CHAPTER 1:
Before the Playoffs

1993 has a lot of significant meaning to me. It was the year I was born and the year the Yankees started to leave the land of cellar dwellers. They started to become a team. The nucleus was starting to form with young talented stars such as Bernie Williams and Paul O’Neill. The signing of former Red Sox great Wade Boggs added fuel to the dim fire that was burning in the AL East. Of course, there was also team captain Don Mattingly. There was a need of passion in New York and this team could bring the excitement of baseball back to the world’s most famous city.
It was a season that was extremely promising for the Yankees. However the most promising night was the Jim Abbott no hitter. On September 4th 1993 Jim Abbott, the one handed pitcher through a no hitter against the Cleveland Indians. That game was such a remarkable sight for Yankees fans because after so many years of playoff drought, there was a sign of hope. There hadn’t been a no-hitter pitched for the Yankees at Yankee Stadium since Don Larsen threw his perfect game in the 1956 World Series. Plus the no hitter was pitched against the Cleveland Indians. They were one of the best teams in the 1990’s. (Considering they had Kenny Lofton, Jim Thome, and Manny Ramirez all starting to peak into the prime of their careers.)
However just as things seemed to turn around for the Yankees, the situation started to worsen. The Yankees finished the season with no playoff appearance. Even in 1994 the Yankees were playing good baseball. The team was leading the Division heading into the All-star break. Unfortunately for all baseball fans in the country, the season would be cut short due to a player strike. The playoffs and the World Series were canceled and fans everywhere were in a state of shock.
If I were older at the time and could understand the meaning of baseball and how much it affects the country, then I could relate to what people were going through. If baseball were to just end today with no hope of returning, the future just would seem empty. It would be like waking up without a purpose in life. That is how the passionate fan must have felt everyday for months.
Baseball would not return until the 1995 season and there was much doubt whether the fans would return at all. Fans had had it with all the selfishness of the players and owners. They make so money and all they can think about is making more.
At first fans had to think about whether or not they should return to the game that they had once treasured so close to their hearts. However once the players seemed to put aside their selfish intent to play for the love of the game, then they soon returned.

CHAPTER 2:
WILD CARD DREAMS
Once baseball returned, the Yankees returned as well. Paul O’Neill coming off his batting title from 1994 was ready to lead the Yankees into battle. However this would be the final battle for Donnie baseball. Don Mattingly would retire at the end of the 1995 season. Though retirement was looming, he put his thoughts of relaxation away until the offseason. His goal was to make the playoffs for the first time in his career.
With a little help from the league, that was a greater possibility. Major League Baseball put in a new wild card rules allowing one more team entrance into the playoffs. The leagues were separated into threes and the wild card was put into motion.
The Yankees would have some trouble in their division because in the division you had the defending champion Blue Jays from 1993, the Boston Red Sox, (a long time rival of the Yankees) and finally the Baltimore Orioles lead by Cal Ripken Jr. and pitching superstar Mike Mussina.
The main goal for the Bronx Bombers was to go the playoffs for the first time since the 1981 season. They were lead by Paul O’Neill who batted .300 with 22 homeruns and 96 RBIS offensively. David Cone was the ace of the staff down the stretch with a 9-2 record for the Yankees. Don Mattingly chipped in as well in his final season batting .288. All of this contributed to the Yankees making the playoffs. They clinched the playoff spot on the final day of the season and would face the Seattle Mariners in a five game ALDS.
Yankees fans had a reason to celebrate for the first time in 14 years. They had finally made the playoffs and were looking to do some damage against Seattle. The Mariners were coming off a win or go home situation against the California Angels. A younger and more intimidating version of Randy Johnson got them into the playoffs. Remember, Seattle also had a group of young players such as Ken Griffey Jr. Edgar Martinez and Alex Rodriguez. They were a force to be reckoned with.
In the first two games of the playoffs, the Yankees seemed to be destined for postseason glory. They took the first two games of the series with some help from Don Mattingly and Jim Leyritz. Mattingly almost destroyed the house that Ruth built (with a little help from the fans) when he hit his first ever playoff homerun. That sparked the Yankees big time to win it for their captain. Jim Leyritz, who the Yankees now know as a clutch playoff homerun hitter started his postseason magic with a game winning ALDS homerun against Seattle to win game two. However the Mariners took games three and four (thanks to some tape measure homeruns by Ken Griffey Jr.) and the series was tied two games apiece heading into game five.
Game 5 was one of the greatest playoff games in the history of Seattle baseball because it kept baseball in Seattle. Unfortunately the Yankees came on the short end of the stick of this game. A walk off double scored by Ken Griffey Jr. gave Seattle the chance to go face the Indians in the 1995 ALCS. (They would lose to the Indians who would then lose to the Braves in the World Series.)
Despite losing their captain to retirement and their manager to the cruel ways of George Steinbrenner, (in other words, he was fired) the Yankees had some hope to build on and their names became a part of Yankees tradition for all eternity. Their names are Joe Torre and Derek Jeter.
CHAPTER 3
The Puzzle coming together
The writers were screaming. How could George Steinbrenner hire Joe Torre to lead the Yankees? The career of Joe Torre is a career that never made the playoffs. He never made the postseason as a player or as a coach. Now don’t get me wrong, Joe Torre was a terrific baseball player. He won an MVP award as a catcher with the Cardinals and hit over 300 homeruns. The problem is that Torre could never make the playoffs. As a manager he couldn’t maintain a full time job for more than two years. After that he would tend to be fired.
The Yankees lost their first basemen to retirement and needed a replacement. Even though no one could replace the captain, the Yankees found a suitable person ready for the job. Tino Martinez was signed to a 5 year contract. Martinez came to the Yankees after a good career with Seattle. He belted 31 homeruns and drove in over 100 RBIS in his final season with the Mariners. Despite those great numbers, how could anyone compare to the captain of the Yankees? This is what most of the fans thought.
Joe Torre had a decision to make. You had a veteran shortstop in Tony Fernandez whose defense fit into Torre’s style of baseball. Then again, you had a rookie shortstop by the name of Derek Jeter. Jeter was drafted with the third overall pick by the Yankees in the 1992 MLB draft. He was supposed to be the future of the Yankees and a leader. How could one kid handle the physical and mental toll that very few could ever take on? That toll was to be the future of the New York Yankees.

These people would succeed and go beyond what it means to be a Yankee. Check out their stats.

1. Joe Torre: 92-70 record, Division Title
2. Tino Martinez: .292, 25 homeruns, and 117 RBIS
3. Derek Jeter: .314, 10 homeruns and 78 RBIS

With the combined efforts of these great players, the Yankees put together a terrific 1996 season. When they got into the playoffs, they made it through and persevered, winning the AL Pennant. However another challenge remained. Can the Yankees win the World Series? The 1996 fall classic would explain everything and give a window into the future of Yankees baseball. Before they could taste eternal glory, they had to get past the Atlanta Braves, looking for a chance to repeat as world champions.