For New York Yankees fans, this World Series stings more than most. Being a Yankees fan means that any time the pinstripes aren’t playing for a championship, it leaves a bitter taste — but this one feels a little bit worse.
With the Dodgers and Blue Jays meeting in the Fall Classic, New Yorkers are forced to choose their poison. Either the Dodgers win another title, further separating themselves from the rest of baseball while Yankees fans watch a team celebrating with players New York missed out on — or the division rival Blue Jays lift the trophy, the same team that dethroned the Yankees for the division, knocked them out of the playoffs, and then ran their mouths about it.
There is one silver lining for Yankees fans, though — Don Mattingly will finally experience what it’s like to reach the World Series. Mattingly was the rock of the Yankees throughout the 1980s and into the mid-1990s, and his story remains one of the most bittersweet in franchise history.
Donnie Baseball was a beacon of hope on some bad Yankees teams, the clear best player in baseball during the mid-’80s. But as his back injuries worsened, he continued trying to will the team to a championship. In 1994, the Yankees looked poised to win it all before the players’ strike ended the season. Then, in 1995, they were eliminated by Seattle after a controversial playoff format. Still, the Hitman shined that postseason, earning one of the loudest ovations ever heard in Yankee Stadium after his memorable home run.
He retired the following year, just before the Yankees began their dynasty. After years as a manager and coach, the now–Blue Jays bench coach will finally reach his first World Series — a small sign of hope in an otherwise gloomy October for Yankees fans.