Ranking Derek Jeter and All 11 New York Yankees Captains
June 14, 2012 · Jake Singer · Jump to comments
Article Source: Bleacher Report - New York Yankees
The New York Yankees have a storied tradition, and the team does a great job remembering its best and most memorable players and moments. Monument Park stores plaques and the retired numbers of the all-time greats, and the Yankees honor some of their most important players by naming them “captain” while they are still playing.
In fact, the club of Yankee captains is more exclusive than the club of Yankee retired numbers. While the Bombers have retired 16 numbers (17, if you count Jackie Robinson’s number 42), the Yankees have only recognized 11 players as “captains.”
Here is a ranking of each of those 11, based on the duration of their captaincy, the performance of their play, and the number of championships won during their time as captain (because that is what being a Yankee is all about, after all).
It should be noted that, as Howard Rosenberg discovered, two Yankees, Clark Griffith and Kid Elberfeld, were probably known as “captains” during their time with the team, but the team never officially named them as such and are thus not recognized by the team as captains.
Griffith was the player-manager of the team in their first five seasons of existence from 1903-1908, when the team was still known as the Highlanders.
Elberfeld took over as manager from Griffith midway through 1908 and led the team to a 27-71 record for the rest of the season. Perhaps “Kid” should be better remembered for stealing home twice in one game on May 20, 1907, the first American League player to do so.
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