'Highest honor': Paul O'Neill on what it means to have No. 21 retired by the Yankees
TAMPA, Fla. – A plaque commemorating Paul O’Neill’s standout New York Yankees career has resided in Monument Park since 2014.
Yet, when the Yankees chose to retire his No. 21, some 21 years after he played his last game at Yankee Stadium, O’Neill considered it “the highest honor’’ he could receive.
“This is just a different game to me,’’ O’Neill said Wednesday, a day after the Yankees made the announcement. “It’s on my mind all day, it just keeps replaying over and over how cool this is.’’
O’Neill’s number will go the rafters, with 22 others in Yankees’ history, in a ceremony on Aug. 21, prior to the Yankees’ game against the Toronto Blue Jays.
Retiring a celebrated player’s number “happens with every team, but when it happens with the Yankees…it’s kind of mind-blowing,’’ said O’Neill, who was most proud of being part of four Yankees world championship teams between 1996-2000.
“To win four World Series in five years, when’s that going to happen again?’’ asked O’Neill, now entrenched as YES Network analyst on Yankees telecasts.
Getting the call
O’Neill is in regular contact with Yankees senior vice president of marketing, Debbie Tymon, but when she dropped the news of his number retirement during a recent conversation, “I kind of dropped the phone,’’ said O’Neill, who turns 59 on Friday.
Yankees managing general partner Hal Steinbrenner followed up with a phone call, and the congratulations have been pouring in since.
O’Neill also acknowledged the Yankees’ fans hand in the organization’s decision to retire his number, which was reissued just once – to much public uproar – in 2008, worn by pitcher LaTroy Hawkins.
“(I’ve) always been thankful’’ of the fans. “They’ve treated me unbelievably, both as a player and in the booth,’’ said O’Neill, who batted .303 with an .869 OPS in nine pinstripes seasons.
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"The Warrior''
O’Neill was dubbed ‘The Warrior’ by late owner George Steinbrenner, an appreciative nod to the lanky lefty-hitting right fielder’s intensity in the batter’s box and his drive to win.
And when things weren’t going well, no dugout water cooler was safe.
“It was almost embarrassing at the time,’’ O’Neill said of the nickname, though he came to regard “The Warrior’’ tag as a compliment.
“It was about who won and lost. That’s how I played my career,’’ said O’Neill. “And that’s why it was so much fun’’ to play on the Yankees’ last championship dynasty.
Attending his first game as a kid at old Crosley Field in Cincinnati, O’Neill recalled seeing Pittsburgh Pirates Hall of Famer Roberto Clemente, No. 21, standing in right field.
That old memory hit O’Neill once he was issued No. 21 as Cincinnati Reds rookie, and he carried that number to the Bronx upon being traded for Roberto Kelly after the 1992 season.
History lesson
That deal, struck by the late Gene Michael, was among the key move in transitioning the Yankees back into a perennial pennant contender.
And among the first things O’Neill, an Ohio native, did upon arriving at the former Yankee Stadium was to visit the original Monument Park.
“The first thing I noticed when I was traded over from Cincinnati was the history and the pride of the Yankees,’’ said O’Neill, fortunate to have met icons such as Mickey Mantle, Whitey Ford and Yogi Berra.
“Those were great memories for me and you never…think you’re going to achieve something that those great players before you did.’’
Now, O’Neill’s retired number will reside with teammates Derek Jeter (No. 2), Jorge Posada (No. 20), Andy Pettitte (No. 47), Don Mattingly (No. 23), Bernie Williams (No. 51), Mariano Rivera (No. 42) and manager Joe Torre (No. 6).
“To look up there and see a No. 21, that’s definitely the highest honor I think that could happen to me,’’ O’Neill said. “And I can’t thank the Yankees enough.’’
Pete Caldera is the Yankees beat writer for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to all Yankees analysis, news, trades and more, please subscribe today and download our app.
Email: caldera@northjersey.com Twitter: @pcaldera