Kevin Costner’s Yankees story brings back memories of Steinbrenner’s wild side originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
With the New York Yankees muddling their way through to the ALl-Star break, their fans are suddenly finding themself nostalgic for the mercurial days when legendary owner George Steinbrenner ran the team with emotion, passion and an itchy trigger finger.
So, this story that Kevin Costner told at the Fanatics festival will hit hard.
The Hollywood icon hit every note of what it meant to deal with George Steinbrenner—blunt, territorial, explosive, and somehow still capable of generous surprises.
Costner recalled trying to film scenes at Yankee Stadium for the movie For Love of the Game in 1998 —only to have Steinbrenner abruptly shut it down after learning the Yankees lose in the movie.
“Now I’m thinking, I’m dead unless I say something,” Costner told the audience, saying The Boss was so angry about the fictional loss that he canceled the whole shoot. “I started doing a tap dance,” Costner said, calling the whole scene “f—– up.
Costner managed to win him over with the line that apparently unlocked the gates to the old Yankee Stadium.
“It’s a meaningless game, George.”
He promised Steinbrenner the Yankees would be treated with the proper reverence in the movie. Steinbrenner backed down, the crew filmed the scenes, and For Love of the Game went forward.
The real Yankees went on to win the 1999 World Series, sweeping the Braves. Costner, who never wore pinstripes in the film, somehow wound up with a World Series executive ring from Steinbrenner himself.
“He was very capable of blowing up,” Costner said, “and he was also capable of the most giant gestures that you can imagine.”
Every Yankees fan has heard the stories of Steinbrenner’s legendary temper and his amazing generosity. These days, they just wish his son had inherited more of the itchy trigger finger when running the Yankees.
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This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 7, 2025, where it first appeared.