I Love 1993

Last night, the Yankees were officially eliminated from playoff contention. For the first time since 1993, we’re going to have baseball in October and the Yankees won’t be participating. How different were things the last time New York watched the playoffs at home?

The Yankees best hitter was Mike Stanley, their best outfielder was Dion James, and their best pitcher was Jimmy Key. Spike Owen was playing shortstop and Bernie Williams was trying to prove he could play center field on a daily basis.

Chris Hoiles was the best catcher in baseball. Travis Fryman was a shortstop, Gary Sheffield was a third baseman, and the best all around young outfielders were Bernard Gilkey, Mark Whiten, and Al Martin.

Nine pitchers threw more than 250 innings, led by Greg Maddux’s 267. Alex Fernandez looked like the next great young starting pitcher. Bryan Harvey was the game’s best closer pitching on one of the worst teams in the league – the expansion Marlins, who were in their first season as an MLB team (along with Colorado).

Philip Hughes was seven years old. Tim Beckham, the kid who went first overall in the draft this past summer, was three years old.

Bobby Bonilla was the game’s highest paid player – he made $6.2 million. The Blue Jays had the highest team payroll at just over $45 million. The expansion Rockies had a payroll of $8.8 million. 10 teams had total payrolls less than $27 million – the amount Alex Rodriguez will make this year.

Baseball has gone through some huge shifts, but the Yankees playing in October were always a constant. It will be nice to have some fresh blood in there, but it’s going to be a bit weird.