So, I got thinking about the New York Yankees the other day. You know, watching games, hearing commentators talk. The name Aaron Judge came up as captain, and it got me wondering, how many captains have the Yankees actually had? It feels like a really big deal for that team, not something they just hand out.
My first step was pretty simple. I just decided to look it up. Didn’t need a deep dive, just wanted to get a feel for the history of it. I figured there’d be a long list, given how long the Yankees have been around.
My Little Research Journey
Well, I started digging around a bit. The first names that jumped out were the really famous ones, of course. You can’t talk Yankees captains without mentioning Lou Gehrig. He was like the original pillar, the Iron Horse. And then, much later, Derek Jeter. He was the captain for so much of my watching time, felt like he defined the role for a whole generation.
I also remembered Thurman Munson. A real leader, gone way too soon. His captaincy felt really significant because of his impact and, well, the sad way it ended.
But here’s what surprised me a little. The list wasn’t as long as I thought it would be, especially in the modern era. It seems like the Yankees are really picky about it. There were some guys way back, like Clark Griffith and Roger Peckinpaugh, even Babe Ruth for like five minutes which sounds chaotic. Hal Chase was another early one. But then there were huge gaps.
After Gehrig, there was a long, long time before Munson was named captain in the 70s. That really stood out to me. It showed it wasn’t an automatic thing.
Then I found the names connecting the eras a bit more:
- Graig Nettles – He was a captain too, shared it for a bit in the 80s. I kinda forgot about that.
- Don Mattingly – Donnie Baseball! He was the guy in the late 80s and early 90s. Definitely remember him leading the team.
And that leads us up to Jeter, and after another gap, now Aaron Judge. Seeing the names laid out like that, it really hit me:
Key People I Noted:
- Lou Gehrig
- Thurman Munson
- Graig Nettles
- Don Mattingly
- Derek Jeter
- Aaron Judge
(Plus those very early guys)
What I Took Away
So, my little practice session of looking this up showed me it’s a really exclusive club. Not just any star player gets to be captain. It seems reserved for guys who truly lead, who represent the franchise in a big way, on and off the field. It’s not like football or hockey where you always have captains. The Yankees treat it like a special honor, something earned over time.
It wasn’t some complex research project, just me satisfying my curiosity. But it was interesting to see the pattern, the gaps, and the specific players who got the nod. Makes you appreciate the title a bit more when you see how sparingly they’ve used it.
