The Yankees New Baby Bombers Are Here

The Yankees have finally assembled a new dynamic core of young players. But will they be the 90s version of the Baby Bombers or the 2010s?

Baby Bombers Austin Wells and Anthony Volpe celebrating.

Yankees history is repeating itself.

Twice in recent years, a group of talented young Yankees have made their way

through the system at roughly the same age and exploded upon the scene. However, while the plots were the same, the results were drastically different.

The first time since the 1960s that the Yankees promoted and relied on homegrown talent was in the early Nineties. My guess is most of you remember that group of Baby Bombers.

For those who don’t–and because I love any chance to reference those legends–the group was made up of Bernie Williams roaming center, Andy Pettitte as a front-line starter (and should-be Hall of Famer), Mariano Rivera as MLB’s greatest closer, Jorge Posada playing catcher and clubhouse enforcer, and, of course, all-world Derek Jeter at short. Those guys didn’t just perform; they overperformed to the tune of five World Series titles (minus Bernie for number five). Not only were they great players, but also they were spread out across the diamond in key positions.

But the Yankees weren’t so lucky with the sequel in the 2010s. It all started promising enough, though–more’s the pity.

A Mountain of Expectations

No player, however, exemplifies the disappointing difference between those two groups of young Yankees more than Gary Sanchez. Where Jeter and Posada got the most from their talent, Gary got the least from his.

Gary Sanchez came up first among the hitters in 2016 and looked like the next Babe Ruth, only as a catcher. I’ll never forget the young Yankees fan I met at a book event who was convinced this was true. I often wonder how he feels about his disillusionment. Then came first basemen Greg Bird, a man born to hit doubles down the line. Luis Severino was the

front-line starter with more raw talent than Pettitte ever had, and a massive mountain of a man who hit mammoth shots called Aaron Judge, who was ready to rule right field. This class looked even deeper when you throw in second baseman Rob Refsnyder and middle-of-the-rotation pitcher Jordan Montgomery.

All of them played on that 2017 team that went to the ALCS, losing in game seven to the

Houston Garbage Cans.

Angry Greg Bird

You probably remember what happened next.

Bird was so brittle he could break a bone just walking onto the field, which actually happened. Refsnyder was his opposite, with below-mediocre talent at the plate but blessed with great health; today he plays for the Red Sux.

Severino had a lot of great moments during the regular seasons, but he fell to injuries and ineffectiveness. His biggest issue, however, was how poorly he pitched in the playoffs because he was too hyped up. Pettitte was successful because he was calm, cool, and collected, proving once again that the most important muscle an athlete has is the one between his ears. Sevvy had an okay bounce-back year for the Mets in 2024 and now pitches for the A’s, but he’s nowhere close to being an ace.

All That Glitters is Not Gold

No player, however, exemplifies the disappointing difference between those two groups of

young Yankees more than Gary Sanchez. Where Jeter and Posada got the most from their

talent, Gary got the least from his. No Yankees fan will ever forget the sight of Sanchez, five feet in front of the plate up the third base line, holding the ball while waiting for a player a few feet away and completely dead to rights. Yet somehow, Sanchez allowed that runner to score because of his lack of effort. It’s hard to win a championship when one of your most talented players just doesn’t care enough to try.

Judge has, of course, worked out better than anyone could have hoped, but baseball’s a team sport. No matter how many homers he hits, he still just gets to the plate once every nine batters.

And so, by 2019, the dream of a new batch of Baby Bombers was dead.

Now, that dream is reborn, albeit with far less fanfare. That last group was showered with

anticipatory accolades. On the other hand, this new group seems to be creeping in below the fans’ radar. It’s not that they’re unnoticed–they’re just not getting the same benefit of coming in together. But they’re here, and the questions must start. Here’s a closer look at each and the reasons they’re likely to be closer to the former group than the latter. That doesn’t mean championship banners are soon to be flown, but at least it’s encouraging.

And it all starts with pitching.

Read Part 2