NEW YORK — They owned October year after year.

Derek Jeter and his baseball brothers — the gang that grew up champions.

There was Bernie Williams and Jorge Posada, Mariano Rivera and Andy Pettitte. Together, always together, they turned the New York Yankees into a dynasty.

One by one, they walked away from the game until Jeter was the last man standing in pinstripes.

Now, the captain is ready to retire, too. The last link to the latest run of Yankees dominance.

Jeter revealed Wednesday that 2014 will be his final season, signaling the end of an extraordinary era not only for New York, but all of Major League Baseball.

“It is time for the next chapter,” he wrote in announcing his decision with a long letter on his Facebook page.

Jeter was referring to his own life and his desire to pursue business, start a family, see the world on a summer vacation.

But he could have been talking about the Yankees — or the grand ‘ol game itself. And so the significance of Jeter’s exit was hardly lost on anyone as praise poured in from all around.

“For nearly 20 years, there has been no greater ambassador to the game of baseball than Derek Jeter,” said former teammate Tony Clark, now head of the players’ union. “Derek has set the standard that we should all strive to achieve.”

Jeter and pals from Jimmy Key to Alex Rodriguez produced a generation of sustained success with the Yankees, almost two decades worth of winning by one special group of players.

We may never see the likes of it again — in any sport.

“It has been an incredible honor having a front row seat for one of the great players of all time,” New York general manager Brian Cashman said in a statement. “Derek has been a winner every step of the way.”

Jeter has led the Yankees to five World Series titles and seven American League pennants in 19 seasons. They won four championships in five years from 1996-2000, the last three in a row to become baseball’s most recent dynasty.