Without the ingenuity of an early 20th century journalist trying to save letters, the subway station at the corner of 161st Street and River Avenue could have been better known as the Highlanders Stadium stop. Many think that the Yankees changed the original name Highlanders in 1913, when they decided to leave the thin Hilltop Park and move to the Polo Grounds.
They shared that last stadium with the Giants until 1923, when the team moved to a state-of-the-art facility with the legendary Babe Ruth as the main attraction. But the first public reference of this franchise of the American League under the name “Yankees” took place on April 7, 1904, when the New York Evening Journal reported a successful spring workout with the headline, “YANKEES TRAVEL HOME FROM THE SOUTH TODAY.”
A week later, the same coverage of the opening game in the newspaper was titled “YANKEES VENCEN A BOSTON”, and the name also appeared in the first paragraph of an article about New York’s 8-2 victory over a team that has not yet been announced. stood as the Red Sox (Red Sox). There are several references to the club as the Yankees before 1913, including some advertising cards and tobacco.
Historians believe the name “Yankees” was created by journalists who came up with a shorter alternative to “Highlanders” or “Hilltoppers”. The excellent story of Marty Appel’s franchise, “Pinstripe Empire,” uncovered a 1922 issue of Baseball Magazine, in which reporter Fred Lieb reported the following:
“[Highlanders] it was an awkward name to use for heads. Finally, the sports editor of one of the New York night papers exclaimed, “To hell with these Highlanders. I’m going to call this team the Yanks. That name fits better in the headlines. ‘
An article about the franchise published in 1943 cites New York Press sports editor Jim Price for being the first to name the team the Yankees.
The name Highlanders was never popular with fans who instead liked the patriotic symbolism that the Yankees name possessed, which hailed from the Yankee Doodle times of the American Revolution.
Other names at the time were “Greater New Yorks,” “Invaders,” and “Griffiths.” The latter referred to Clark Griffith, the club’s pilot from 1903 to 1908.
No formal announcement was ever made to confirm the permanent adoption of the name, but in 1913 it was widely accepted that the team would be called the Yankees forever. Joe DiMaggio’s famous proclamation – Thank God he made me a Highlander ”- would never have materialized.
Bryan Hoch / MLB.com