Celebrating the 2009 Yankees, wondering if the '24 team has that championship stuff

NEW YORK – A championship bond is a forever thing, so the laughs were easy as the conversations flowed at Saturday afternoon’s 76th Old-Timers’ Day at Yankee Stadium.

This was a celebration of the Yankees’ 2009 World Series winning team, accompanied by familiar cheers for Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, CC Sabathia, Hideki Matsui, Jorge Posada and first-time Yankee old-timer Alex Rodriguez.

It was also a reminder that the Yankees’ last world title was 15 long years ago.

Depending on the day, these 2024 Yankees appear championship caliber or ultra vulnerable, though they still owned the AL’s best record after Saturday’s 9-2 loss to the lowly Colorado Rockies.

Rookie starter Will Warren was gone after three innings, trailing 6-0 after balking twice and yielding four runs in the third, while Alex Verdgo's first homer since July 6 - breaking a personal 0-for-21 - sufficed as a Yankee highlight.

But as Jeter reminded 40,438 fans on the field, “it doesn’t matter what you do during a 162-game schedule. It all boils down to the World Series.

“Win a championship or it’s a failure.’’

How the 2009 Yankees developed that championship bond

That’s an echo from the last Yankee dynasty and the George Steinbrenner era.

Hal Steinbrenner called the Yankees’ playoff-less, 82-win 2022 season a “disaster’’ and “an embarrassment,’’ and GM Brian Cashman traded for Juan Soto as a lineup complement to Aaron Judge.

After the 2008 Yankees missed postseason in Joe Girardi’s first year as manager, the last in old Yankee Stadium, Cashman signed Sabathia, Mark Teixeira and AJ Burnett as high-priced free agents and traded for Nick Swisher.

“They kind of enhanced the team even more,’’ Matsui said via interpreter.

Sabathia credited the old guard for allowing the newcomers to be themselves, and Sabathia quickly became the organizer of team dinners and securer of suites to NBA playoff games.

“CC really worked hard at including everyone and making sure they felt just as important as the next guy,’’ Girardi said.

“From day one, we got really close during spring training,’’ said Posada. “We hung out a lot, did a lot of things together…just a fun group and everyone put their piece into a championship.’’

Those 2009 Yankees didn’t go wire-to-wire, but that bond held during tough times.

A-Rod missed the first 28 games of the year due to hip surgery, as the Yanks went 13-15, then homered at Baltimore in his first at-bat to spark a victory.

“That’s when our season began,’’ said Sabathia, who tossed a complete game that night.

From there, the Yanks won 21 of their next 29, but they’d soon lose nine of 13 and stumble into second place on June 24, when a game-tying Francisco Cervelli homer at Atlanta marked another turning point.

They won 13 of their next 15 games, and the ’09 Yanks never looked back.

The 2009 Yankees' words of wisdom to the 2024 club

These Yankees have Judge pursuing a Triple Crown, batting ahead of Soto – one of the game’s great on-base-plus-power hitters – and Gerrit Cole, a Hall-of-Fame starter in his prime.

Those ’09 Yankees had much better balance, with emerging stars like Robinson Cano, and a championship veteran group that included October-tested Johnny Damon.

In postseason, they were boosted by using Phil Hughes and Joba Chamberlain in relief with Sabathia, Burnett and Andy Pettitte anchoring the staff. Maybe Clarke Schmidt or Luis Gil could fill that role this October, though the rotation's trust factor dips sharply after Cole.

Jeter has high praise for the skills and demeanor of Judge, who succeeded him as Yankee captain, and said that “preparation and approach’’ matters above all.

Posada watches a lot of Yankees games now, and “I see this group a little bit more (together) than before.''

If Posada could impart anything from that championship team to the current Yankees, it would be “attitude.’’

“It takes a lot of guts and wanting,’’ Posada said of being a championship team. “And I think they can do that.’’

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Celebrating the 2009 Yankees, wondering if the '24 team has that championship stuff