{"id":668026,"date":"2026-04-07T09:03:53","date_gmt":"2026-04-07T09:03:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/668026\/"},"modified":"2026-04-07T09:03:53","modified_gmt":"2026-04-07T09:03:53","slug":"diving-deep-into-the-steinbrenner-era-of-yankees-ownership","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/668026\/","title":{"rendered":"Diving deep into the Steinbrenner era of Yankees’ ownership"},"content":{"rendered":"

Longtime Hillsdale resident and New York Post sports columnist Mike Vaccaro has authored a new book, \u201cThe Bosses of the Bronx: The Endless Drama of the Yankees Under the House of Steinbrenner,\u2019\u2019 which debuted this weekend at No. 14 on the New York Times Best Seller list for hardcover non-fiction.<\/p>\n

On Saturday, April 11, at 1 p.m., he\u2019ll be appearing at Bookends in Ridgewood with former Yankees catcher and broadcaster John Flaherty. The following is a brief Q & A with the author. <\/p>\n

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On memorable personal exchanges with George Steinbrenner<\/p>\n

The book opens with a memory of their first phone conversation, with Steinbrenner calling Vaccaro, who was at a San Diego hotel during 2003 Super Bowl week. It was 3:27 a.m.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hear you want to talk to me.\u2019\u2019 And after inquiring why Vaccaro was sleeping, \u201che gave me 40 minutes of gold.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

By that time, \u201che was a different kind of George. If I was praising him, or even if I was ripping him, he would send me a handwritten note saying, \u2018Hey, I liked your story.\u2019 That\u2019s a different version of the Boss than Phil Pepe or Maury Allen got.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

On something surprising that came up in your research<\/p>\n

Vaccaro mentioned the extent that George Steinbrenner\u2019s purchase of the Yankees prevented them from leaving – and not just to the New Jersey Meadowlands.<\/p>\n

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\u201cNew Orleans was making a real pitch to get them to move. But Bill Paley of CBS didn\u2019t want to be known not only as the guy who let the Yankees disintegrate but also let them leave town like the Giants had.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

As the front-facing representative of his ownership group, Steinbrenner contributed only a fraction of the purchasing cost: $116,000 of his own money.<\/p>\n

On whether there could be another “George Steinbrenner type” owner in sports<\/p>\n

\u201cNo shot\u2019\u2019 in today\u2019s world, said Vaccaro. \u201cAs younger owners ascend, they become more familiar with the ways of social media. They like what they\u2019ve got. They don\u2019t want to risk it.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

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Jerry Jones, Mark Cuban and the late Marge Schott were owners capable of making headlines, but the only owner \u201cin the same ballpark\u2019\u2019 as Steinbrenner was the late Al Davis.<\/p>\n

Plus, \u201cthey were both good friends, both born on the Fourth of July, one year apart. Davis was a New York guy through and through. If he\u2019d have owned the Giants or the Jets, he might have gone headine-for-headline with George.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

On the ‘If only George were still around’ debates when things go sideways in Yankees Universe<\/p>\n

1 \/ 19<\/p>\n

See best photos as Yankees host Marlins on Opening Day 2026<\/p>\n

An opening day logo is painted on the field before the home opener baseball game between the New York Yankees and Miami Marlins at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, NY, Friday, April 3, 2026.<\/p>\n

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1 \/ 19<\/p>\n

See best photos as Yankees host Marlins on Opening Day 2026<\/p>\n

An opening day logo is painted on the field before the home opener baseball game between the New York Yankees and Miami Marlins at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, NY, Friday, April 3, 2026.<\/p>\n

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2 \/ 19<\/p>\n

See best photos as Yankees host Marlins on Opening Day 2026<\/p>\n

Fans hang out at Dugout, a local Yankees bar, before the home opener baseball game between the New York Yankees and Miami Marlins at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, NY, Friday, April 3, 2026.<\/p>\n

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3 \/ 19<\/p>\n

See best photos as Yankees host Marlins on Opening Day 2026<\/p>\n

Fans exit the subway station before the home opener baseball game between the New York Yankees and Miami Marlins at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, NY, Friday, April 3, 2026.<\/p>\n

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4 \/ 19<\/p>\n

See best photos as Yankees host Marlins on Opening Day 2026<\/p>\n

A fan shops for merchandise before the home opener baseball game between the New York Yankees and Miami Marlins at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, NY, Friday, April 3, 2026.<\/p>\n

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5 \/ 19<\/p>\n

See best photos as Yankees host Marlins on Opening Day 2026<\/p>\n

Players warm up before the home opener baseball game between the New York Yankees and Miami Marlins at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, NY, Friday, April 3, 2026.<\/p>\n

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6 \/ 19<\/p>\n

See best photos as Yankees host Marlins on Opening Day 2026<\/p>\n

Fans hang out at Dugout, a local Yankees bar, before the home opener baseball game between the New York Yankees and Miami Marlins at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, NY, Friday, April 3, 2026.<\/p>\n

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7 \/ 19<\/p>\n

See best photos as Yankees host Marlins on Opening Day 2026<\/p>\n

Fans flock the the stadium before the home opener baseball game between the New York Yankees and Miami Marlins at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, NY, Friday, April 3, 2026.<\/p>\n

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8 \/ 19<\/p>\n

See best photos as Yankees host Marlins on Opening Day 2026<\/p>\n

Fans order drinks at Dugout, a local Yankees bar, before the home opener baseball game between the New York Yankees and Miami Marlins at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, NY, Friday, April 3, 2026.<\/p>\n

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9 \/ 19<\/p>\n

See best photos as Yankees host Marlins on Opening Day 2026<\/p>\n

Fans wait in line to enter the home opener baseball game between the New York Yankees and Miami Marlins at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, NY, Friday, April 3, 2026.<\/p>\n

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10 \/ 19<\/p>\n

See best photos as Yankees host Marlins on Opening Day 2026<\/p>\n

New York Yankees players take batting practice before the home opener baseball game between the New York Yankees and Miami Marlins at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, NY, Friday, April 3, 2026.<\/p>\n

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11 \/ 19<\/p>\n

See best photos as Yankees host Marlins on Opening Day 2026<\/p>\n

Eric Fontanez, 9, sits on a bench before his second opening day game before the home opener baseball game between the New York Yankees and Miami Marlins at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, NY, Friday, April 3, 2026.<\/p>\n

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12 \/ 19<\/p>\n

See best photos as Yankees host Marlins on Opening Day 2026<\/p>\n

A fan waits for his group before the home opener baseball game between the New York Yankees and Miami Marlins at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, NY, Friday, April 3, 2026.<\/p>\n

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13 \/ 19<\/p>\n

See best photos as Yankees host Marlins on Opening Day 2026<\/p>\n

A fan shops for merchandise before the home opener baseball game between the New York Yankees and Miami Marlins at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, NY, Friday, April 3, 2026.<\/p>\n

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14 \/ 19<\/p>\n

See best photos as Yankees host Marlins on Opening Day 2026<\/p>\n

Fans hangout outside of Dugout, a local Yankees bar, before the home opener baseball game between the New York Yankees and Miami Marlins at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, NY, Friday, April 3, 2026.<\/p>\n

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15 \/ 19<\/p>\n

See best photos as Yankees host Marlins on Opening Day 2026<\/p>\n

A fan shouts while heading towards the stadium before the home opener baseball game between the New York Yankees and Miami Marlins at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, NY, Friday, April 3, 2026.<\/p>\n

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16 \/ 19<\/p>\n

See best photos as Yankees host Marlins on Opening Day 2026<\/p>\n

Fans hang out at Dugout, a local Yankees bar, before the home opener baseball game between the New York Yankees and Miami Marlins at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, NY, Friday, April 3, 2026.<\/p>\n

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17 \/ 19<\/p>\n

See best photos as Yankees host Marlins on Opening Day 2026<\/p>\n

Fans flock the the stadium before the home opener baseball game between the New York Yankees and Miami Marlins at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, NY, Friday, April 3, 2026.<\/p>\n

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18 \/ 19<\/p>\n

See best photos as Yankees host Marlins on Opening Day 2026<\/p>\n

Fans enter Dugout, a local Yankees bar, before the home opener baseball game between the New York Yankees and Miami Marlins at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, NY, Friday, April 3, 2026.<\/p>\n

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19 \/ 19<\/p>\n

See best photos as Yankees host Marlins on Opening Day 2026<\/p>\n

Players begin to take batting practice before the home opener baseball game between the New York Yankees and Miami Marlins at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, NY, Friday, April 3, 2026.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we\u2019re talking about the George of 1981, he certainly would\u2019ve fired Aaron Boone and Brian Cashman by now. Boone might be in his third tenure like Billy Martin, because he had a circle of trust.<\/p>\n

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\u201cYou\u2019re more than welcome to be impatient, you\u2019re a Yankees fan, I get it. Some fans only remember the George of the latter 2000s, when he was like everybody’s grandpa walking through the stadium and everybody cheered him . There\u2019s a belief that when he fired anybody, everything was better.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

On Hal Steinbrenner speaking publicly about his bottom line <\/p>\n

\u201cIf (fans are) going to have opinions, they should be informed opinions…(but) he probably shouldn\u2019t have shared it because it\u2019s never going to be interpreted properly. Even the most reasonable fan doesn\u2019t want to hear it.<\/p>\n

“They want to know why the Dodgers get all these players and we can\u2019t. How come Steve Cohen doesn\u2019t care how much money he loses, and you do? Hal\u2019s never called what he does a burden. He calls it a privilege.”<\/p>\n

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In many ways George Steinbrenner’s ownership style gave fans license to be impatient, since “he was the most over the top lunatic fan, sometimes, of all.”<\/p>\n

On whether Hal Steinbrenner might ever sell the Yankees<\/p>\n

\u201cI think he enjoys being the owner of the Yankees. I think people are going to find that amazing. What\u2019s equally amazing is how much he cares about running it as his father does.”<\/p>\n

Hal Steinbrenner told Vaccaro: “If I’m watching a game and the Yankees blow a lead in the ninth inning, I’m going to throw my shoe at the TV.”<\/p>\n

George Steinbrenner might do the same. “The difference is, he\u2019d call (a columnist), and say, ‘I just threw my shoe through a TV.’ And there would be three days’ worth of headlines.<\/p>\n

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Owning the Yankees “mattered to his father in ways it\u2019s impossible to describe,” said Vaccaro, and having the team remain in the family is “important (to Hal) as a personal kind of permanent monument to his father.”<\/p>\n

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Steinbrenner era of Yankees ownership deep dive into history<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Longtime Hillsdale resident and New York Post sports columnist Mike Vaccaro has authored a new book, \u201cThe Bosses…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":668027,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2376],"tags":[5,39,15374,17274,4,1690,62,2548,2547,84989,142],"class_list":{"0":"post-668026","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york-yankees","8":"tag-baseball","9":"tag-dodgers","10":"tag-george-steinbrenner","11":"tag-hal-steinbrenner","12":"tag-mlb","13":"tag-new-york","14":"tag-new-york-yankees","15":"tag-newyork","16":"tag-newyorkyankees","17":"tag-vaccaro","18":"tag-yankees"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/116362629002989343","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/668026","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=668026"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/668026\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/668027"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=668026"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=668026"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=668026"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}