This Day in New York Yankees History 5/19: Orioles and Yankees Brawl over Crack Jack’s?

On this day in 2004 the Yankees spokesman Jason Zillo announced that Cracker Jack, baseball's most famous snack for over 100 years, will not be sold at Yankee Stadium anymore. Instead the Yankees will sell Crunch 'n Munch, a change that the Yankee Stadium fans rejected, because it "tastes better." Long story short that didn't last long and you shouldn't mess with baseball history, especially Cracker Jacks.

Also on this day in 1998 the Orioles Armando Benitez nails the Yankees Tino Martinez between the shoulder blades with a pitch and starts a brawl between the two clubs. This came after Benitez gave up a three run home run to Bernie Williams in that eight inning. Graeme Lloyd raced onto the field from the Yankees bullpen and punched Benitez in the face and Alan Mills bloodied Darryl Strawberry's face after he ended up in the Baltimore dugout going after Benitez.


Finally on this day in 1929 a 17 year old college sophomore and a 60 year old truck driver are trampled to death with another 75 fans injured when a violent storm causes the overcapacity bleacher crowd to run for cover at Yankee Stadium. The stampede happened in "Ruthville" and the game would be called with the Yankees ahead of the Red Sox 3-0 at the end of four and a half innings, an official game.

This Day in New York Yankees History 5/19: Orioles and Yankees Brawl over Crack Jack’s?

On this day in 2004 the Yankees spokesman Jason Zillo announced that Cracker Jack, baseball's most famous snack for over 100 years, will not be sold at Yankee Stadium anymore. Instead the Yankees will sell Crunch 'n Munch, a change that the Yankee Stadium fans rejected, because it "tastes better." Long story short that didn't last long and you shouldn't mess with baseball history, especially Cracker Jacks.

Also on this day in 1998 the Orioles Armando Benitez nails the Yankees Tino Martinez between the shoulder blades with a pitch and starts a brawl between the two clubs. This came after Benitez gave up a three run home run to Bernie Williams in that eight inning. Graeme Lloyd raced onto the field from the Yankees bullpen and punched Benitez in the face and Alan Mills bloodied Darryl Strawberry's face after he ended up in the Baltimore dugout going after Benitez.


Finally on this day in 1929 a 17 year old college sophomore and a 60 year old truck driver are trampled to death with another 75 fans injured when a violent storm causes the overcapacity bleacher crowd to run for cover at Yankee Stadium. The stampede happened in "Ruthville" and the game would be called with the Yankees ahead of the Red Sox 3-0 at the end of four and a half innings, an official game.

This Day in New York Yankees History 2/28: Cocaine is a hell of a Drug

On this day in 2000 Yankees outfielder and DH Darryl Strawberry is suspended for one year after testing positive for cocaine last month. Bud Selig would not allow Strawberry back early from the suspension based on good behavior. This would essentially mark the end of Strawberry's career.

The Cry For Homegrown Talent May Be Ill Advised: 1996

I am probably one of the wors tYankees fans there ever was for even thinking this let alone saying this but the thought of having a mostly homegrown team may not be the best thing for the Yankees. I got to thinking about how much homegrown talent the Yankees actually had when they won the World Series in 1996 and the results were shocking. The Yankees had a total of six regulars on that team that came from the farm system, six. Let's take a closer look at that 1996 Yankees roster and see if this current youth movement and push for youth can learn a thing or two from the team that Gene "Stick" Michael brought to us 20 seasons ago.

The Yankees infield wasn't exactly homegrown with catcher Joe Girardi (Cubs and Rockies), Tino Martinez (Mariners) filling the huge shoes of Don Mattingly at first base, Mariano Duncan (many NL teams) manning second base while Wade Boggs (Red Sox) manned the hot corner. Jim Leyrtiz did split time catching and Derek Jeter was named the Opening Day shortstop despite George Steinbrenner's best efforts to acquire someone else for the position.

From the infield to the outfield we saw much of the same story. Darryl Strawberry (Mets) and Tim Raines (Expos) played a lot of left field after home grown talent Gerald Williams was traded to Milwaukee midway through the season. Paul O'Neill (Reds) was the rock of the outfield after coming over from Cincinnati. The Yankees had Bernie Williams manning center field for the only Yankees homegrown talent in the outfield.

The designated hitter spot belonged to Ruben Sierra (Rangers) before he was traded to the Detroit Tigers for Cecil Fielder.

The Yankees rotation in 1996 was far from homegrown with Kenny Rogers (Rangers), Jimmy Key (Blue Jays), Dwight Gooden (Mets) and David Cone (Royals) joining the homegrown Andy Pettitte on the mound.

The Yankees bullpen, again, was far from homegrown with John Wetteland (Montreal) closing out games, Jeff Nelson (Mariners) pitching in middle relief, and had Jim Mecir (Mariners) and Steve Howe (Dodgers) making major appearances. The only homegrown Yankees in the bullpen that season were Bob Wickman and the great Mariano Rivera.

So as you can see the cry for the homegrown talent may be fun for us fans but it won't necessarily win us a World Series this year or any time in the future. The Yankees will still need free agency, they will still need international signings, and they will still need to make trades.

This Day in New York Yankees History 5/19: Orioles and Yankees Brawl over Crack Jack’s?

On this day in 2004 the Yankees spokesman Jason Zillo announced that Cracker Jack, baseball's most famous snack for over 100 years, will not be sold at Yankee Stadium anymore. Instead the Yankees will sell Crunch 'n Munch, a change that the Yankee Stadium fans rejected, because it "tastes better." Long story short that didn't last long and you shouldn't mess with baseball history, especially Cracker Jacks.

Also on this day in 1998 the Orioles Armando Benitez nails the Yankees Tino Martinez between the shoulder blades with a pitch and starts a brawl between the two clubs. This came after Benitez gave up a three run home run to Bernie Williams in that eight inning. Graeme Lloyd raced onto the field from the Yankees bullpen and punched Benitez in the face and Alan Mills bloodied Darryl Strawberry's face after he ended up in the Baltimore dugout going after Benitez.


Finally on this day in 1929 a 17 year old college sophomore and a 60 year old truck driver are trampled to death with another 75 fans injured when a violent storm causes the overcapacity bleacher crowd to run for cover at Yankee Stadium. The stampede happened in "Ruthville" and the game would be called with the Yankees ahead of the Red Sox 3-0 at the end of four and a half innings, an official game.

This Day in New York Yankees History 2/28: Cocaine is a hell of a Drug

On this day in 2000 Yankees outfielder and DH Darryl Strawberry is suspended for one year after testing positive for cocaine last month. Bud Selig would not allow Strawberry back early from the suspension based on good behavior. This would essentially mark the end of Strawberry's career.

Darryl Strawberry Opens Drug Rehab Center in Florida

A former member of the New York Yankees and the New York Mets is giving back to the community and is helping those in need because he knows more about those in need than most. His name is Darryl Strawberry and he is opening a second rehabilitation center to treat people with drug addictions in the Florida area.

The new Darryl Strawberry Recovery Center outside DeLand will open in January, 2016 and will offer a 28-day residential treatment program. Strawberry knows addiction, during his 17-year MLB career he battled with drugs for much of it and faced multiple suspensions due to his drug use. Strawberry’s first rehab center opened just two years ago in St. Cloud, Florida.

During his career Strawberry played with the New York Mets, Los Angeles Dodgers, San Francisco Giants and the New York Yankees. 

Anthony Flynn is Leaving & Ron Dock is Gone, What Exactly is Going On?

Anthony Flynn has been with the New York Yankees for the last 15 seasons but has decided that the 2015 season will be his last with the organization. Flynn has worked in the baseball operations department for the Yankees for the last seven years and spent the last eight years prior as the club’s video coordinator. Now Flynn will leave for XOS Digital where he will be the director of baseball marketing and sales. Good for him, congratulations.

Ron Dock was the organization’s intervention coordinator based in Tampa, Florida where he worked with Yankees employees and players who had addiction problems, family situations, depression problems and legal issued. Dock is not a well-known name, he was more of a behind the scenes type guy, but he was integral to the organization. Ask Darryl Strawberry, Dwight Gooden and also Slade Heathcott. Dock worked with anyone and everyone and was well respected inside the organization.

What exactly is going on in New York? All the, for lack of a better term, old timers are leaving and retiring while the new blood presumably is coming in. It remains to be seen whether this will be a good thing or a bad thing. Either way I have a feeling both Dock and Flynn will be missed in the Bronx more than we know, ask CC Sabathia.

The Tell-All Book “Abused by the New York Yankees” is OUT!

For what feels like forever, although I just looked and it’s only been since 2007, we’ve been hearing about the tell-all book that was set to come out written by a former Yankees assistant equipment manager and the book has finally hit the shelves. I haven’t read it myself yet, and after reading the reviews I may not read it at all, but from what everyone is saying apparently it has been worth the wait.

Paul Priore, the assistant equipment manager for the Yankees and the author of the book, was fired back in 1997 allegedly because he is HIV-positive, something the New York Yankees and the New York State Courts say are absolutely false.

Here are some of the outlandish and damning accusations thrown out by Priore:

• Derek Jeter and Jorge Posada engaged in sexual relations in the clubhouse sauna at the end of their first season with the team. Jeter and Posada then allowed Priore to perform oral sex on them in order to keep him quiet. 
• George Steinbrenner spied on players using secret security cameras in the clubhouse, and was actively involved in the Iran-Contra Affair. 
• Outfielder Gerald Williams had sex with an underage concession stand worker in a storage closet. 
• Cecil Fielder played drunk on vodka, and Darryl Strawberry drank whisky during games. 
• Bob Wickman, Jeff Nelson and Mariano Rivera tried to sexually assault him with a baseball bat. 
• Joe Torre and Don Zimmer used 14-16 year old boys to place their horse track bets for them during games and also the duo bet on the Yankees to lose games while they were both managers and coaches for the team. 
• Batboys created a market of forged autographs on Yankees memorabilia.

The Cry For Homegrown Talent May Be Ill Advised: 1996

I am probably one of the worst for this but the thought of having a mostly homegrown team may not be the best thing for the Yankees. I got to thinking about how much homegrown talent the Yankees actually had when they won the World Series in 1996 and the results were shocking. The Yankees had a total of six regulars on that team that came from the farm system, six. Let's take a closer look at that 1996 Yankees roster.

The Yankees infield wasn't exactly homegrown with Joe Girardi (Cubs and Rockies), Tino Martinez (Mariners) filling the huge shoes of Don Mattingly at first base, Mariano Duncan (many NL teams) manned second base, and Wade Boggs (Red Sox) was at the hot corner. Jim Leyrtiz did split time catching and Derek Jeter manned shortstop from Opening Day until present day for the only homegrown talent on the team.

From the infield to the outfield we saw much of the same story. Darryl Strawberry (Mets) and Tim Raines (Expos) played a lot of left field after home grown talent Gerald Williams was traded to Milwaukee midway through the season. Paul O'Neill (Reds) was the rock of the outfield after coming over from Cincinnati. The Yankees had Bernie Williams manning center field for the only Yankees homegrown talent in the outfield.

The designated hitter spot belonged to Ruben Sierra (Rangers) before he was traded to the Detroit Tigers for Cecil Fielder.

The Yankees rotation in 1996 was far from homegrown with Kenny Rogers (Rangers), Jimmy Key (Blue Jays), Dwight Gooden (Mets) and David Cone (Royals) joining the homegrown Andy Pettitte on the mound.

The Yankees bullpen, again, was far from homegrown with John Wetteland (Montreal) closing out games, Jeff Nelson (Mariners) pitching in middle relief, and had Jim Mecir (Mariners) and Steve Howe (Dodgers) making major appearances. The only homegrown Yankees in the bullpen that season were Bob Wickman and the great Mariano Rivera.

So as you can see the cry for the homegrown talent may be fun for us fans but it won't necessarily win us a World Series this year or any time in the future. The Yankees will still need free agency, they will still need international signings, and they will still need to make trades.

This Day in New York Yankees History 5/19: Orioles and Yankees Brawl over Crack Jack’s?

On this day in 2004 the Yankees spokesman Jason Zillo announced that Cracker Jack, baseball's most famous snack for over 100 years, will not be sold at Yankee Stadium anymore. Instead the Yankees will sell Crunch 'n Munch, a change that the Yankee Stadium fans rejected, because it "tastes better." Long story short that didn't last long and you shouldn't mess with baseball history, especially Cracker Jacks.

Also on this day in 1998 the Orioles Armando Benitez nails the Yankees Tino Martinez between the shoulder blades with a pitch and starts a brawl between the two clubs. This came after Benitez gave up a three run home run to Bernie Williams in that eight inning. Graeme Lloyd raced onto the field from the Yankees bullpen and punched Benitez in the face and Alan Mills bloodied Darryl Strawberry's face after he ended up in the Baltimore dugout going after Benitez.

Finally on this day in 1929 a 17 year old college sophomore and a 60 year old truck driver are trampled to death with another 75 fans injured when a violent storm causes the overcapacity bleacher crowd to run for cover at Yankee Stadium. The stampede happened in "Ruthville" and the game would be called with the Yankees ahead of the Red Sox 3-0 at the end of four and a half innings, an official game.

This Day in New York Yankees History 2/28: Cocaine is a hell of a Drug

Last day in February and last day of Prospects Month, let's go out with a bang.

On this day in 2000 Yankees outfielder and DH Darryl Strawberry is suspended for one year after testing positive for cocaine last month. Bud Selig would not allow Strawberry back early from the suspension based on good behavior. This would essentially mark the end of Strawberry's career.

The Cry For Homegrown Talent May Be Ill Advised: 1996

I am probably one of the worst for this but the thought of having a mostly homegrown team may not be the best thing for the Yankees. I got to thinking about how much homegrown talent the Yankees actually had when they won the World Series in 1996 and the results were shocking. The Yankees had a total of six regulars on that team that came from the farm system, six. Let's take a closer look at that 1996 Yankees roster.

The Yankees infield wasn't exactly homegrown with Joe Girardi (Cubs and Rockies), Tino Martinez (Mariners) filling the huge shoes of Don Mattingly at first base, Mariano Duncan (many NL teams) manned second base, and Wade Boggs (Red Sox) was at the hot corner. Jim Leyrtiz did split time catching and Derek Jeter manned shortstop from Opening Day until present day for the only homegrown talent on the team.

From the infield to the outfield we saw much of the same story. Darryl Strawberry (Mets) and Tim Raines (Expos) played a lot of left field after home grown talent Gerald Williams was traded to Milwaukee midway through the season. Paul O'Neill (Reds) was the rock of the outfield after coming over from Cincinnati. The Yankees had Bernie Williams manning center field for the only Yankees homegrown talent in the outfield.

The designated hitter spot belonged to Ruben Sierra (Rangers) before he was traded to the Detroit Tigers for Cecil Fielder.

The Yankees rotation in 1996 was far from homegrown with Kenny Rogers (Rangers), Jimmy Key (Blue Jays), Dwight Gooden (Mets) and David Cone (Royals) joining the homegrown Andy Pettitte on the mound.

The Yankees bullpen, again, was far from homegrown with John Wetteland (Montreal) closing out games, Jeff Nelson (Mariners) pitching in middle relief, and had Jim Mecir (Mariners) and Steve Howe (Dodgers) making major appearances. The only homegrown Yankees in the bullpen that season were Bob Wickman and the great Mariano Rivera.

So as you can see the cry for the homegrown talent may be fun for us fans but it won't necessarily win us a World Series this year or any time in the future. The Yankees will still need free agency, they will still need international signings, and they will still need to make trades.

This Day In New York Yankees History 6/19

On this day in 1903 Heinrich and Christina Gehrig gave birth to a nearly 14 pound healthy baby boy in Manhattan's East Harlem. They named their baby Lou, their only surviving child.

On this day in 1941 Joe DiMaggio extended his hitting streak to 32 games with a 3-3 game against the Chicago White Sox. DiMaggio would hit two singles and a home run in the Yankees 7-2 win in Yankee Stadium.

On this day in 1995 the Yankees sign Darryl Strawberry to a contract even though he is serving a 60 game suspension for his drug use. Strawberry would spend five seasons in the Bronx and was a huge part of three World Series titles and the dynasty.

This Day In New York Yankees History 5/19

On this day in 1929 a 17 year old college sophomore and a 60 year old truck driver are trampled to death with another 75 fans injured when a violent storm causes the overcapacity bleacher crowd to run for cover at Yankee Stadium. The stampede happened in "Ruthville" and the game would be called with the Yankees ahead of the Red Sox 3-0 at the end of four and a half innings, an official game.

On this day in 1998 the Orioles Armando Benitez nails the Yankees Tino Martinez between the shoulder blades with a pitch and starts a brawl between the two clubs. This came after Benitez gave up a three run home run to Bernie Williams in that eight inning. Graeme Lloyd raced onto the field from the Yankees bullpen and punched Benitez in the face and Alan Mills bloodied Darryl Strawberry's face after he ended up in the Baltimore dugout going after Benitez.

This Day In New York Yankees History 2/28

Last day in February and last day of Prospects Month, let's go out with a bang.

On this day in 2000 Yankees outfielder and DH Darryl Strawberry is suspended for one year after testing positive for cocaine last month. Bud Selig would not allow Strawberry back early from the suspension based on good behavior. This would essentially mark the end of Strawberry's career.

This Day In New York Yankees History 7/28

On this day in 1983 the George Brett pine tar incident home run was reversed and allowed. The remainder of the game would be resumed on August 18th of this year and the Yankees would go on to lose that game 5-4 against the Royals.

On this day in 1995 the Yankees acquired David Cone from the Toronto Blue Jays for Marty Janzen and two minor league players. This was widely considered one of the better trades in the Yankees history with all the success that he and the team had in the mid to late 90's.

On this day in 1996 Darryl Strawberry hit his 300th career home run in a walk off fashion against the Kansas City Royals in a 3-2 Yankees victory.

This Day In New York Yankees History 6/19

On this day in 1995 the Yankees signed Darryl Strawberry to a one year contract even though he was currently being suspended for 60 days due to, what else, drug abuse. Strawberry would end up spending five seasons in the Bronx and helped the Yankees to multiple World Series titles in the mid and late 90's.

On this day in 2008 switch pitcher Pat Venditte faced switch hitter Ralph Henriquez in what was a very frustrating at bat. Every time Ralph would switch sides of the play Pat Venditte would switch the side he was throwing on really frustrating Henriquez. Henriquez was told that he had to choose which side he wanted to bat on before the at bat began.