The New York Yankees shocked the baseball universe on Tuesday, announcing one of the greatest honors a ballplayer can receive for his on-field performance: seeing his number retired.
That’s what they will do with Paul O’Neill‘s number 21, in a ceremony before a game against the Toronto Blue Jays on August 21.
O’Neill, a member of the one of the best and most powerful dynasties in modern baseball in the late-90s, is truly honored to see his number 21 in Monument Park.
“Wow. My heartfelt thanks to the Steinbrenner family, the entire Yankees organization, YES Network, my teammates & coaches over the years, & most importantly the fans of New York. This is the greatest honor of my life. I’m forever grateful for all you have done for me & my family!,” he tweeted on Tuesday afternoon, after hearing the news.
Wow. My heartfelt thanks to the Steinbrenner family, the entire Yankees organization, YES Network, my teammates & coaches over the years, & most importantly the fans of New York. This is the greatest honor of my life. I’m forever grateful for all you have done for me & my family!
— Paul O'Neill (@PaulONeillYES) February 22, 2022
As an MLB player, O’Neill retired with a .288/.363/.470 slash line, a 120 wRC+ (meaning he was 20 percent better than the league average as a hitter), 281 home runs, and 1,269 RBI.
A True Winner And A Warrior
“The Warrior” won four World Series with the Yankees and one with the Cincinnati Reds.
With the Yankees, though (he was traded there in 1992), he hit .303 and had 304 doubles, 185 home runs, 858 RBI, a .377 on-base percentage and an .869 OPS, with four All-Star berths and a batting title.
O’Neill was the right fielder during the last Yankees’ dynasty, which saw them win four Fall Classics in a span of five years.
Currently working at the YES Network, O’Neill has been analyzing Yankees games for quite some time now.
Nobody (except for reliever LaTroy Hawkins, briefly in 2008) had used O’Neill’s number 21 since he retired in 2001.
Nobody else will be able to wear that number again.
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