Knicks' Josh Hart, great nephew of Elston Howard, makes appearance at Yankee Stadium

NEW YORK – On the verge of clinching the AL East title , some of the Yankees’ championship past was represented Tuesday night at Yankee Stadium.

On the acoustic guitar, four-time Yankees world champ Bernie Williams performed the national anthem prior to the game against second-place Baltimore, with the Yanks’ magic number for clinching the division at one.

And throwing out the ceremonial first pitch was New York Knicks’ small forward Josh Hart, whose great uncle was the late Elston Howard.

Hart was presented with a pinstriped No. 32 jersey, Howard’s retired number as a Yankee, and he spent batting practice chatting with several Yankees, including Juan Soto, Giancarlo Stanton, Anthony Volpe and Jazz Chisholm Jr., as well as manager Aaron Boone.

Howard, his wife Arlene, and their family were longtime Teaneck residents since 1958, three years after the catcher became the first African-American player in Yankees history.

A 12-time AL All-Star and four-time world champion with the Yankees, Howard captured the 1963 AL MVP award.

Howard would later become a respected member of the Yankees’ coaching staff. He died in December 1980, at age 51.

Hart, 29, who grew up in the Washington, DC area and attended Villanova, said that his great uncle’s character “is something that I try to resemble.’’

In a 2016 interview with NBC Sports Philadelphia, Hart said that his father “was always telling me stories about when he used to go to the ballpark and watch (Howard) play and just learn from him.

“(He’s) someone that I look up to, someone that I always wished I was able to meet,’’ said Hart. “Hopefully, a couple of generations down, someone in my family will be saying the same thing about me.”

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Knicks' Josh Hart, great nephew of Elston Howard, makes appearance at Yankee Stadium