Kim Ng's historic achievement of becoming MLB's first woman general manager was a long time in the making. One of the most important steps came with the Yankees, who first made Ng an assistant GM in 1998.

At the time, Ng was only the second woman to hold that position, and she was the youngest assistant GM in the league at 29.

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On Friday, Yankees GM Brian Cashman, who hired Ng after he took over as New York's GM in 1998, congratulated her on joining the GM ranks.

"I was truly excited for Kim when I learned that she had been named general manager of the Miami Marlins," Cashman said in a statement. "It is wonderful seeing people accomplish their stated goals, and this has been a dream of hers for as long as I’ve known her. As assistant general manager with the Yankees, she was indispensable to me when I first began my tenure as the GM. Kim was a tireless and dedicated executive back then, and in the ensuing years, she has ceaselessly added to her skill set to maximize her talent. She will provide the Marlins with vast experience and institutional knowledge along with a calm demeanor and an amazing ability to connect with others -- all of which will serve her well in her new leadership role as head of baseball operations. I offer my congratulations to her and to the Marlins organization."

Ng worked under Cashman from 1998-2001, with the Yankees winning three consecutive World Series in her first three years with the organization and making it to a fourth Fall Classic in '01. Marlins part-owner and chief executive officer Derek Jeter, with whom Ng will be reunited in Miami, was the Yanks' superstar shortstop during those World Series runs.

When Ng left the Yankees for the Dodgers in 2002, for whom she also served as assistant GM, the Yanks hired Jean Afterman to replace her. Afterman was MLB’s third woman assistant GM after Ng and Elaine Weddington Steward, who was named the Red Sox's assistant GM in 1990.

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Afterman is still with the Yankees as a senior VP and assistant GM, and she is one of the most respected executives in baseball. She also congratulated Ng on Friday.

"When I succeeded Kim as the assistant general manager of the Yankees almost 20 years ago, I knew that I needed to up my game to match hers -- Kim had set a high standard," Afterman said in a statement. "Her hiring demonstrates what I have long said, that to be a GM in Major League Baseball, you need intelligence, vision and experience. These qualities of leadership, which Kim possesses in abundance, are gender-blind. It is a tremendous achievement to be the first female GM in Major League Baseball, and I hope young girls [and boys] take notice of this and further understand that there are no limits to their dreams. I congratulate the Marlins -- that after a remarkable season, during extraordinary times -- they have broken a barrier that needed shattering."