Being the best Yankee team ever is like being the shiniest diamond at Tiffany’s. The company around you is pretty slick. And while you might quibble about the 1939 New York Yankees as the best the franchise ever assembled, it’s hard not to appreciate the audacity of it all. How many other franchises have weathered the retirement of not one, but two all-time greats — I’m talking top-15 players ever — and saw the run of success continue?
The Yankees did. With Babe Ruth retired and Lou Gehrig playing only 8 games in ’39, the Yankees officially moved beyond the duo that set the franchise apart.