Yankees To Retire Paul O’Neill’s 21

Twenty-one years after his final game with the team, Paul O’Neill will finally have his number 21 retired by the New York Yankees.

No Yankee has worn it since LaTroy Hawkins donned it in 2008 and was met with a chorus of boos from the fans at Yankee Stadium.

“The Warrior” will be honored with a ceremony before the team’s game against the Toronto Blue Jays on August…21!

“Wow. My heartfelt thanks to the Steinbrenner family, the entire Yankees organization, YES Network, my teammates & coaches over the years, & most importantly the fans of New York,” O’Neill wrote on Twitter Tuesday. “This is the greatest honor of my life. I’m forever grateful for all you have done for me & my family!”

O’Neill said later on The Michael Kay Show that he appreciated the fans’ support throughout — and after — his playing career.

“You can’t write a better script than obviously what the fans [did] and how they treated me and how they said goodbye,’’ O’Neill said on the show. “The things our teams achieved in the late ’90s had a lot to do with this … especially how everything came together with the Core Four coming and all the winning. Looking back, it was an unbelievable time for baseball in New York.”

O’Neill played nine seasons with the Yankees (1993-2001) and won four World Series titles (1996, 1998-2000) thereafter being acquired in a trade from his hometown Cincinnati Reds prior to the 1993 season in exchange for Roberto Kelly.

He’s the 23rd Yankee player or manager to have his number retired by the team—and the first since Derek Jeter in 2017.

O’Neill has had a plaque in Monument Park since 2014 and serves as an analyst for Yankee games on the YES Network.

Article by Andrew Corselli