Q&A: Jack Curry of the YES Network discusses his new book about the 98 Yankees

Twenty-five years ago, the 1998 Yankees made their case as the greatest team in Major League Baseball history. That year, the Yankees went 114-48 and swept the Padres in the World Series. Two teams, the 1906 Chicago Cubs and the 2001 Seattle Mariners, won 116 games in their respective regular seasons. But unlike the Yankees, they failed to win a title.

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In his new book, “The 1998 Yankees,” the YES Network’s Jack Curry explores why they are the greatest team ever. It features new insights from all of the main characters: Joe Torre, Derek Jeter, Bernie Williams, Tino Martinez, Jorge Posada, Chuck Knoblauch, David Wells, David Cone, Orlando “El Duque” Hernandez, Mariano Rivera and many more of the contributors who made the Yankees so well-rounded that season.

The Athletic spoke with Curry to discuss his new book, which was released Tuesday.

Jack, I’m always fascinated by the process of writing a book. It’s a massive undertaking. What was your process like for writing the book? Who was your first phone call when it came to writing the defining story of the 1998 Yankees?

Believe it or not, the first phone call I made to a player was to Homer Bush. Homer was a backup player and a pinch-runner extraordinaire and a great storyteller. He was very observant about a lot of things that happened with the Yankees that season so I was very interested in getting his take on things. But Homer was also first because I wanted to interview the players in ascending order so I started with the reserves and worked my way up to the starters.

One of the things I was struck by while reading the book was how much of a loose cannon David Wells was while still being dominant. Walking into the clubhouse still drunk the morning of his perfect game was unbelievable. Staying away in a separate hotel from the team was equally wild. Being so open with the media in predicting a World Series win seems like it just wouldn’t happen nowadays. In all your years being around this team, has there been a more unique character than Wells? What’s your favorite Wells story that either happened in 1998 or a different year? 

Wells was a free spirit, a rebel and a character and his chapter was one of my favorite chapters to write. I loved the title of the chapter, “Rebel Without A Pause” because that’s truly who Wells was. Wells liked to talk, liked to tweak people and liked to be the center of attention, which is fine when you can back it up. And he did. Especially in 1998. David Cone constantly says that the Yankees wouldn’t have won in 1998 without Wells. He was undefeated in the postseason. I don’t know if I have a favorite story regarding Wells, but I would say that the most memorable is what he did the night before his perfect game. Even 25 years later, it was shocking to hear him talk about staying out until 5:30 a.m. after drinking a bottle of vodka and then somehow, some way, pitching a perfect game. That’s a pretty difficult story to beat.

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It’s hard to fathom looking back on it now, but this team didn’t have one starter in the All-Star game that year. No one hit 30 home runs. There wasn’t a megastar (yet) on the team. You were around them every day. What was it about them that made all of the pieces fit so seamlessly together? 

Accountability. Talent. Resilience. Fortitude. Focused. Confidence. Those are some of the words that best describe that team and those are some of the reasons that team performed so well and why the pieces fit so well. Tino Martinez said something that left a big impression on him. He said it was probably the only team he’d ever been on where no one was lounging on the couch in the clubhouse or goofing off. Everyone was working. So, if your teammate was in the batting cage or lifting weights or talking hitting, you figured that you had better be doing the same thing. I think that team had a slew of veteran players who had impressive work ethics and successful routines and they used them throughout that season. And that rubbed off on the teammates who maybe weren’t used to working as hard. They hated to lose even one game and not every team is wired that way.

You talk about a couple of different galvanizing moments that year. One of which was the team meeting that happened in Seattle in early April after the team struggled to begin the season. The other was the bench-clearing brawl against the Orioles when Armando Benitez plunked Tino Martinez. Do you believe those kinds of events could still have the same level of impact in today’s game? 

I do believe they could have the same impact. With the early season meeting that Joe Torre had, players knew he was ticked off. Joe was normally stoic and soothing, but not that day. He was angry. Even one week into the season, he didn’t like the way they were playing. And, after he spoke, he opened the floor to the players. All these years later, several players told me how they still remember Cone imploring his teammates to find something you hate about your opponent to use as motivation. Regarding the bean ball with Benitez, the Yankees were incensed that he would intentionally hit Martinez. And, if you watch the YouTube video of what happened after that, the Yankees were a tidal wave of pinstripes in trying to get to Benitez. They were telling the Orioles and every other team that they were classy players, but they were also feisty players and they weren’t going to let anyone slap them in the face. They didn’t need to be further galvanized, but Benitez made that happen. And, when that game resumed, Tim Raines hit a homer. That was a microcosm of who the Yankees were — “OK, you messed with us. We’re coming for you.”

Everyone knows how competitive Derek Jeter was and how winning was the sole thing that mattered to him. There may not be a media member who knows Jeter more than you. After all, you co-wrote “The Life You Imagine” with Jeter early in his career. Besides his competitiveness, what do you think it was that made Jeter stand out, especially in that 1998 season?

Beyond Jeter’s competitiveness, which was legendary, I think he stood out because of his unwillingness to accept anything less than excellence. He knew there were going to be a lot of 0-for-4 or 0-for-5 games and he knew he would make some costly errors, but he approached every game like a player who wanted to destroy the opposition. Because Jeter was always talking to opponents on second base and talking to kids from the on-deck circle, I think that part of his game sometimes gets overlooked. Jeter wanted to pummel you. In fact, he said that exact thing in the book. He said, “We wanted to pummel teams” and “We wanted to beat you every inning.” And teammates noticed that. Jeff Nelson, who was in his seventh big-league season, actually said he was motivated to perform well because of the way he saw Jeter prepare and play.

Orlando “El Duque” Hernandez’s unflappable nature was one of the most interesting parts of the book to me. The story of him helping the hotel staff clean the day he pitched, essentially, a must-win game against Cleveland in the playoffs was such a cool scene to visualize. El Duque never was as good as he was in 1998. What was it like covering him that season and why do you think he could never find that groove to that level again?  

Man, I loved covering El Duque. On and off the field. When I watched him pitch, I knew I was watching a master at work. He was a pitching genius. He never gave in. Never. He made batters adapt to him. And, while he could have a temper, he also had an entertaining side and thoroughly enjoyed being a showman. While 1998 was his best season statistically, he still contributed to championship teams in 1999 and 2000 and was also part of the 2005 White Sox team that won a title. Because El Duque never gave in, walks would sometimes be an issue for him. But, if I needed one pitcher to win a postseason game, El Duque would be on the short list of pitchers I’d choose.  

There are now obvious comparisons being made between Jeter and Anthony Volpe, who also grew up wanting to play shortstop for the Yankees. Other than that fact, do you see any similarities between the two with how they started their careers? 

We’ve all made this Volpe-Jeter comparison because they both have a New Jersey connection, they both were first-round picks and they both started on Opening Day at the age of 21. In some ways, it seems unfair to Volpe to do it, but, hey, it’s what we all do as we’re evaluating players. Jeter was a very aggressive hitter. He wasn’t interested in walks. The first good pitch he saw, he was swinging. I think Volpe has a more selective approach, but, at times, Volpe has also shown he can be aggressive and attack that first good pitch. Jeter loved to see fastballs. Volpe is getting a lot of fastballs up in the zone and needs to prove he can handle that pitch. On the bases, Volpe has looked fearless to me. In every aspect of the game, whether it was running, hitting or fielding, Jeter was fearless. It’s only been a month at the major-league level for Volpe. He needs time to blossom and I believe he will.

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I was 6 years old in 1998. That Yankees team is the first one I actually remember vividly. I remember switching my jersey number to 11 for Chuck Knoblauch because we were both CKs who played second base. For people around my age who couldn’t fully appreciate the greatness at that time, what was it like showing up to the stadium as a reporter back then knowing you were likely going to cover a win that day? When did you realize you were witnessing something special? 

That team was very businesslike and very successful. The 1998 Yankees were a confident and focused bunch. After that 1-4 start, they won 64 of their next 80 games. So their confidence grew and grew. At one point, they won 24 straight series. As I was covering that team, I did think it was a very special team because there weren’t any flaws. The rotation was 79-35. Mariano anchored a strong bullpen. They had solid players at every position. Covering them was interesting because you were covering a dominant team and, at times, that became boring. The McGwire-Sosa home run battle received way more attention than the Yankees did. The home run battle was unpredictable. The Yankees were predictable. They won every day. I’m sure I knew by May or June that this team was special, but they were 61-20 at the halfway point and that really resonated with me because they were on a 122-win pace and that didn’t seem impossible to achieve. And, if they hadn’t sputtered a bit in September, they probably would have ended up with more than 114 regular-season wins.

(Top photo of Yankees celebrating final out of 1998 World Series: John Reid III / MLB Photos via Getty Images)

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