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The names roll off the tongue exactly the way baseball royalty should. Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, Paul O’Neill, Jorge Posada, Bernie Williams, Andy
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Pettitte, Tino Martinez, David Cone, Jeff Nelson, Ramiro Mendoza, Luis Sojo, and of course, Joe Torre. They were the 12 members of the New York Yankees who were there for it all, leading the way to four World Series championships in the five-year span between 1996 and 2000.
Along the way, they were joined by players such as Roger Clemens, Orlando Hernandez, Chuck Knoblauch, Scott Brosius, Darryl Strawberry, Dwight Gooden, Joe Girardi, Tim Raines, David Wells, Mike Hampton, Jim Leyritz, Chili Davis, Shane Spencer, and David Justice.
Together, these men formed The Last Dynasty: Yankees 1996-2000, and this is the story – told in nearly 100 vignettes – of those magnificent teams that produced a run of success that will forever be difficult to match.
When you win 27 world championships, there are undoubtedly a few periods that can be considered dynasties, and the Yankees have had three: The Lou Gehrig-Joe DiMaggio Yankees won four consecutive World Series between 1939-39 and extended that run to seven AL pennants and six championships through 1943.
Starting in 1949, Casey Stengel’s first season as manager, the Yankees of DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra and Whitey Ford won five straight World Series, and if you take it through to 1964, with different players coming and going, the Yankees won 14 AL pennants and nine championships in 16 years.
And then there was the 1996-2000 Yankees who won four titles in five years, and this one is arguably the greatest dynasty of all. Remember, when the Yankees won all those championships before 1969, all they had to do was win the World Series to raise a flag above Yankee Stadium. The 1996-2000 Yankees had to win multiple playoff rounds to earn those titles and in that five-year span, they won 12 of 13 postseason series, including nine straight between 1998-2000. No major league team has won even back-to-back championships since then, let alone three in a row or four in five years.
So yes, you can make the argument that this may be not only the greatest Yankee dynasty, but the greatest MLB dynasty in history. Enjoy the memories.
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