodriguez.

It’s hard to call a back-to-back All-Star second baseman (Soriano would go on to make eight-straight ASG appearances) an unsung hero, but he deserves more recognition than he receives today. The A-Rod trade kept his time in pinstripes short. Still, he put together one hell of a highlight reel.

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