One MLB Star from Each Year of the Albany-Colonie Yankees’ Run
I may not have been around to live through it, but I've been around to read about it, and I can tell you one thing for certain: people loved the Albany-Colonie Yankees.
After spending two seasons as an affiliate of the Oakland Athletics, the New York Yankees signed an affiliation agreement with the baseball franchise in Albany-Colonie. From 1985 through the end of the 1984, the best and brightest of the Yankees' farm system came through the Capital Region.
The list of alumni who played at least one game with the Albany-Colonie Yankees is littered with prominent baseball names. You have your All-Stars and Hall-of-Famers, like Jeter, Pettitte and Posada. You have your future MLB coaches, like Hensley Meulens and Bob Geren. You even have players that were used in trades as young players, like J.T. Snow, who was traded for Jim Abbott in the 1990's.
While the popularity of the team seemed to wane in the later years, attendance numbers during the 1980's were through the roof. Heritage Park was leading the league in total numbers of spectators at certain points during the team's early years. Not only that, but the team was also a championship contender for a large portion of their time in Albany, and won three league titles in 1988, 1989 and 1991.
So, we went back into the history books, and looked at the rosters from each season that the Yankees had their Double-A affiliate in Albany. We picked out one future MLB player who suited up for the A-C Yankees each season of their existence, and listed them below.
Do you remember these Capital Region baseball stars?