Pinch hitting: My Pinstripes
Posted by: Peter Abraham - Posted in Misc on Jan 31, 2008 
Print This Post
| 
Email This Post
We close our pinch hitter series with a post from Drew from My Pinstripes
A Yankees fan since the late 60s (the photo is of him in 1973), Drew is a database analyst living in New Jersey with his wife and two beagles. He’s been blogging for two years.
Here’s his post:
2008 is a year of transition in the Bronx.
To begin with, someone new will be filling out the lineup card for the first time in 12 years. Then, there’s been a shift in philosophy regarding the role of the organization’s up-and-coming prospects. Following the long reign of King George, there’s a different Steinbrenner at the reins. But most of all, the Bronx will be the site of not one, but two Yankee Stadiums. For this is the final season of the House that Ruth built and New York city remodeled. Except for two unmemorable seasons in Flushing, it has been the home of the Yankees since 1923.
It’s hard to imagine which will feel more odd — walking out of the current Stadium for the last time, or walking into the new one for the first time. And, the impact of both events will be overshadowed by the day the wrecking ball takes down most of the place we all grew up in.
I remember the first time I walked inside the old Stadium in 1970. I looked on in wonderment at the monuments in centerfield, uniquely placed right smack in the field of play. The high black centerfield wall seemed a mile away, at 461 feet. The white facade regally encircled the top of the place. The simple, but informative, scoreboard stood out in center field, and the Yankees’ bullpen was nestled between the bleachers and the rightfield seats. And yes, there were those annoying structural posts that could completely block your view if you had the misfortune of sitting behind one. About half of the 65,000 seats were filled on that day.
After that game, we walked onto the field (yes, you read that correctly!), and exited out beyond left-centerfield. The atmosphere was of a different era and we all wanted it to stay that way.
Flash forward to today. There are many people who are just as angry about the new Stadium being built as they were about the renovation 35 years ago. The discussion has been going on for years: Move to New Jersey (I always liked that idea as a kid), renovate again, or build a completely new place.
I was indecisive for the longest time. Despite some of its’ obvious warts, I thought the Stadium should stay put and be improved. But over the last couple of years, I’ve come to realize that the fans deserve some serious upgrades to the facility.
The Stadium itself is no longer fan friendly. The average person sits in an uncomfortably cramped seat, traverses narrow aisles and stairs, waits in endless lines at the bathrooms and concessions, and has to decide which food tastes the least lousy. The video/message boards that line the 1st and 3rd base lines aren’t visible from much of the upper deck.
I realize the new place won’t come without its share of issues and problems. For the sake of high-priced luxury boxes, there will be 5,000 less seats. There’s a steep rise in parking prices on the horizon, and you can bet that ticket prices will increase dramatically as well. And NYC tax payers will be footing much of the $91 million bill for the new Metro-North station.
But, just as I remember attending my first Yankees game in 1970, I also remember going to the first Sunday home game in 1976 when the remodeled Stadium reopened. I recall a sea of shiny blue seats and a new gleaming white facade that paid homage to the old yard. There was a new Monument Park in left-centerfield where fans could pay tribute to their heroes, and a video display board in center. And though the park’s seating capacity had been decreased by over 10,000 seats, the once-upset fans were happy to see a better version of their Stadium.
I believe the fans reaction will be the same way this time around. We’ll take in all of the changes and new features and be in awe all over again. I now look forward to stepping into “Yankee Stadium 2.0†for the first time.
The greatest team in all of sports deserves the greatest place to call home.
Thanks for the post Drew. Great photo, too.
Nice job Drew.
I think you speak for a lot of Yankees fans. It will be surreal to step out of the “old” Yankee Stadium for the last time and maybe even more strange walking into the new one. It will pain me that I cannot turn to my future grandkids and tell them “The Micl hit one wayyyy up there” or “Joe D. patrolled that patch of grass a lifetime ago.” But so is life and your post, if nothing else, proves you can never erase the memories.
Great Post. Now until the new stadium let’s enjoy the last Great year of the old Yankee stadium the one that Ruth built
Excellent post Drew, do you still have that shirt?
the reduction of seats, and the consequent rise in ticket prices, diminish my enthusiasm.
i’m sure the new place will be aesthetically interesting and provide more creature comforts. Hopefully the exit ramps won’t get quite as bottlenecked, etc. I love the history of the old place,I hate to see it go; but I can understand and accept that.
However, it is ugly that 10% less people will get to go to games so that a few privileged can occupy an inordinate amount of space. And will pay more, because we’ll all be economically competing for that lesser supply of tix.
In my opinion the old stadium was the best. Granted it needed work, the upper deck was dangerous to be in, but there was nothing to match it. The remodeled version was OK, but it never regained the same feel as the original.
With the new design it will feel like an entirely different place, which it is going to be. Gone will the feel for players thinking that the fans are right on top of them. Gone will be the legends that played on that very field. Out with the old, in with the new, I guess.
I am just grateful that I had the opportunity to have seen the old stadium, in all its glory. Experienced the remodeled version, and learned to appreciate the changes, while missing the original. This new one, we will see.
The wrecking ball is a metaphorical one right? They’re keeping it as a museum right? (I understand that won’t last forever, but still).
Now I’m not calling you a spoiled Yankee fan, Drew, but you do realize that you are blessed because you can actually attend Yankee games,right? In a cramped seat or not. $10 beers and brats or not.
There are some of us who would gladly give up a child or two for season tickets. That was a joke. I think.
Thanks for sharing your experiences. Catching a game at the New Stadium is defintely on my bucket list, especially after reading your post.
there’s no question that it is an outrage that there will be 10% fewer seats. it is shameful how yankee ownership completely disregarded the average fan in making these decisions.
yes, more concessions and nicer bathrooms will be nice, so will spacious concourses. wider aisles and perhaps slightly wider seats will be welcomed by all, but all of this pales in what we are losing. seats in the upper deck for all the non-millionaires who love the game and would like to attend more than just once or twice a year.
Great post!
Thanks for the trip down memory lane.
I’m one of the fans that does not want the new stadium, and think this stadium, with the tight seats, long lines, high prices, and fans moving around all day during the game blocking my view, is just fine.
your post has given me hope, and deep down i realize it is time.Bring on 2.0!
nice job!
I’ve been going to Yankee Stadium since 1963. In both the old and the refurbished Stadium, it gave you chills to look out on that field and know the you were staring at the place where Ruth, Gehrig and all the other great Yankees played and where all that history took place. That is the one thing that will be irreplaceable.
As painful as it will be to leave the old park, I’m looking forward to the ammenities of the new ballpark. The old Stadium was very much outdated in that regard.Starting in ’09, the Yankees will have to begin the process of making a new history at their ballpark. The old history and aura of their field will be nothing more than a memory.
As much as we all will hate leaving the hollowed grounds of Yankee Stadium, the new Yankee Stadium will offer some good things too, better seats; sight lines; concessions; and the one I’m looking forward to since I come in from CT and if I don’t drive to the game, will be the metro-north stop right at the Stadium. No more getting off the train in Harlem and walking two-three blocks to the subway, to get to the game.
The next two years will be very exciting. Yes, the Yankees are going through a transition, but to me it will be for all the right reasons and don’t forget, the All-Star game and festivities will be in the greatest ballpark of all-time this year. Watching the great player of today hit bombs into the black or hitting them into the upper-deck in right will be an awesome sight, if only I didn’t have to listen to Berman do his over-the-top homerun calls.
Drew -
I enjoyed reading your post. I have to say that when I read the line about the wrecking ball, though, I got a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. But, it’s better to embrace the future, no? The memories will always be there.
I look forward to reading the first impressions of those who attend the new ballpark in 2009.
BACK BACK BACK BACK BACK BACK BACK BACK GONE !! yeah, Berman is bad…. lol sorry off track.
I like my cramped seat, off of the tiny aisle from the cramped halls and tight spirals. That’s because I know that this stadium wasnt built as an homage to its corporate masters. The new stadium is sure to serve a myriad of mixed drinks and new food at an astronomical price. Most of us wont be able to partake in all of that, but then the new stadium isnt being built for us. That’s what kills me about it. The old park is a park built for the fans by that big paul bonion known as Babe Ruth and maintained by all of the greats since. Maybe we’ll find a new class of heroes to help us ‘take back’ the stadium but in this day and age its likely that unless each of us find some big corporate structure to be a part of the stadium wont ever really be for us. Speaks to the quality of this age in history I suppose.
Great post Drew, though I’d be lying if I said I didn’t agree with Doreen and Mel
Nice job Drew – and, ditto on the photo being great. I’m jealous!
Nice post. A feel good slice of history from one fan’s point of view.
Drew very good…
Been a fan since ’49, went to my first game in ’50/51…Hay, that’s a long time ago.
I for one will miss the old place, but then again, I have a few more old time memories. From Joe D, all the way to today’s stars. Well, my son finally got me in to the 21/22 century (computer), I guess it’s time for The Stadium to join also. Sad!
Good post- I don’t understand why less seats. I would think they would add more,they always sell-out. Just no room? What’s the deal, anyone know?
@JDnotDrew:
I was about to write the same thing. Why are they making everything smaller (meaning less seats) instead of bigger? Baseball is as popular as ever and they are actually keeping people out of the ballpark…not very smart in my opinion.
This may have been my favorite pinch-hit post. Good job!
You touched on major themes for the frequent stadium-goer. I’ve been a season ticket holder since the mid-1990s, and before that, attended at least ten to fifteen games a year since the 1980s. As I traveled across the U.S. the past six to seven years, and planted my butt in other stadiums, it would hit me upon returning to the Bronx how shabby the House That Ruth Built had become. Not just the physical building either — it’s ridiculous having to wait so long in a bathroom line; waiting in those lines for barely decent food; and yes, those seats — I’m not a fat-assed guy and to me those seats are only one step above Fenway’s! From the moment I heard a new stadium was in the works, I applauded the decision and knew (well, hoped) that George & Co. would give us a phenomenal new baseball shrine.
But when it was announced there’d be FEWER seats in the new place, I thought that was the real sacrilege. Tickets for the regular fan are now going to be even harder to obtain — and I hate imagining how much higher the scalpers are going to charge. That’s the crime to me — building a new Yankee Stadium and making it HARDER for people to get to a game? This makes no sense to me; it seems wrong!
Anyway . . . yes, mixed emotions. It’s going to be weird going to the last Opening Day, the last Old Timers’ Day, the last regular season game . . . and who knows, the last World Series game at the old place . . . cramped seating, long lines and all. . . .
Great post. One of the things that’s so nice about being a Yankee fan is being able to talk about how special the stadium is. But recently I started to try and make my way to as many games in as many different parks as I can. I haven’t made it to too many, but by far my favorite is Camden Yards. That place is nothing short of excellent. Beautiful aesthetically, excellent seats everywhere (including the cheap bleacher seats), clean, great place to walk around. It will be sad to see the old place sitting there unused, but what we’ll be getting is a much friendlier, cleaner, modern experience, something we all deserve for all the money we’ve spent on parking, tickets, driving, merchandise, crappy food, etc. And the Metro North station is amazing for people like me who come down from Westchester. You mean I can drink on the train on the way down, all day at the game, and not have to drive back on the Thruway? Sign me up. I’ve been to Fenway, and although it has all sorts of character and it’s special in its own right, the people up there are fooling themselves if they think they don’t need to update their facility for their very loyal (albeit annoying) fans. It will definitely be bitter sweet, but when we see No. 65 toeing the rubber in game 1 of the series at the new stadium a couple of years from now, Jeter rounding the bases for the last time, and A-Rod breaking the HR record, there will be a whole bunch of new memories to file away.
Yankee Stadium lost seats when they did the remodel, I guess they are just going with tradition and pushing the ticket cost up while giving less places to sit.
I watched as my friends and family agonized over the closing of Tiger Stadium. The bottom line is that it needed to be done. It was a great place by 1950s standards, and you were right on top of the action, but it was old and worn out. I haven’t been to Yankee Stadium since the 1977 All-Star Game, but trust me…it might take awhile, but you’ll end up loving the new place.
I totally agree with this pinch writer. The old stadium is great to be in for the atmosphere and the history, however I’ve long since realized that the Stadium itself is a bit antiquated. If you go to any of the parks built in the last 15 years you know. It would be nice to not have to stand up every time someone in my row needs to do a beer run. And how about some nice restaurants that all can go to (even those of use with out Stadium Club tickets.)
Take those photographs this year, but next year is going to be outstanding. I’m in awe of the new pictures we’ve seen this month.
Sooooo …The Babe hit the first homer in the Original Stadium, I think a Minnesota Twin hit the first at the renovated stadium …who hits it at the new stadium??? I think I’d take odds on Arod. Would that make it the house that Arod built???
I love the THE Stadium …warts and all. I still get goosebumps every time I come out of the walkway and view that field of dreams…so many dreams that became reality for Yankee fans since it’s inception in 1923. I go to 25 or more games a season and it never gets old for me …each game feels like my first time there. It’s been my home away from home ..I will truly miss it. When that wrecking ball takes it’s first hit …my heart will feel it …
The new stadium will be a masterpiece ….top of the line …but…you will never feel the ghosts of the past and that is the true magic of THE Yankee Stadium.
As everyone else agreed …less seats for the common folks is truly a hardship. It’s tough to get tickets now to games …even games like Tampa unless you want to go on the ticket sites and pay a slight fortune…but…it won’t stop me because I love My Yanks …always have and always will.
Go Yankees 2008 !!!
Thanks everyone for the positive feedback. I really appreciate it!
A few things- I still love going to the current Stadium and it’s my hope that the new one will have the same touches but with upgrades.
As for the wrecking ball- from what I understand, they are going to take down the loge and upper deck, and just the lower section will remain. I wonder though if they are also going to take down the outer wall and bleachers and make it smaller in circumference. It will be pretty cool for high school, little league, etc. kids to play there..hopefully they stick to that plan.
And yes, it will be heartbreaking to see it ripped down.
Yansgal, Disco Dan Ford of the Twins hit the 1st HR in the renovated park.
Thanks Drew …I knew it was a Twin ..couldn’t remember the name and too lazy to look it up ..haha.
Great Post too…Thanks !!!
Go Yankees 2008 !!!
Drwe:
Nice job. And I second the motion on the picture. It’s great that you still have it.
Over your left shoulder, in left field, old Section 38, is where my dad had his Giants football tickets when I was a kid. I saw a lot of football games there over the years in addition to the baseball. It will certainly be heartbreaking to see the place torn down. I don’t know if anybody else invested in the Ken Burns Baseball DVD series, but there is footage of Ebbets Field being torn down in one “inning” (episode). I was born the year after the Dodgers left Brooklyn and never loved any team other than the Yanks, yet it was still hard to watch the park come down.
But we already really lost the old Stadium in the early 70′s when it was refurbished, removing the top and taking out the I-Beam obstructions, and we sruvived. So this is just more moving on to me. The Yankees will cross the street and make memories for generations to come.
Having already been priced out of the current Stadium over the past 10 or so years, it softens the blow of having to give up a huge part of my childhood-early adulthood. I have memories that go back to the early 70s in the original Stadium. Going with my father and brother. Hopping on the 4-train with a bunch of friends on a Saturday afternoon. I worked the concessions as a teenager inthe late ’70s. All these meories have already been wiped away by the culture that has become Yankee baseball over the past 10 years. Right now it’s all about the corporate buck. The thought of a wrecking ball going through the Stadium has very little effect on me now.
Nice job, Drew. Thanks for the post!
Don’t know if it’s rude to re-post a quote from a pre-Socratic philosopher, but I think it applies here:
“You could not step twice into the same river; for other waters are ever flowing on to you.â€
Heraclitus, On the Universe
Greek philosopher (540 BC – 480 BC)
Change is constant — so you can’t step into the same Stadium twice, even if it is at the same address.
In 2009, the address may be different, but the fundamental river will be the same, and all our favorite ghosts will be there.
RE fewer seats:
This is the sad, unfortunate choice. I think the Babe’s and the Yankee Clipper’s ghosts will join us in the new stadium, but …
…the ghosts of the less-afluent, who’ve always been at the heart of the Stadium’s spirit, are being kept out in ever-increasing numbers.
Nice post, Drew. I thought that picture was me when I was younger. LOL, I wish. I will always love the orignal stadium with so many historic moments even though I watched them on television but still it’s nice to read a post about a Yankees game from the old Stadium before 2009.
Thank you for a wonderful telling of the Yankee Stadium story. I attended my first Yankee game with my father 50 years ago. It is the last remaining place of my childhood. I am pained at the thought of it going.
However, your writing made me realize that we’ll all be taking our memories into the new ballpark and adding to them. If Yankee Stadium is indeed filled with wonderful ghosts, there’s no reason to doubt that they will come along with us. Hopefully, in another 50 years, Yankee fans will cherish their Yankee Stadium as much as we did ours and have a record of championships to match.
http://view.ed4.net/v/Y34U5A/J.....-121927436