With Aaron Judge of Linden making such a huge splash this season hitting homers and captivating the national media in New York by how he’s been playing for the New York Yankees, we thought we’d come up with a list of the 10 greatest Yankees who are from California high schools. Will Aaron one day be on this list?
1. Joe DiMaggio (Galileo, San Francisco)
The immortal Yankee Clipper didn’t graduate from Galileo but he went there for a spell. His 56-game hitting streak probably will be one of the greatest records in all of sports forever.
2. Lefty Gomez (Richmond)
Another old-time Yankee great but a pitcher and not an outfielder like DiMaggio, he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972.
3. Billy Martin (Berkeley)
A great second baseman for the team in the 1950s, Martin later became famous as a manager and for the many times he was fired by owner George Steinbrenner.
4. Tony Lazzeri (Galileo, San Francisco)
A bomber from the old days who played second base, he was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1991. Lazzeri is listed from Galileo and also for an elementary school in North Beach.
5. Don Larsen (Point Loma, San Diego)
Well known for pitching a perfect game in the 1956 World Series, Larsen is from the same high school as David Wells, regarded as another of the Yankees’ best pitchers ever.
6. Rickey Henderson (Oakland Tech)
We’re only ranking Rickey low because he didn’t play many seasons in New York. If he had played as many seasons there as in Oakland, he’d be second on this list for sure.
7. Dave Righetti (Pioneer, San Jose)
A pitching coach for three World Series title teams in San Francisco, Righetti was a dominant starter for the Yankees in the 1970s.
8. Chris Chambliss (Oceanside)
This power-hitting first baseman was the American League Rookie of the Year in 1971 and later hit a game-winning homer in the 1976 AL Championship Series.
9. Gil McDougald (Commerce, San Francisco)
He was a five-time All-Star during a 10-year career from 1951 to 1960 and was part of five World Series title-winning teams. He went to the same closed high school as NBA Hall of Famer K.C. Jones.
10. Frankie Crosetti (Santa Clara Prep)
Hey, we’re partial to Frankie because he lived in Stockton for many years. He was a great third base coach for many years with the team and was part of an amazing 17 world championship teams as a player and coach.
Others: Jason Giambi (West Covina South Hills), Darryl Strawberry (Los Angeles Crenshaw), David Wells (San Diego Point Loma).
