New York Yankees 1936 1951

The New York Yankees 1936–1951 Joe DiMaggio

With Ruth retired, Gehrig finally had a chance to take center stage, but it was only one year before a new titan appeared: Joe DiMaggio. The team would win an unprecedented four straight World Series titles from 1936 to 1939. For most of 1939, the Yankees were without Gehrig, who was forced to retire because of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS).

The Yankees declared July 4, 1939 to be "Lou Gehrig Day", on which they retired his number 4 (the first retired number in baseball). Gehrig made a famous speech in which he declared himself to be "the luckiest man on the face of the earth." He died two years later.

Often described as the last year of the "Golden Era" before World War II and other realities intervened, 1941 was a thrilling year as America watched two major events unfold: Ted Williams of the Red Sox hunting for the elusive .400 batting average and Joe DiMaggio getting hits in consecutive ballgames. By the end of his hitting streak, DiMaggio hit in 56 consecutive games, the current major league record.

Two months and one day after the Yankees beat the Brooklyn Dodgers in the 1941 World Series, the Pearl Harbor attacks occurred, and many of their best players, including DiMaggio himself, went off to serve in the military. The Yankees still managed to pull out a win against the St. Louis Cardinals in the 1943 World Series. After a few slumping seasons, McCarthy was fired early in 1946. A few interim managers later, Bucky Harris took the job, righting the ship and taking the Yankees to a hard fought series victory against the Dodgers.

Despite finishing only three games behind the first place Cleveland Indians in 1948, Harris was released in favor of Casey Stengel, who had a reputation of being a clown and managing bad teams. His tenure as Yankee field manager, however, was marked with success. The "underdog" Yankees came from behind to catch and surprise the then-powerful Red Sox on the last two days of the 1949 season, a face off that fueled the beginning of the modern Red Sox – Yankees rivalry. By this time, however, DiMaggio's career was winding down, and the "Yankee Clipper" retired after the 1951 season. This year marked the arrival of the "Oklahoma Kid", Mickey Mantle, who was one of several new stars that would fill the gap