Farewell Yankee Stadium II

[DanMcQ]

Lots of history in Yankee Stadia I and II.

Kinda sad it ends against the Os tonight.

Biased as always, Bob Ryan makes a few valid points:

tinyurl.com/3gzmxm

[RDF]

I'd like to think that a writer as good as Bob Ryan would know that despite losing to the Diamondbacks in '01 Series--the Yankees WON EVERY GAME at the Stadium--so how that translates to "Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling taking care of Aura and Mystique" is baffling--especially when the way the Yankees won Games 4/5 was just further proof that strange things often happened late in games at the Stadium.

I've enjoyed the great games played at the Stadium--and that will not change. That is decided by players/teams--not places. If you love sports--you enjoy the competition and no matter if your team wins/loses--memories are made. I tip my cap to Boston's comeback in '04 and that doesn't mean it wasn't a great moment--just as the year prior to that was great, or the Pedro-Clemens game, the 17K game, etc...it's the athletes/teams that make up the greatness of sports--not a stadium.

[RBHoya]

I definitely agree with his premise that sports aren't for the common man anymore. Everything is about corporations and luxury suites and crap like that. It's unfortunate for us "regular guys", but it's economics, and everything in life is economic. Same thing is happening for the Giants--a new stadium isn't needed, but they're going to build one because they want a lot more luxury suites where they can cash in on all the corporate money.

But I do think that a lot of the fluff and everybody getting all sentimental is silly. You have great memories of the GAMES, the players, the moments. Not of the building. I've been to a few games at Yankee Stadium and frankly I thought the stadium itself stunk. The upper deck is like looking off a cliff. Now they're going to move across the street, and in time people will have new memories in the new building. Really, how much does the building factor in to your memories?

IMO a lot of the sentimental stuff that everybody in this area has been spewing recently is a result of YES and ESPN and everybody hyping up the stadium closing as this big, sad event. Has anybody else seen these ESPN commercials, "We'll be seeing you, old friend"? I mean how corny can you be? But the networks and the media have an interest in trying to make this some big dramatic, must-see moment, because that = ratings for them. Once again, everything is economic.

[SirSaxa]

Sept 21, 2008 12:56:39 GMT -5 RBHoya said:

But I do think that a lot of the fluff and everybody getting all sentimental is silly. You have great memories of the GAMES, the players, the moments. Not of the building. I've been to a few games at Yankee Stadium and frankly I thought the stadium itself stunk. The upper deck is like looking off a cliff. Now they're going to move across the street, and in time people will have new memories in the new building. Really, how much does the building factor in to your memories?

IMO a lot of the sentimental stuff that everybody in this area has been spewing recently is a result of YES and ESPN and everybody hyping up the stadium closing as this big, sad event.

RB... I guess we all have our own opinions, so I'll share mine. And I can absolutely guarantee my feelings have nothing whatsoever to do with ESPN, YES, or any other media outlet.

Baseball in particular is a game of tradition and history. The players that went before, the stats and records, the winning (or losing). There may well be a great many stadiums across the country that don't mean much. But there are three that stand out in my mind: Wrigley Field, Fenway Park, and #1 is Yankee Stadium. I've been to Yankee Stadium countless times over the decades. Thinking it is the exact same field where Ruth, Gherig, DiMaggio, Mantle, Berra, etc. all played, and remembering my own personal memories of Mantle, Maris, Ford, Boyer, Nettles, Mattingly, World Series victories, and so forth.... all that stuff means a lot.

I will acknowledge the old Stadium is looking a little ragged around the edges. And I haven't sat upstairs in many years. But the seats I usually get are downstairs and the view is awesome. The Yankees have a definite home field advantage. Going to a new field across the St. is not at all the same thing. It isn't the same place.

My guess is the more they fill it up with Corporate big shots, the less enthusiasm the fans will provide. I've been invited to Corp suites a few times over the years and I prefer sitting outside with the "regular folks". Corp. guests are too interested in their drinks, food, socializing about work, anything but the game. My experience with those was the suites was terribly disappointing. (same applies at MSG and Giants Stadium).

I for one am going to miss the Stadium a lot!

Lastly, I've been to Fenway a few times over the years and I feel the same way about it. It would truly be a shame if Boston built a new ball park somewhere else. I still have not been to a game at Wrigley, but one day I will make it!

[RBHoya]

I'll admit it was a very nice night. The logical side of me doesn't really appreciate the whole "Babe Ruth played on this field, Lou Gehrig played on this field, etc." type stuff... The dirt is different, the grass is different... Lou Gehrig probably also walked along 42nd street at some point in his life, but I don't think about that every time I walk there. Everything is different from when Ruth and Gehrig were playing there, except the latitude and longitude of the field, which isn't something to really get too worked up about IMO. I don't know, I just don't believe in "the ghosts" being in the stadium and "hallowed ground" or anything like that. It's probably just because I'm not a very spiritual person.

But all that said, it was a nice night and I'm glad they ended it on a win and had all the old timers back.

[The Stig]

I miss old stadiums because they're something from the past, not as much for the history of the games there. They have a unique atmosphere, often times cramming in people a lot closer to the action than the new places. The obstructed views, cramped seats, rust, and inadequate bathrooms are all part of the atmosphere. It's that atmosphere that I really miss. There's nothing like a game at Fenway or Wrigley, not because of the games that have been played there but because they don't build stadiums like that anymore.

In that regard, losing Yankee Stadium isn't that sad. The rebuild in the 70's changed everything. It's not really a classic old stadium anymore, in fact it's newer than Shea, which nobody seems to be crying over.

[RDF]

Fitting that Molina hit the last HR at the Stadium--seeing he wears #26 and organization has that many World Championships as they move to the new stadium.

ESPN actually did a nice job with the game tonight. I didn't watch the hours of coverage--which I found overbearing and ridiculous--the STADIUM doesn't play a game--it's the PEOPLE/TEAMS who make the moments there great--but the pregame presentation was cool--great to see the older guys/past Yankees there.

[HoyaFanNY]

they should take the same wrecking ball to this old, lazy, and overpaid team that they take to the stadium. it will be an interesting offseason in tampa.

[JohnJacquesLayup]

I was hoping my Orioles would provide one last bench-clearing brawl for old times sake. Nothing like seeing Armondo Benitez square up with Darrell Strawberry.

[2ndRyan]

If the O's had won would Dave Trembley have announced "Yankee Stadium is officially closed." ?

[vcjack]

For anyone in the Bronx, are they still playing Sinatra over the PA system?

[Hank Scorpio]

I've been going to games there since I was 6. My old man and I saw some incredible stuff there, including Gooden's no hitter and Game 7 of the 2003 ALCS. [he went to game 4 vs the D-Backs in 2001, which I still regret not getting on the Delta Shuttle that Halloween to see to this day] I was going through my ticket stubs the other day, kind of like Hornby in Fever Pitch, using games as yardsticks in my life. [Also odd to chart the increase in ticket prices from 1993 through 2006, when the yanks revoked the season tickets we shared for putting them on stub hub. my fandom withstanding, the yankees are evil]. Needless to say, I've spent a considerable amount of time there...

But I'm not going to miss the place. I've been to 16 ballparks now, and I rate Yankee, Fenway and Wrigley as 3 of the bottom 4 places to see a game [Shea Stadium is by far the worst]. It's an old structure with bad sightlines, uncomfortable seats, and narrow concourses, and it's the 2nd most expensive place to a game in the country [Fenway being #1, and if I had to see 20 games a year there, I'd be homicidal].

The new Stadium looks amazing. I can't wait to see games there in a seat that doesn't make my back hurt for a week.

[Cambridge]

Not liking fenway is understandable as a Yankee fan, not liking it is not understandable as a baseball fan. Fenway is expensive, but its also all about the fans. Sure, the seats are cramped (painful even) and there are pretty horrible concessions (although those have gotten better), but those are too often the focus of all these new stadiums. They've sterilized the experience. Count me out. At Fenway, there is no loudspeaker telling the fans when to cheer, there is no sushi stand, there are no noisemakers, there is no giant HD scoreboard, no three cap monte on said big screen, just 30K people cheering, drinking and enjoying the summer. I have hundreds of fond memories of Fenway and have never been to anywhere as magical outside of the soccer stadiums of England, Spain, Italy, Germany and France. I'm sure Wrigley is similar, but I've never had the pleasure.

[Hank Scorpio]

Obviously a huge baseball fan...just disagree. Having to pick up a ground ball through the infield as it darts behind not one, not two, but three pillars that hold up the upper deck, is a horrible baseball experience. Taking 40 minutes to get a beer b/c they keep adding seats while not widening the concourses is an aggravating baseball experience. Wedging my 6'3 frame into a seat made for someone 5'9 tops, is a painful baseball experience.

Much like Wrigley, the surrounding area is pretty awesome, and a great gameday environment, but as far as the "magic" you speak of, I'm sure that is localized to being a Red Sox fan. And truth be told, to paraphrase what Bernie said the other night postgame, I think all that magic is created by passionate and dedicated fans. The Cubs, Yankees and Red Sox will always have an abundance of that.

And did you really just disparage a Giant HD scoreboard? And food options? And say Fenway is "all about the fans" despite lacking these things? Are instant replays and sushi the devil? Let's focus on Rally Monkeys and Soundsticks [why is clapping not good enough?]. Those are lame. But I'll take the Schmitter at Citizens Bank over any ballpark food option in the country, something they certainly didn't offer at the Vet.

Also, forgot to mention the 2004 ALCS in my Yankee Stadium memories. Games 1, 2, 6 and 7. Those 2 years will never be topped in baseball history.

[Jack]

I have probably been to 300 games at Fenway (and 2 the Stadium, II) in my lifetime, and I also agree with Hank on ballparks. I am incredibly fortunate to have access to some of the best value seats in the park- 3 rows into the upper reserve behind the visitors on-deck circle, so under the roof but not behind any poles, and at $45/each a total bargain for Boston.

That said, even those seats have major drawbacks, most significant being their size- I am 6' and certainly a bit on the hefty side, and when I sit there my knees dig into the slats of the seat in front of me and my brother and I cannot both sit back in our seats at the same time because there is not enough shoulder room for everyone. Getting a beer, even with the expansion of the concession stands and concourses and many years of carefully planning the best route, is nearly impossible without missing at least an out, and if you also need to use the men's room figure on missing half an inning (I call this Cora-Varitek-Crisp time).

Now imagine if you actually have terrible seats (and there are plenty of those). All the same comfort issues, plus a severely obstructed view of the game, and you probably had to scalp those tickets at twice face value (or more than I paid for my seat) just to get in. An HD scoreboard where you could see what you are missing might be a nice touch, and something like a Harpoon IPA and a quality lobster roll might make it more palatable than a soggy Fenway Frank and a Bud (though I am quite content with the latter).

And ultimately the place is full of people who are there for an "event" and not a ballgame, who want to bring their girlfriend or theirs kids to one game a year and damn it they are going to tell all their friends they are there with their cell phone and make sure someone starts the stupid wave by the time they bored with the 2-1 game with 2 runners on and 1 out in the 6th inning.

So no, I do not think Fenway is paradise and I do not think new ballparks are evil, especially when they replace concrete multipurpose monstrosities as they have in places like Philly, Pittsburgh, Cincinatti, and now DC. I also don't even get too worked up about all the morons thronging Fenway, because 1. I get good tickets and 2. it allows them to put a good product on the field almost every year.

But my disagreement, or at least my counter, to Borat's point of view is that while new ballparks are great, they are also very wasteful where they are not necessary. And a new Yankee Stadium was not necessary. I understand it has more private funding than many other new stadia, but it still got plenty of public help in terms of infrastructure and land acquisition, and in the end it will only allow fewer people to pay more money to watch a team that already had the highest revenue in the league. And that is offensive to me as a citizen, and particularly offensive to me as a Sox fan who will now watch the Yankees payroll climb to $300 Million in the not too distant future even while they get a break on revenue sharing to pay for their new digs.

[Hank Scorpio]

Completely agree. While I didn't love Yankee Stadium while compared to some of the best ballparks in the country (Citizens Bank and Camden especially), it was certainly adequate, if not moreso. After all, they were drawing 4 million+ a year the last few years. And the amount of shady accounting and tax dollars of people that will never go to a game that went into building the new Yankee Stadium, and parkland the Bronx had to sacrifice, is staggering.

The decrease in capacity is a bit overblown, they put in less seats to improve comfort for the fans inside. I think it's something like 3k seats. The new Mets ballpark cut something like 12k. Bananas.

There is a great segment on the last Real Sports about the precedent NY is setting with publicly funded Stadiums and ticket price increases and Personal Seat Licenses. Worth checking out if you have HBO on Demand. [the most galling revelation in that report: 4 season tix behind the plate at current Yankee Stadium - 81k. 4 season tix behind plate at new YS...810k!!!]

[DanMcQ]

Sept 24, 2008 9:02:50 GMT -5 Jack said:

I am incredibly fortunate to have access to some of the best value seats in the park- 3 rows into the upper reserve behind the visitors on-deck circle, so under the roof but not behind any poles, and at $45/each a total bargain for Boston.

Having parked my ample butt into those very same seats, I can vouch for their unique value-for-money as some of the best seats in the park. My 8 year old daughter fits much better, but she has to contend with the height of whatever tall visitor from wherever is sitting in front of us.

My viewing history ranges from Crosley Field to Riverfront Stadium (blech) to Milwaukee County Stadium to Fenway. Forays to the old Memorial Stadium, the old Comiskey, and Camden Yards as well. Fenway, for all of its warts, tops all but Crosley, although Camden Yards comes close.

[kchoya]

Sept 24, 2008 10:17:37 GMT -5 Hank Scorpio said:

Completely agree. While I didn't love Yankee Stadium while compared to some of the best ballparks in the country (Citizens Bank and Camden especially), it was certainly adequate, if not moreso. After all, they were drawing 4 million+ a year the last few years. And the amount of shady accounting and tax dollars of people that will never go to a game that went into building the new Yankee Stadium, and parkland the Bronx had to sacrifice, is staggering.

I saw the ESPN e:60 piece on the parkland/fields that were taken away to make room for the new stadium. I thought the whole thing was trying to make a mountain out of a molehill. As I understand it, they're going tear down the old stadium and put the fields back in. Some people were complaining that the football field will be astroturf and on top of a parking a garage, so it will be hot during the summer. Others were complaining they will have to walk 20 minutes to a brand new tennis park. Boo hoo!

Other than being without the fields for a few years during construction, it seems like the neighborhoods are making out pretty well. Am I missing something here?

[Cambridge]

For arguments sake KC...imagine you are a 12 year old boy now. A "few years from now" is a long time in kid years. Basically, you took away the parks for a whole generation of kids and there is no guarantee that they will actually be replaced.