Former Yankees Catcher Jorge Posada on Core Four's Success: "Bernie [Williams] Was the Key"

Ask any baseball fan and odds are they can tell you who was in the Yankees' Core Four.

The iconic grouping of Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada, Andy Pettitte and Mariano Rivera was integral to New York's dominance at the end of the 20th century, capturing four World Series titles in a span of five years. Each member of the legendary crew was a product of the Yankees' Minor League system.

New York's success, however, wasn't limited to those four players. The club was built up the middle and according to Posada, Bernie Williams was "key" in paving the way for the homegrown Yankees to play together at the big-league level.

"Bernie was the key," Posada said in a virtual interview with Jack Curry of YES Network on Friday. "He was very successful and if he didn't pan out, I don't think the Jeters, the Posadas, the Pettittes and Mariano Riveras would have been there. We would have been gone."

It was enjoyable to catch up with Jorge Posada, one of the most honest players I ever covered. In this interview, he told me a few Yankee stories that I had never heard. https://t.co/MDpxTQJcEE
— JackCurryYES (@JackCurryYES) April 10, 2020

Williams was also raised within the Yankees' system, debuting in 1991. By his third season, the outfielder had assumed an everyday role with the club – he went on to play in over 100 games in the final 14 seasons of his career.

The entire Core Four was called up for the first time in 1995. Posada believes in retrospect that had Williams not stuck after he was called up years earlier, there never would have been a Core Four.

"When Bernie starts playing good, coming from the Minor Leagues and he's showing what he can do, obviously he opened the door for all of us," Posada explained to Curry. "Bernie was the key, he really was. Then you brought in Andy and Mo there. Then Derek and me at the end. But I think we all graduated to that position. Bernie did it first."

Posada opened up about the process of working through the Minor Leagues, something he says isn't the same anymore. Instead of young players being "handed" a position at the big-league level, as is often the case nowadays, the former backstop is proud of the Core Four's ability to earn their pinstripes.

Again, that would never have happened if Williams didn't pave the way.

READ: Yankees family congratulates Derek Jeter on HOF election

Posada now works as a special advisor to baseball operations with the Marlins. It's a position he took because Miami is currently his home, the team is "promising" with young talent and it was an opportunity to reunite with Jeter, the team's CEO.

Reflecting on his two-plus decades within the Yankees' organization, however, he told Curry he had been brainwashed ... in a good way.

"We were taught well," he said, reminiscing of his earliest Spring Training appearances, working his way up through the farm system ranks. "I think when you come up through the system, the job they did for us as a Minor Leaguer, they really brainwashed us. Winning was number one."

Just last summer, the Core Four was back together as Rivera was inducted into the Hall of Fame. Posada joked that even decades after they became a close-knit group of teammates, they still give act like teammates in the Yankees' dugout.

"We gave [Mariano] a hard time because his speech took too long," Posada joked. "He said it was going to be short and it was 1,000 degrees in Cooperstown last year. We were sweating, we had suits on. But other than that, we had a great time, we wanted to be there for him. I think it's important we were there for him and we'll do the same thing for Derek."

Whether or not Jeter's induction ceremony will take place this summer in Cooperstown remains to be seen. The novel coronavirus pandemic, which has indefinitely postponed MLB's season, could force the Hall of Fame to delay or cancel the ceremony this July.

Regardless, the Core Four's closeness isn't going away any time soon. And Yankees fans can thank Bernie Williams for laying the framework for those legendary careers to take place side by side in the Bronx.

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For more from Max Goodman, follow him on Twitter @MaxTGoodman. Follow ITP on Twitter @SI_Yankees and Facebook @SIYankees