By the 1950s the New York Yankees had already experienced previous decades of glory and higher levels of success than the rest of Major League Baseball. However, the 1950s began a new decade characterized by a higher level of dominance. The Yankees were supported by big name players like Whitey Ford, Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra, Joe DiMaggio and a younger, less experienced pitching staff. In this historic decade the Bronx Bombers managed to win eight American League pennants and six World Series. (Yankees Baseball) As the decade began with the year 1950, the Yankees were celebrating an American League pennant and a World Series win the previous year. By 1950 it was evident that the team had not taken too much time off as the team posted a 98-56 regular season record, winning their second consecutive pennant and a trip to the World Series where they would face the Philadelphia Phillies. In 1950, the Phillies were known as the Whiz kids because of their youth and extraordinary talent, but in the series against the Yankees they were swept in 4 games thanks to Joe DiMaggio, a legend of Major League baseball, and Phil Rizzuto, a shortstop. who would enjoy one of his most productive seasons and the honor of earning the American League MVP. Whitey Ford, a rookie pitcher for the Yanks, also enjoyed an outstanding career, winning all 9 of his games and losing only one game in relief. (Baseball History) In 1951, the Yanks continued to enjoy success. However, when they welcomed newcomer Mickey Mantle, they lost Joe DiMaggio to retirement and Whitey Ford to two years of military service. With Ford out fighting the war, the pitching staff as a whole lowered the team's ERA by more than half a point per game and also doubled the... middle of paper... for the Cardinals, but it's not it was like that. t offered him the amount of money he wanted. The following year the Yankees offered him more money and he jumped at the chance. When Yogi was eighteen he joined the Navy to fight in World War II. (Yogi Berra) Throughout the 1950s the Yankees experienced ups and downs, but the team remained arguably the premier ballclub in all of Major League Baseball. In the 1950s the team demonstrated a tenacious and unwavering determination to win even when some of its best players were missing from the lineup. While the Yankees haven't won a World Series every year this decade, it's still hard to argue that they haven't maintained their dominance of professional baseball. Early in the Yankees organization, the team established one of the most storied and storied histories ever in baseball and has built upon it and will continue to build upon it for many days to come.