Yankees Classics

US television program

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Yankees Classics is a program on the YES Network which features classic New York Yankees games.

Each Yankees Classics episode is hosted by Yankees radio announcer John Sterling, who discusses the game's impact on Yankees history at the beginning and end of the telecast.[1]

## Network broadcast library

[edit]

When it debuted in 2002 as one of the first series to air on YES, Yankees Classics consisted entirely of regular season games from the team's local broadcasts, via WPIX, MSG Network, and WNYW. In 2003, YES acquired rights to rebroadcast playoff games that aired nationally on Fox. In 2007, YES and Major League Baseball acquired rights to games that aired on ABC as part of MLB's then-TV deal with ESPN, including Bobby Murcer's five runs batted in during the game the night of Thurman Munson's funeral. Other games included in this transaction are Game 5 of the 1976 ALCS and Game 6 of the 1977 World Series. In 2008, YES and MLB gained the rights to NBC's telecasts of 1978 and 1999 World Series games.

## Graphics and announcers used

[edit]

The logos of the original broadcasters originally were covered by the YES Network logo; eventually, the logos were then replaced by the Yankees logo. The announcers used were a combination of the Yankees radio announcers and national broadcasters used during the telecast, with the audio feed constantly changing during the game from one announcing team to the other, possibly to prevent advertisements or station promos to be heard, or to include Yankee broadcasters Sterling and Michael Kay giving calls of a Yankee home run, or of Sterling's signature victory closing: "Ballgame over! Yankees win! The-e-e-e Yankees win!" Regular season games since YES' launch in 2002 simply take the TV broadcast, with most out-of-date sponsor plugs removed.

## Typically scheduled air dates

[edit]

A specific Yankees Classic often is shown on its anniversary or on a day when the current team is playing the same opponent. (For example, on October 2, or when the Yankees are scheduled to play the Boston Red Sox, the 1978 playoff game for the American League Eastern Division title, featuring the improbable home run by Bucky Dent, often is broadcast.) Other possibilities include honoring a Yankee on his birthday by showing a Yankees Classics in which he was the game's hero. (For example, on June 26, Derek Jeter's birthday, YES may broadcast Game 4 of the 2001 World Series, which Jeter won with an extra-inning home run; this was his "Mr. November" game.)[2] Games featuring individual Yankee achievements, such as Ron Guidry's 18-strikeout game, no-hitters, and David Cone's 1999 perfect game often are shown, for example, to coincide with programs about Yankee pitchers.

As with other re-broadcast games, some innings are skipped due to time restrictions.

## Criticism

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Yankees Classics has been criticized for showing recent games, including those from the current MLB season, when there are many games which have not been seen in decades. For example, although the memorable 1978 playoff game against Boston has frequently aired,[3] YES has not shown any games from the 1978 ALCS. Also there have thus far been no shows featuring any of the games from the 1977 ALCS, 1981 ALDS or 1981 ALCS. Curiously, outside of Dave Righetti's July 4, 1983, no hit game, there have been no broadcasts of any Yankees games from the 1980s.[4] It is not clear why this is but some have speculated that complete tapes of the games no longer exist or are technically unsuitable for broadcast.

It has also been observed that while episodes of the biographical program Yankeeography make reference to losing efforts in the careers of its subjects, the Yankee Classics series has yet to air anything but games won by the team. This meant that the game in which Derek Jeter surpassed Lou Gehrig's record for most hits as a Yankee, would never be aired as the Yankees lost the game to the Baltimore Orioles. However, this game was later aired on Yankees Classics, only edited until the point where Jeter got the hit.[5]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Yes Talent, Michael Kay, Ken Singleton, Bobby Murcer, Paul O'nell, John Sterling, Marv Albert, Michelle Beadle". web.yesnetwork.com. Archived from the original on October 12, 2007.
2. ^ "Yankee Classics - Wednesday, October 31, 2001 - YankeeNumbers.com".
3. ^ "Yankee Classics - Monday, October 2, 1978 - YankeeNumbers.com".
4. ^ "Yankee Classics". Retrieved September 3, 2023.
5. ^ Kepner, Tyler (September 12, 2009). "Jeter Passes Gehrig as Yankees Hits Leader". The New York Times.

* v
* t
* e

YES Network

Original programming|

* The Michael Kay Show
* Yankees Classics
* Yankeeography

Notable current on-air staff|

* Vince Carter
* David Cone
* Jack Curry
* Ian Eagle
* Noah Eagle
* John Flaherty
* Todd Frazier
* Joe Girardi
* Frank Isola
* Richard Jefferson
* Michael Kay
* Sarah Kustok
* Bob Lorenz
* Meredith Marakovits
* Jeff Nelson
* Paul O'Neill
* Ryan Ruocco
* Justin Shackil

Notable former on-air staff|

* Marv Albert
* Michelle Beadle
* Howard Cross
* Mike Fratello
* Fred Hickman
* Mark Jackson
* Kimberly Jones
* David Justice
* Jim Kaat
* Al Leiter
* Tino Martinez
* Bobby Murcer
* Lou Piniella
* Jen Royle
* Ken Singleton
* Charley Steiner
* John Sterling
* Jim Spanarkel
* Kelly Tripucka
* Ross Tucker
* Suzyn Waldman

* v
* t
* e

New York Yankees

* Established in 1903
* Formerly the New York Highlanders
* Based in The Bronx, New York

Franchise|

* History
* Seasons
* Records
* No-hitters
* Awards
* Players
* Managers
* Coaches
* Owners and executives
* Broadcasters
* Opening Day starting pitchers
* Team captains
* Members of the Hall of Fame
* First-round picks
* YES Network

Ballparks|

* Hilltop Park
* Polo Grounds
* Yankee Stadium (opened 1923)
* Events
* Shea Stadium
* Yankee Stadium (opened 2009)
* Spring training: Bolton Street Park
* Whittington Park
* West End Park
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* Al Lang Stadium
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* George M. Steinbrenner Field

Culture|

* Monument Park
* Museum
* Old-Timers' Day
* Bleacher Creatures
* Yankees Universe
* Eddie Layton
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* Logos and uniforms
* Appearance policy
* "Holy Cow!"
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* Ronan Tynan
* "Here Come the Yankees"
* "New York, New York"
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* The Pride of the Yankees
* The Babe Ruth Story
* Damn Yankees
* musical
* 1958 film
* 1967 film
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* Babe Ruth
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* 61*
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* Ed Lucas
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* Paul Olden
* Yankee Stadium Legacy
* Yankees HOPE Week
* Yankeeography
* Yankees Classics

Lore|

* Curse of the Bambino
* Johnny Sylvester
* Murderers' Row
* Babe Ruth's called shot
* Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak
* Bill Mazeroski's 1960 World Series home run
* M&M Boys
* Harmonica Incident
* 1978 AL East tie-breaker game
* Pine Tar Incident
* 1995 ALDS Game 5
* Jeffrey Maier
* The Yankee Years
* Core Four
* Perfect games
* Don Larsen
* David Wells
* David Cone
* Domingo Germán
* 2019 MLB London Series
* MLB at Field of Dreams

Rivalries|

* Boston Red Sox
* Subway Series
* New York Mets
* Los Angeles Dodgers
* San Francisco Giants

Key personnel|

* Owners: Yankee Global Enterprises
* Hal Steinbrenner
* General Manager: Brian Cashman
* Manager: Aaron Boone

Championships (27)|

* 1923
* 1927
* 1928
* 1932
* 1936
* 1937
* 1938
* 1939
* 1941
* 1943
* 1947
* 1949
* 1950
* 1951
* 1952
* 1953
* 1956
* 1958
* 1961
* 1962
* 1977
* 1978
* 1996
* 1998
* 1999
* 2000
* 2009

American League
Pennants (41)|

* 1921
* 1922
* 1923
* 1926
* 1927
* 1928
* 1932
* 1936
* 1937
* 1938
* 1939
* 1941
* 1942
* 1943
* 1947
* 1949
* 1950
* 1951
* 1952
* 1953
* 1955
* 1956
* 1957
* 1958
* 1960
* 1961
* 1962
* 1963
* 1964
* 1976
* 1977
* 1978
* 1981
* 1996
* 1998
* 1999
* 2000
* 2001
* 2003
* 2009
* 2024

Division titles (21)|

* 1976
* 1977
* 1978
* 1980
* 1981
* 1996
* 1998
* 1999
* 2000
* 2001
* 2002
* 2003
* 2004
* 2005
* 2006
* 2009
* 2011
* 2012
* 2019
* 2022
* 2024

Wild Card titles (7)|

* 1995
* 1997
* 2007
* 2010
* 2015
* 2017
* 2018
* 2020
* 2021

Minors|

* Triple-A
* Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders
* Double-A
* Somerset Patriots
* High-A
* Hudson Valley Renegades
* Single-A
* Tampa Tarpons
* Rookie
* FCL Yankees
* DSL Yankees

Seasons (125)

1900s|

* 1900·1901·1902
* 1903
* 1904
* 1905
* 1906
* 1907
* 1908
* 1909

1910s|

* 1910
* 1911
* 1912
* 1913
* 1914
* 1915
* 1916
* 1917
* 1918
* 1919

1920s|

* 1920
* 1921
* 1922
* 1923
* 1924
* 1925
* 1926
* 1927
* 1928
* 1929

1930s|

* 1930
* 1931
* 1932
* 1933
* 1934
* 1935
* 1936
* 1937
* 1938
* 1939

1940s|

* 1940
* 1941
* 1942
* 1943
* 1944
* 1945
* 1946
* 1947
* 1948
* 1949

1950s|

* 1950
* 1951
* 1952
* 1953
* 1954
* 1955
* 1956
* 1957
* 1958
* 1959

1960s|

* 1960
* 1961
* 1962
* 1963
* 1964
* 1965
* 1966
* 1967
* 1968
* 1969

1970s|

* 1970
* 1971
* 1972
* 1973
* 1974
* 1975
* 1976
* 1977
* 1978
* 1979

1980s|

* 1980
* 1981
* 1982
* 1983
* 1984
* 1985
* 1986
* 1987
* 1988
* 1989

1990s|

* 1990
* 1991
* 1992
* 1993
* 1994
* 1995
* 1996
* 1997
* 1998
* 1999

2000s|

* 2000
* 2001
* 2002
* 2003
* 2004
* 2005
* 2006
* 2007
* 2008
* 2009

2010s|

* 2010
* 2011
* 2012
* 2013
* 2014
* 2015
* 2016
* 2017
* 2018
* 2019

2020s|

* 2020
* 2021
* 2022
* 2023
* 2024
* 2025

* v
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Major League Baseball on television

Contract history|

* Blackout policy
* American broadcasting contracts
* Canadian broadcasting contracts
* Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961

| By decade|

* 1940s
* 1950s
* 1960s
* 1970s
* 1980s
* 1990s
* 2000s
* 2010s
* 2020s

|

Over-the-air broadcasters|

* Fox
* ABC
* history

| Former|

* CBS
* DuMont
* NBC
* history

|

Pay television broadcasters|

* ESPN/ESPN+
* FS1
* Fox Deportes
* TBS/Max

| Former|

* USA
* Fox Family/ABC Family

|

Streaming media carriers|

* Apple TV+
* The Roku Channel

| Former|

* Peacock
* YouTube

|

MLB owned
and operated entities|

* The Baseball Network
* Extra Innings
* MLB Network
* MLB.tv

Broadcast days|

* Game of the Week
* broadcasters
* Monday Night
* broadcasters
* Tuesday Night
* Wednesday Night
* Thursday Night
* Friday Night
* Saturday Afternoon
* Saturday Night
* Sunday Afternoon
* Sunday Night

Local broadcasters|

* Current announcers
* Historical television broadcasters

| Regional sports networks|

* AT&T SportsNet
* Chicago Sports Network
* FanDuel Sports Network
* Fox Sports
* Marquee Sports Network
* MASN
* NBC Sports
* NESN
* Rangers Sports Network
* Root Sports
* SNY
* Space City Home Network
* Spectrum SportsNet LA
* Sportsnet
* SportsNet Pittsburgh
* SportsChannel
* YES Network

|

Superstations|

* TBS (Atlanta Braves)
* WGN Sports (Chicago Cubs and White Sox)

Pay-per-view services|

* GiantsVision

Owned-and-operated stations|

* Fox

Syndication arrangements|

* MLB Local Media
* Gray Television

News television series|

* Baseball Tonight
* Major League Baseball: An Inside Look
* Race for the Pennant
* This Week in Baseball

| MLB Network programs|

* Hot Stove
* Intentional Talk
* MLB's 20 Greatest Games
* MLB Network Showcase
* MLB Tonight
* Off Base
* Quick Pitch

|

Specialty programming|

* The Baseball Bunch
* Baseball IQ
* Baseball's Seasons
* Home Run Derby
* Kiner's Korner
* Yankeeography

| Reality television series|

* The Club
* The Franchise

|

Rebroadcasts|

* ESPN Classic
* Mets Classics
* Yankees Classics

|

Broadcasters by event|

* World Series (television ratings)
* ALCS
* NLCS
* All-Star Game
* ALDS
* NLDS
* Wild Card Round

International coverage|

* MLB International

| Australia|

* ESPN Australia
* Fox Sports
* One

|

United Kingdom and Ireland|

* TNT Sports
* Five
* BBC Sport (UK only)

Canada|

* Sportsnet
* TSN
* TVA Sports

Latin America|

* ESPN
* Fox Sports

Brazil|

* ESPN Brasil
* Fox Sports

Japan|

* Fuji TV
* NHK
* TBS

South Korea|

* SPOTV

Landmark events|

* Broadcasting firsts
* Telecasts technology
* Score bug

Miscellaneous|

* Instant replay
* TV markets

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