A reader speaks out, and speaks for many
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- September
- 6
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Here’s a recent comment on the blog from a reader named Dan:
I gotta say as a season ticket holder, that I was expecting a lot more out of this last season … both from the stadium, and the players. Their playing performance aside, they really have not done much outside of the 5th inning lever pull to count down home games, which is pretty much a disappointment. The only ones worth cheering for that I saw were Babe Ruth’s daughter and Paul O’Neil. They have not really done anything special outside of the All-Star Game, and I tend to think that we as fans deserve a lot more. Thoughts?
Dan is voicing an opinion I’ve heard a lot lately. The Yankees have 10 home games left and hopefully they have some big plans, especially for Sept. 21.
But to this point, they have botched it. Outside of the All-Star Game, what special has gone on in the Bronx this season? And that was largely a MLB production.
Richard Sandomir of the Times had a story today revealing the disappointment of the Ruth and Mantle families that more wasn’t done.
It’s hard to say who is directly responsible for this. Ultimately, it’s the Steinbrenner family and team president Randy Levine. There should have been more done. First pitch ceremonies, National Anthem singers, days honoring certain players, days honoring certain moments, even ceremonies honoring opposing teams or players.
Each team that left the Stadium for the last time could have been presented with some memento. Something like that. Every game should have had some special touch.
Perhaps the Yankees have big plans for the remaining games. But they have already let five months go to waste, five months that can never be recaptured. It’s hard to say what has been more disappointing, as Dan wrote, how they played or how they said goodbye to the Stadium.
What’s your take on this?
This entry was posted
on Saturday, September 6th, 2008 at 2:56 pm by Peter Abraham.
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Chad Jennings
Sam Borden
Yeah, they could do more, but giving something to the other team’s too much. It’s a ball game, not a grad party. Some of the players have expressed nice thoughts and taken momentos.
At this point, looking forward to opening the new stadium and seeing the young players progress.
The Yankees seem to be as corporate a baseball team as there is. Some teams (the Cubs, for one) host minor league games; others have winter fanfests or something that resembles Boston’s Futures at Fenway game.
The Yankees, on the other hand, seem to feel that they fill the joint nightly, so they don’t need to offer anything to the fan community. For all their talk about the “greatest fans in the world,” the team seems to take us for granted.
I think that many of us thought we’d send the Stadium out in style with a World Series win.
The season has been a disappointment, there’s no doubting that, but there are bright spots.
Just consider how well the minor league teams are doing–sure, some of them will never make it at the ML level, but there are some that will.
I think the greatest crime is that they’re going to tear the stadium down.
I still can’t get past how disappointing the team was on the field.
who the hell wants to sit through a 45 minute ceremony every freaking game, then watch a 3 hour baseball game? are you kidding me?
My take is, they dropped the ball bigtime. This should have been a season long celebration of the stadium and the franchise.
Instead, it went the way of the team this year. Lots of talk, very little production and ZERO attention to detail.
It’s as if they can’t wait to leave.
A shame. A lost opportunity to show everybody why being a Yankee fan is special.
The Stadium was/is a big part of it.
Blow the team up, not the Stadium.
Pete,
I couldn’t agree more. I have been to two games in the last two months and hopefully will be going to the Sept. 20 game. There hasn’t been a different or special feeling created AT ALL. Now, the play of the team has been terrible and disappointing, but to me there is no excuse for the lack of excitement that has surrounded the end of this stadium. I mean, the fact that MLB seemed to do a better job of honoring Yankee Stadium than the Yankees is beyond me. As a Yankee fan, what does this tell me? Well, maybe I am looking too much into it, but it tells me that we are entering a new, and potentially darker era as a Yankee fan. You have chronicled the fact that Hank has only been to what, 2 games all year. He has made stupid comment after stupid comment and, at times, seems to be reading a “How to sound like George Steinbrenner For Dummies” text book and skipping chapters. I have no idea what Hal is doing and, from what I have read, Hal could easily be getting all the numbers in order to eventually sell the Yanks away. Randy Levine? Please. What, exactly, is his job if it wasn’t making this last year as special as possible? Does he need to be personally overseeing the construction of the luxury suits at the new stadium? It just seems like any personal connection the front office had to this team, this organization, that was obvious under Boss Georges rule, has been lost somewhat. This feels very much like business to me. “Let’s get this season over with and get into our new stadium” is what it feels like, with a few tokens thrown the fans way. Just shameful, I believe.
My last game at that stadium was in April. Right now, ticket prices are at ridiculous levels for really bad baseball in really bad seats.
I think they should have done more too. They should have given Torre what he wanted. They should have not started believing in their own prospect over-hyping. This season was supposed to be a “transition” year. What is it now? They’re not even “transitioning” anyone! Except maybe Joe Girardi.
The stadium is a cathedral and they should have treated it like one, I agree. This new FO are clueless though. You got one of the owners (Hank) saying “Next Year” in MAY. Hal, dweedly dee, Who exactly knows what he does. He’s supposed to be the baseball guy but actions speak louder than words.
I don’t know, I think they botched it too but what are you going to do? The golden years of George Steinbrenner are over. Now where nearing or are already in another dark age with his kids.
Someone tell them to sell the team.. Maybe we’ll get another owner that cares.
Maybe they thought the All-Star Game proceedings were enough. And sure, they could have done more, I suppose. It would have been nice spectacle.
But, ultimately it is the team on the field that should be providing the excitement. And, the New York Yankees are not going anywhere – what is there to say goodbye to? A buiilding? I know that sounds very unsentimental, but their new home is a stone’s throw from the old one. And it is going to look very similar. I don’t know – maybe they want continuity more than an ending.
The other thing is just, simply, they DO sell out games without a lot of promotions. They don’t need to create hype. And, when the day comes that they really have to start digging into that bag of tricks is the day you know that the Yankees as we all know them no longer exist. You know, the team that puts the money into the team in order to put fannies into the seats, not PR spectacles like Manatee cheerleaders or whatever it was they did in Tampa.
I do hope that the last homestand is special, though, in at least some small way. Who knows? The Yankees are a secretive group.
I just want them to play better baseball next season.
I say they should perform a seance before each game at 1 position to try and wake a Yankee ghost. To make it even more memorable, we have a great living Yankee from that position do the ceremony. Imagine Yogi trying to raise Thurman, or Bernie trying to raise Mickey…
Seriously, what do you expect to be done? I say the all-star game was plenty. The only thing I would do different is have the season end at Yankee Stadium, not on the road. That’s MLB’s fault, along with opening next year on the road. Some executive has an agenda, and Yankee fans are paying for it. The Yankees can have all the celebrations in the world, but they can only do so much. As cherished as it is, it’s a venue. Take your memories and move on…
I made my last trip to The Stadium for the Yankee Game last Saturday (A game which they had led 6-2 and blew up & lost 7-6). I was quite disappointed that nothing was done for Pre-Game.
Perhaps Management feels that their honored guests would be disappointed at the product being put on the playing field!
“The only thing I would do different is have the season end at Yankee Stadium, not on the road. ”
I think the person that did the schedule also expected us to be in the postseason.
Give me a break. If the yanks had done some of the things suggested, people would be complaining that the team wasn’t focusing on the important thing – winning ballgames. As it is, they proved to be able to even do that. As a season ticket holder as well, since 1998, I am looking forward to the old stadium closing, as it is an unpleasant and uncomfortable place to watch a game, even if the product on the field was actually worth watching. This season has been a pathetic display by the players and this season can’t end soon enough, frankly. I am sure the Yanks have a few things planned for the final series against Baltimore, which is plenty.
Peter,
Thanks for posting that reader’s thoughts. I couldn’t agree with him more. I flew 3,000 miles from San Francisco to Yankee Stadium the other week to see my last two games at Yankee Stadium vs. the Red Sox. On Wednesday night, they had “Goose” pull the lever, which was great, but on Thursday they had a bunch of team executives pulling the lever. That’s weak. Team executives for the final Yankees vs. Sox game @ Yankee Stadium? As I was watching that final Yankees vs. Red Sox game, I couldn’t help but think of all of the great moments over the years involving the rivalry at The Stadium. From Babe Ruth on Opening Day in 1923, all the way to Aaron Boone in 2003, and even the heartbreaking loss in 2004. There should’ve been some video tribute on the board honoring the rivalry. It needed something more. At least Giambi left me with a great, lasting memory but the Yankees organization didn’t do much.
-Brian
San Francisco
And I maintain that it’s the history of the people who played for the Yankees that’s special and the Yankees always honor those people, whether it’s retiring numbers, creating Monument Park, or having the only Old Timer’s Day worth going to, if not the only one in existence anymore.
The Yankees as a franchise are not being torn down, they are not leaving New York. And, there will be people who will tell you that when they renovated the building, it was no longer “THE” Yankee Stadium, anyway.
Did you know that they replace the bases every game and they become available as collectibles? And dirt from each game is collected as well. Home plate is taken out after every homestand. What sentimentality? (And I assume this goes on in all the stadiums because the sports collectible market is huge.)
It’s the men who played the game in that stadium that made the stadium what it is. Not the other way around.
They obviously don’t think much of the old stadium closing. When they didn’t trade for Santana, they were conceding defeat this year. They were basically telling the world its fine if we miss the playoffs as long as we’re good in 09. Rather than go all out to win and send the stadium off in style, they used it as a platform for their “rebuilding season” because they didn’t have to worry about attendance. Unfortunately, all we found out in this season was how overhyped our farm was. Joba was the only one worth anything.
Yankee pride is gone— Hank, Hal, Cashmman, Levine, Trost etc. have erased all of it. We are now just a sinking corporation that has been living off reputation. The intimacy of Yankee tradition is gone as is the mystique.
Ditto something. Particularly for players home and oppositon who will play their last game there. How about a ceremony of sorts for the oldest living yankee who played at the stadium, even if more than one. Should have been a jumbo video highlighting decades of memorable games, plays, Hr’s and players. Something Something. I almost get the feeling the team will be up for sale in the not to distant future. Just a feeling. The old man had passion, I haven’t yet seen that from the kids. So hoping I’m wrong and maybe it is just personality differences but there is no evident passion from the sons. Travesty.
Now tied 3-3 with Toronto and Tampa Bay 9th inning.
It’s simple.
Judging from the product they put on the field this season and the way they’ve really done nothing special about the last season at the Stadium, it’s more clear than ever that all they care about is moving across the street into their new cash cow.
It becomes more and more clear to me that the bottom line is much more important than the winning and tradition.
The boys are to comfortable send them down for a wakeup call.
I think it’s nonsense. The Yankees do enough sentimental schmalz – there’s no need for any more.
I go to watch baseball, I don’t need a season-long memorial to a building. It’s just a building, and it’s already been significantly altered from the house that Ruth built.
And Peter, I like how you’ve brought this up as if it’s a reader’s concern, and not yours. You’ve been whining for months about the people chosen to pull the fake lever.
My view on this;
Sports has become a luxury item. This is happening all across the board in the Sports World where the common man/woman simply cannot afford to be a fan of his or her home team. It’s sad, but true.
The pro franchises, and to a more shocking extent colleges, can’t be blamed. They’re looking to make money. However, it’s saddening. It’s the working class that needs sports as a respite from hectic days, but I don’t know what can be done.
Money talks. The fan bases that are actually at the stadiums these days are rich and often seem like they could care less about the game. They need to be entertained during a ball game! Me? I’m THRILLED to go to a Yankee/Knicks/Giants Game once every two or three years!!! I assume this will only get worse when the new stadium opens and the working man/woman’s seat is replaced by a luxury box full of people who are not necessarily fans of the team and its players, but are simply fans of spending their money. I don’t blame them, though, and I don’t want to sound bitter. I’m not.
Perhaps, this explains the Yankees lethargic play this season. Maybe the players feel like their fans are gone, replaced by money spewing, warm bodies who are struggling to even pay attention to the game and who need to be entertained during the game with flashy graphics and loud music.
The Yankees aren’t accessible to the working men and women of the region anymore. It’s safe to assume, the working class style of ball they used to play will be replaced by a luxury “A-Rod” style of ball.
And Peter, I like how you’ve brought this up as if it’s a reader’s concern, and not yours. You’ve been whining for months about the people chosen to pull the fake lever.
More of a curious wondering, than a concern I believe.
it would not shock me one bit if they sold the team. this regime clearly lacks pride and the commitment to win. they probably don’t want the headache.
say what you want about hank but he is the only one who genuinely wants to win. cashman/hal are frauds. and the business guys like levine only care about selling tickets and making money. george was the only one who made sure it was all about winning. hank is the only one currently in the organization who expresses that sentiment but he has no power
I agree with Doreen, Inferno, & Vandelay.
With all due respect, please just get a grip.
This is a baseball game – that’s exactly what I want to see at the Stadium. Heck, it’s just so exciting just being there without trumped up hype.
As for dropping the ball, the only ball that counts is the one in the game.
The Yankees really do not need that ‘minor league’ stuff.
81 home games… you could count down the 81 greatest players in Yankees history. Or if you didn’t want to “rank” them choose 81 Yankees greats to honor. You could include players, managers, coaches, broadcasters and of course The Boss.
Each game program cover would acknowledge the individual. There would be a pregame video that would play. The first pitch, pull down lever etc would be done by someone tied to that person if not the person himself.
It would not have been all that hard to do and would have made each game in the final season its own, unique event beyond the game to be played. And they could have made a ton of money selling a dvd with all 81 honorees along with a magazine/book to comemortate it.
Dan is voicing the spoiled side of a Yankees fan, to think from 1996 to 1998 they built an incredible playoff team year after year but then I have to read some crap from the Dan’s of the world who don’t understand there are 27 other teams in baseball who also have a say in other teams fate.
These are the type of fans that I classify as spoiled, the type of fans that sound like they would jump off a bridge at the tought of rebuilding. To those fans that can’t comprehend the need to rebuild I would say seek help or find another team to root for, don’t give me the BS I pay this much to see a game (That is your choice) they gave us 4 championships from 96 to 2000 they were a playoff team for 13 straight years you can’t continue to mask a need to rebuild and start fresh that is a lesson that we continue to learn as fans. If it ends this year then it ends, your still a fan no matter what, the sun will be out the next day, there is tomorrow. Another words stop acting like spoiled brats.
The stadium is old and smelly, it isn’t like it’s the teams final season, just the outdated venue they play in. The history won’t be forgotten, and it certainly doesn’t require a ceremony during every game to help remember it.
This whole season right through to the end seems just a bit minor league to me. Feels as though only the fans care about this team. Mngmnt and ownership wise no heat, no passion, content to allow well enough alone. A step in the wrong direction so it feels.
The play of the team on the field is much more disappointing to me. However—–
I’ve been saying it all year– the Yankees just want to “get rid of the evidence”, meaning the great old ballpark. When I say “Yankees” I mean the people that own the club, plus Levine and Trost. They want all the focus on the new ballpark and as little said for and about the old one as possible. Then as soon as possible, they want it demolished, so no one can compare the interior of the two ballparks. The new place looks shiny and new from the outside, but the fact is, for true baseball fans like me, the new ballpark will be less of a place to enjoy baseball than the old one is, despite all its inconveniences. The Yankees (mainly Trost & Levine) crow about how they are holding the line on prices for most of the seats, but they don’t bother telling us that those seats are all much farther from the playing field than any seat in the existing stadium, plus they are on a flatter plane– in other words, pushed outwards from the field instead of having a great bird’s-eye view the way we do now. When you build a place from the ground up, you can do ANYTHING! The Yankee Stadium “feel” that we’ve had for all these years could have been duplicated in a new ballpark, but it was completely disregarded. I have been calling it “Camden Yards II” or “The Jake Lite”– in other words, just another baseball park. And just TRY to get a seat anywhere in that lower deck! It will be impossible, or incredibly expensive. But… hey! Look at that beautiful exterior wall! Look at how they duplicated the roof! Gee whiz– the seats are a few inches wider! And so many more places to spend my money!! Trost and Levine have built a money machine, not a great place to see a baseball game, and they know it. They have no respect for the old place and the rest of us are only now catching on. I understand that we need a new ballpark, but as a Yankee fan, I am ashamed of how current Yankee leadership shows so little care for the true Yankee fan.
I agree with Dan – while there is no need to have big ceremonies every game the Yanks (I am a fan for over 40 years since I was a kid) believe more should have been done. It is a business yes but a business with emotions.
Brian, if you want video celebrating the rivalry, go watch Yankeeography or Yankees Classics or Tales of Triumph. The rivalry is well-chronicled, too much so. You said yourself that while you were there, all the memories came back. My point is that’s all you need. And Giambi left you with one last memory. Take that with you and enjoy.
That lever is fake anyway, and it’s dumb. The sights of the stadium, the smell (even the funky ones), and the sounds should be more than enough. It’s not like they’re going to assemble all the old-timers before each home game and have them celebrate on the mound like they just won the world series or pitched a perfect game or something like that…and as much as Pete would love it, Springsteen isn’t going to perform at each game.
If what has transpired this year isn’t an ominous sign of the direction of this franchise, I don’t know what is. These are not George’s Yankees anymore, folks. This is just another team.
when the wrecking ball hits cashman’s office, it would be poetic justice if he personally had a plan (that he made up) to be out of there.
If this season is a step towards rebuilding then I welcome it. I can’t believe people here actually think that mgmt. doesn’t care about the team that has to be the stupidest thing I ever heard and it’s not about the players not having passion, it’s the limit of what a player can do. Young raw one’s and old vets that have limits it’s why I thought we should have been sellers, you can’t trot the Giambi’s and Jeter’s and Abreu’s and Damon’s and expect them to give you 100 % day after day or week after week. This is the pro level you will wear down especially vets will wear down in a 162 game season.
“These are not George’s Yankees anymore, folks.”
-Forntoso
You’re SO right. These are George’s spoiled kids’ Yankees now.
SteveB, that’s business. Ownership is concerned with making more money. The new ballpark is going to do plenty of that. Who knows, if you go to the new one, maybe you’ll even manage to have a good time and create some new memories. I’ll miss the old stadium too, but it is what it is, as they say…There’s a reason they closed the Polo Grounds too, hopefully the new stadium will feel worthwhile, but if not I’m sure it is for the big wigs. You don’t have to agree with it, but money drives everything. It’s why we got the Babe, who built said “house” to begin with.
I’ve pretty much resigned myself to the fact it’s gonna be at least another 3-5 years beofre this team is a serious contender again.
Figure by then at least all the front runner/bandwagoner/Regis Philpin-Donald Trump type fans that have latched onto the team since ‘96 will have moved on, and then maybe I’ll be able to get seats at the new place.
Until then, after I go to one more game next week at the Stadium, I’ll watch on TV for the next few years.
During the season, going to Yankee stadium should be about baseball and not a PT Barnum like sideshow.
MLB got their chance for a Stadium send-off during the All-Star game, which was appropriate because the AS game is more sideshow than game. The Yankees will do their sendoff in November.
If the Yankees had turned the final season into 81 mini production numbers, can’t you just hear Pete’s brethren whining about how they should have payed more attention to what they did on the field rather than off it.
The only thing this team did not do that peeves people off is trade for Santana.
But there were at least as many people who were behind the idea of the Yankees going with some young pitching.
The offense was supposedly established. It was understood that this offense would support a shaky rookie-based starting staff, but it was also assumed that Wang, Pettitte and Mussina would provide the veteran presence and stability.
This team was probably not going to merrily roll its way into the playoffs, even from Day 1, but it was not supposed to be as it sits now.
The franchise was trying to rebuild and contend, difficult at best, and as we’ve seen, nearly impossible at worst if everything doesn’t go according to plan A, or plan B, or in the best-worst case, plan C.
Everything went wrong this season. Or almost everything.
And yet, after the All Star Break, when this team won 7 in a row before the trade deadline, when they gave the appearance that they had pulled it together, the people in charge of this team went out and got a left-handed reliever – a good one, one that had been in their sights before, and one that the fans (here at least) had been clamoring for. They also went out and got a more stable outfield bat in Xavier Nady. At the time, this move was praised and was said to be a difference maker. And then, to top it off, they went out and got Pudge Rodriguez, trading away a relief pitcher that quite a few fans were not sad to see go. As a result, Jorge Posada could get his shoulder surgery now instead of later, with an eye toward being just about ready-to-go in the spring.
Now, Pudge has not excelled here, but he does give Molina a rest. And Marte wasn’t as dominant as hoped for. But Nady has impressed.
So, again, so much did not work out the way it was hoped.
But to say that the GM and ownership “obviously” did not want to win this season is simply bogus.
Perhaps they could have done more. But, if the basic bones of your team is not performing or underperforming, not much is going to make a difference.
And other deals were let go, and it’s easy to say that, well, those are the ones that would have made the difference. I guess we’ll never know. But it seems to me that the reasons for not making the Washburn deal was sound. They wanted far too much for a mediocre pitcher. They will use their prospects in trade, but not for a Washburn type.
Anyway, that’s my rant. I know the season was disappointing, but some of you are really quite bitter and I don’t understand it. It’s not like the Yankees are your livelihood. (Unless you’re setting odds??)
See what they try and do over the winter. Then decide whether this new ownership wants to win or not. But, if deals you want to happen don’t happen, make sure you’re fair when you assess why. For instance, if the Yankees don’t sign CC, but make a great offer for him, well, perhaps the Yankees could not offer him what he wanted most – a chance to play on the west coast. Or whatever, you know what I’m trying to say.
Bob, that’s pretty pessimistic. Getting Wang back for a full season of health would be a good improvement, and adding Sabathia and eventually Joba to the rotation would be pretty good. Boston missed the playoffs one year and went all the way the next. Sure it’s possible we stink for the next half decade, but this could still be a very good core that just underperformed big for one season.
Say what you want about George but he would have done this right.. maybe even over the top
bigjf, I hear you, and I know it. I’ll go to my 1 or 2 games each year, and hopefully I’ll even enjoy the games, but I can’t help being disappointed that a few fairly simple adjustments couldn’t have been made in the design of the new place. It would have made a big difference.
And you know what really bugs me? The Mets of all people, are getting a big upgrade in their ballpark, while we get less.
Thank goodness I live near Trenton. Great ballpark, reasonable pricing, friendly staff, easy access, great teams lately. And HUNGRY BALLPLAYERS. You can’t beat that. It’s like old-time baseball again.
Well the rebuilding failed. Generation Trey was Generation Uno (Joba). Time to go all out next year and win in the first year of the the new stadium. This was such a waste of a year.
I’ve said it before and i’ll say it again, their moves this offseason will be indicative of where this franchise is headed. I do think there is some truth to the fact that this regime is not as committed to winning as George was, but ill hold off on that thought until we see what they do this off-season.
This is going to be a PAINFUL Fall season for the franchise. Red Sox on their way to a 2nd consecutive division crown and adding more mystique to their aura while their young kids are shining. Mets and Santana dominating the headlines and airwaves, stealing the spotlight and the city decorated in orange and blue. Torre and the Dodgers in the playoffs out West while Hank/Girardi continue to be pounded back East.
Not going to be pretty at all in a couple of weeks, this is only the tip of the iceberg.
doesnt bother me…id rather just see winning baseball
I mean the only thing the team didn’t do in the off-season last year. I know there’s a lot of things that peeve people off about the Yankees.
bigjf, pessimistic? I don’t think so.
The outfield is a mess.
No 1Bman
Cano…..who the heck knows what’s gonna happen with him.
Jeter and ARod another year older.
Catcher comong off major shoulder surgery and getting closer and closer to 40 on top of that.
That’s not even talking about the rotation.
There’s alot of holes to fill on this team. You can’t do it all thru FA and the minors are pretty bare when it comes to position players.
It’s gonna take a few years to get this team back to a championship contending level IMO.
Maybe more could have been done, but for those of us who watch the majority of games on TV, would not be able to see the extra curricular stuff. YES only began televising the countdown recently. MLB messed it up when the Yankees had to play the last series on the road. Hopefully on Sept 21 the ceremony will be televised.
SteveB, it’s not hard to get a huge upgrade when your old stadium is a cesspool. I’ll wait to see both ballparks before I decide just how much better the Mets fans have it. I’d rather have a decidedly lesser park and retain all the championships I’ve seen already in my young life than have a great park and a team that hasn’t won a championship since I was a baby.
And next time you’re in Trenton, tell the people to walk next time there’s a Joe Biden rally. I sat in 2 hours worth of Biden traffic when I went to Baltimore this year!
My opinion, pete:
Would we be having this conversation if the yankees were playing good? I don’t think so..
Winning cures everything…if the yankees were winning, a lot of people would be saying “Man…this team is playing well..the stadium is on fire and we are sending this place off right!”
But because this team isn’t winning..fans are almost going through the motions with the closing of this historic ball park and it’s a shame. But if the yankees were seriously in the hunt..the stadium would have a much better atmosphere and the fans would be a lot more excited and that would make a huge differnce in the way this stadium is coming to an end!
I think that the last game will be some kind of event..and it will live up to the “hype” that we all have for it…but nothing can make up for the lack of winning this year…and that is the main problem.
It makes absolutely no difference at all what the Yankees did, because as is plainly seen, people are going to complain about something. They’ll say that it’s too cheesy or not enough.
It’s obvious why they haven’t done more for the final season – because that would bring more attention to why they are tearing it down. The cathedral, the historic Stadium, it’s so great, we can’t wait to take the wrecking ball to it and move into our soulless corporate luxury box across the street. Maybe they can have the Hard Rock Cafe executives pull the lever on the final game.
I can’t really argue with that. (Except it’s maybe a tad premature – the Mets sit precariously atop their division, the Red Sox haven’t taken over yet, nor have the Dodgers, but I get what you’re saying.)
Mediocrity has defined EVERYTHING the Yankee organization has done this season. They have sustained a number of injuries but more than anything this team has shown zero personality to speak of. No fire. No drive. Just blaaaaaaaaaaa. It really begs the question: “Does Joe Girardi know what he is doing?”
As for the stadium, the lack of pomp is disappointing to all. You are closing down one the THE great sporting venues in the world. Every person walking into that place should be inundated by nostalgia. The Yankees are so much about “branding” that it doesn’t make sense. The game experience is the primary avenue to the branding concept.
the yankees are the only team that still does an old timer’s game. this year they had more old timer’s than ever. why wasn’t that enough? plus didn’t they say that they are doing something special in nov? maybe that will be the final sendoff that people are looking for.
“I do think there is some truth to the fact that this regime is not as committed to winning as George was”
MacArthur, Patton and Atilla the Hun combined were less committed to winning as George was. At some point they were going to have to pay the piper for that “win now” philosphy and it looks like that time is now.
Doreen that is the season right there, I think the deal we will live to regret is giving up on Jose Tabata at such a young age, It’s hard because of what a bunch of Yankees fans don’t understand is the need to rebuild and shape new leaders for the future, players that give a damn and play for more than just thier paycheck, the need to build your future is what the Yankees have not done in some years. Just look at Boston w. Pedroia and Youkilis they are building future these are blue chippers that are giving there all, it’s a direction the Yankees continue to avoid, continue to dismiss and it’s something unless they build a new core won’t get fixed anytime soon.
Think about it when you get a FA star that player is trying to prove he belongs instead of playing team ball, trying to do a little too much, trying to get more RBI, trying to get more clutch hits but which one hits the sac fly ? which one sacrifices his AB for the next guy ? which one hits the ball where it’s pitched ? unless that changes nothing will.
“There should have been more done. First pitch ceremonies, National Anthem singers, days honoring certain players, days honoring certain moments, even ceremonies honoring opposing teams or players.”
Pete, you’re right. And that’s a great thumbnail sketch of ideas. (You apply the same kind of thinking to your blog, and that’s part of what holds our interest, and has made it so successful (in addition to the key element: your up-to-the-minute reporting).)
Somebody or several people in Yankees management just didn’t think things through, or perhaps ignored the people who did. One wonders, indeed suspects, that the same mentality extends throughout baseball operations. An inability to get things done right.
Right now, the Yankees are riding on the success of a brand that was built up in previous decades by smarter, savvier people. The current crew seems to have a good handle on generating revenue (the YES network, among other things), but not much else. They monetize like champions, but when it comes to the product itself, it feels like amateur night.
Bob, the reason for this season’s failure was a combination of injury and underperformance by the offense. Still, Jeter had a decent year. A-Rod is having another great year, though not in the big spots. We know what Cano is capable of, even though this year we didn’t see it. At 1B, all we need is someone who can field the position (maybe that will be Posada). The minors is stocked with potential at catcher, but 1B and C do not have to be big offensive positions at this point. Damon can still rake, Matsui isn’t suddenly “done,” hopefully we’re seeing the real Nady and not just an aberration. Meanwhile, there’s tons of talent in the bullpen and others waiting to be called up. I think Melky, at worst, is a decent bench player.
So we have two different views. I see turbulence, you see a sinking ship. I’ll see you in a year…
Torre and the Dodgers in the playoffs out West
Oh please … that team is abusing on the DBacks that’s all they choked for 9 games before them The Nationals laid a whoopin’ on them, Philly slapped them around. It’s not all roses over there.
andy Hawkin’s ghost:
“Does Joe Girardi know what he is doing?â€
Thats a fair question to ask..but people have got to remember that this is ONLY Joe Girardi’s 2nd season managing..his 1st in the AL! Like any “new” manager you have to give him time to learn how to do this job day after day..and the yankees front office knew this when they “fired” Torre and hired Girardi..the fans need to realize this aswell!
With how embarrassing play of this team, I just don’t care.
Besides, what do you expect them to do? Fireworks shows and concerts after every home game? Then people would be complaining how overdone it is and how sick of it they are.
They’re going to do a big ceremony in November, good enough
“There should have been more done. First pitch ceremonies, National Anthem singers, days honoring certain players, days honoring certain moments, even ceremonies honoring opposing teams or players.â€
This ain’t a circus why does all of that need to be done ?
Get hold of yourselves…..you want to see tigers jumping through hoops…go to a circus.
Just let them play ball…..from the way this season has gone…..they do not need any more distractions.
but 1B and C do not have to be big offensive positions at this point.
1B does not hve to be a big offensive position?
Since when?
How long have you been a baseball fan?
1B is all about offense. Always has always will be.
Brandon
Don’t disagree with the theory of having a stable core of players who came through the system but did ou think Tabata capable of being a leader when you were calling him a juvenile delinquent.
He may turn out to be a great player and they may live to regret the deal; but nothing pointed to Tabata having leadership skills that would be missed.
I think we’d be having this conversation even more so if the Yankees were winning.
I think they should have Sarah Palin come in and do the whole PA thing for the remainder of the season and she can give snarky commentary all the while. She could also oversee the first pitch every game, thrown at random at someone in the stands from an undisclosed location and then she could say “see? it’s a dangerous world!”
Exactly, Pat. They’re reaping what they sowed in their win now philosophy – I’m only surprised that people are so surprised and bitter about it. Thats how real life works.
I’m reminded of the late ’50s, when the Dodgers and Giants moved to the West Coast. The final games at Ebbets Field and the Polo Grounds were, indeed, the FINAL games. THAT was cause for deep melancholy.
I’m tempted to bash the Yankees and say that they should be doing much more in the last year of the “old” (albeit renovated) Stadium. But, sometimes, less is more. A previous poster mused about the daunting possibility of adding 45 minutes of hoopla to every 3 hour game …. an astute observation.
Besided, the old Yankee Stadium really ceased to exist when the renovated version eliminated all of the marvelous nooks and crannies of the old park …. the three monuments on the field, the 3 foot fence in right (no Jeffrey Maier), the low wall in left center where Gianfriddo robbed Dimaggio …. wonderful.
But at least the Yankees, unlike the Dodgers and Giants, are still in town …. could be much worse.
i think the poor sendoff the yankees have done for yankee stadium is consistent with the job they have done on the field.
it’s important for fans to stop supporting and enabling this ownership/ management team to stay in power.
don’t buy tickets . don’t buy yes packages, don’t buy merchandise.
hit them where it hurts.
fans can do it now or five years from now, but unless change is made, what you see is what you’ll get.
Torre and the Dodgers in the playoffs out West
And this pitful Yankee team still has a better record than them
Them making the playoffs will just be because of the crappy division they play in, not because of Torre.
SWB game postponed. The Hughes/Colon pitching match-up will have to wait until tomorrow.
As a season ticket holder, I’ve been disappointed by the lack of fanfare.
And after receiving the Relocation Plan this week and responding to the seat preference questionare online (which,by the way, we were given only 7 days to respond to), I really feel a sense of detatchment from the corporate Yankees and their fanbase.
I’ve come to the conclusion that they know that moving to the new Stadium is going to be unpleasant for a lot of their longtime patrons.
Building up a sad farewell to the old Stadium serves no purpose for the Trosts and Levines of the corporation.
For many season ticket holders prices will increase dramatically and they will be priced out. For many, like myself, our wonderful Section 2 Tier Reserve seats will no longer be available unless we’re willing to take on a 400% price increase.
It is with great sadness that I watch the field of Ruth, Mantle and Rivera torn down. It’s with even greater sadness that I feel my reward for being a longtime supporter of the Yankees will be seats that wont be close to comparable to what I now have.
Jose Tabata is another Cano. All the talent in the world but immature and lazy. He admitted he is happier in the Pirates system because there is less pressure on him. He is not the best example of guys we need to ‘build our team around’. We need the right kind of young players like Pedroia. Players with TALENT who scrap (not players like Gardner and Duncan with limited talent who have to scrap if they want to make it). We need young players with talent and off-the-charts makeup to match that.
pat the thing about Tabata that I loved is at 19 this kid would not accept just being ok, he wants to excell at every level no matter his age, a young and hungry player, the lackadasical issues I put that to him being young but to give up at 19 on him I never liked that decision. Hanley Ramirez at his age didn’t have leadership skills and look at him now ? I just never liked that deal, I always believed if your dealing him and getting the type of player we recieved I’ll give you an example right now a Tabata/Kennedy deal could have netted them an Adrian Gonzalez since the Pads want to lower payroll and are rummored to shop him in the offseason, it’s not just about giving up on Tabata it’s selling him low for a player in his 30’s.
Wow – Jays had a 3-0 lead into the 9th and Ryan coughed it up! Game into the 12th.
GO RAYS!!!
I’m going to blasphemous here and say that George Steinbrenner created a rabid fan-base that demands its championship meat on a yearly basis. He destroyed the structure of the organization with the combination of free agent spending and decimation of the farm system. The house sure was pretty for along time, but now the foundation is really shaky. But the “feed-me” fans don’t want to take the time or use the money to repair the foundation. They want to continue to paint the house and maybe put in some shrubs to hide the cracks in the foundation.
And when people come along in the organization who want to stop spending money on the decorations, and put it into the pipes, the electricity, etc., people take a look at the estimate and say – we can’t wait that long.
Well, it took quite a while for the house that George built to look this way, and it’s going to take time to get it back to where it needs to be. And we, rabid fans that we are, are just going to have to deal with it. You can’t just eat dessert – you have to eat the vegetables, too.
George wanted to win, yes. But George was a tyrant – a spoiled tyrant who wanted it his way. He brought championships, yes. But he was wreckless in how he did it and in how he treated the people who tried to tell him he could have the most beautiful house on the block AND a sound foundation if he did it right. And he ignored them and here we are.
I expected to see a Bernie Williams day.
I am still hoping that the rumoured Springsteen concert is happening. Bernie could join the band for the night, and Paul O’Neil could play the drums a bit. Derek Jeter as captain, could introduce them. If the season is over, maybe Don Mattingly can join him. Maybe George Steinbrenner could come out with Yogi, as the Boss meets the Boss.
Maybe they rethink tearing the stadium down, and turn it into a tourist attraction. I saw somebody suggest it be an extension of the Hall of Fame. Maybe it could be the New York City Hall of Fame.
Soooooo many possibilities, so little concern.
We will win 10 more games than the Dodgers but if Torre is in the playoffs… we will never here the end of it. All the Torre groupies in the media like Francessa, Sherman, Madden, Harper, King, Verducci, Heyman, Rosenthal etc. will shove it in our face all fall.
Sadly, Kay is the only one who will not buy into the propaganda of winning the NL West being some kind of accomplishment, but the rest of the media will have a field day killing the Yankees, Girardi, and the Steinbros over Torre being in the playoffs. You know this.
THANK YOU DOREEN !
Brandon is right, it’s not all roses at the Dodgers’ house. To begin with, they have a GM that makes Brian Cashman look like Einstein in cleats.
But their fans are having a great time at this very moment filling up Dodger Stadium to see in person whether their team can go from half a game out of first to half a game ahead before their eyes.
I don’t wish we had their GM, or even their manager and players. I just wish I was having an afternoon like that.
Next stop ‘09!!!!!!
Why do you care what the media talking heads will say?
If you know it’s garbage, who cares?
Why people allow these ratings driven bafoons to dictate their feelings I’ll never understand.
The Yankees probably provide the least fan friendly baseball experience in the league. I haven’t been to all the stadiums maybe only 1/3 but all the other organizations make it seem like you are their guest and appreciate your attendance. The Yankees make it seem like you should feel lucky to be watching them play.
Now normally I don’t mind this so much as I go to the games to see a baseball game and don’t pay too much attention to the hoopla surrounding it but this year there hasn’t been too much to get excited about baseball wise. As a result the lack of “flair” or whatever you want to call it is sort of amplified.
The All Star Game was enough celebration, I’m expecting to see some more fanfare in the last home game but who cares at this point? this year’s team has been so disappointing it would be self-mocking to celebrate each game.
How do two WS mixed in with a first round sweep and missing the playoffs add to the aura and mystique of the Red Sox. I mean they went decades as being a joke to now being the greatest franchise ever…don’t the Marlins have as many championships in the last 90 years as the Sawx? Some aura and mystique. What are we going to start talking about some curse now???
I don’t get all the whining going on around here, I mean they had a down year…it was bound to happen and IMO management looked at this year and next year to be the years to have them.
For anyone to say that watching a game at the new Stadium is not going to be good…what, have you been there? Why not wait until next year to make that comment?
I’ve been to the Jake, Camden and Rangers Ballpark, and each of them was a great place to watch a game IMO.
Also, if anyone thinks that the management of this team is going to pocket the $$ from the new Stadium and not reinvest it into the product on the field/system is just plain dumb…if they keep the $$ and the team/product stinks do you think people will come???
That is why this year and next year were thought of as transition years, not signing Santana proved that.
This team is losing some $88-mil in salary, which they can use to get younger, as well as allow the farm to get another two years of maturity. Never mind the fact that the Yankees will be able to cut their revenue sharing bill, by off-setting construction costs.
This organization is not full of dummies as some suggest, I mean we are the ones bitching on an online blog.
” I’m going to blasphemous here and say that George Steinbrenner created a rabid fan-base that demands its championship meat on a yearly basis.”
doreen-
read something like “summer of 49″ if you think steinbrenner created the fan base.
owners have come and gone and the yankees as a franchise has risen to peaks multiple times. it’s really time for new ownership. george was overall a good owner, but sad to say he’s gone.
his kids don’t have the passion it takes to own the new york yankees.
What stadiums would you all recommend as the best places to watch a game with a family? I was at Cleveland this season and found the fans to be friendly, the stadium to be modern and clean, and Cleveland itself to be a fun city to visit.
Doreen
From where I’m sitting. I’ve got the same view. Not blasphemous at all.
Preparing a team for the season with the goal of winning a WS every year is fine but calling the season a failure when it doesn’t happen discredits the efforts put forth by the players for 180+ games.
its funny how cashman was so against making quick fixes and the organization stressed that this was a transition year and to be patient.
yet he goes out and trades tabata, our 2nd best prospect next to hughes for a 30 yr old xavier nady. then he complains that we have to get younger, better defensively, more speed in the outfield and he trades our 19 yr old outfielder. him and jakcson could have been up here by the middle of next year and bene our anchors for 15+ years. 2 speedsters with 5 tool skills in the OF to really accelerate the rebuilding.
cashman has no idea what he is doing. he doesn’t get santana but he trades a blue chip OF prospect for nady? in a year that we are supposed to be rebuilding? what exactly is his plan?
his kids don’t have the passion it takes to own the new york yankees.
Again what makes you say this ? Your judging it on this season ? How can you make that assumption on this season alone ? Newsflash when George bought the Yankees it took him YEARS !!! to make it a legit product, the faction of Hal and Hank well mostly Hal are setting thier focus on rebuilding and not just stupidly spending thier money. Why is it that after 1 yr. you assume they don’t have the passion for it ? You had one son already echo that “They Sucked” you have to have passion to make that type of a statement.
Yea, shame on George for naming Munson captain and developing his successor Jeter. Shame on him for Reggie, Willie Randolph, Pinella, Mattingly,Pettitte, Boggs, Rivera, Posada, Bernie Williams, O’Neil,Cone, ARod and the many others we’ve enjoyed watching over the last 30 odd years.
By the way, you’d be hard pressed to find anyone that I just named who hasnt publicly expressed gratitude to George Steinbrenner. If the HOF does the right thing and inducts George soon, there will be a plethora of former players and fans there to thank him for restoring the franchise.
George had many many faults and let his ego and opinion hold too much weight at times. But the current situation is as much the fault of Brian Cashman as much as anybody. Cashman tried his hand at being a big spender like George and came up with Kei Igawa. Cashman and Damon Oppenheimer just oversaw one of the most embarrasing drafts in Yankee history. There’s enough blame to go around. To pin it on Steinbrenner is unfair.
cashman has no idea what he is doing. he doesn’t get santana but he trades a blue chip OF prospect for nady? in a year that we are supposed to be rebuilding? what exactly is his plan?
I never understood that deal, I’m on record I didn’t want Johan not for the end results of his game and I’m talking about the backend of his contract to give him 25 million so he can pitch ala Tom Glavine, no regrets from me about that non deal but to turn around and make that Pittsburgh deal was just, man it truely sucks.
Duh. You all are idiots. The Yankee organization dropped the ball?
NO! They didn’t! They are planning to do something very special for each home game during the playoffs.
How does anybody know what Jose Tabata is going to be like as a player in 2012? Because he happens to be hitting the ball well in AA in September 2008?
Wow. Some of you commenters are sick.
The team on the field and what the front office making this final season special are two different things!!
This stadium has been a second home to so many. It’s been host to countless amazing moments for DECADES. The Cardinals had great moments throughout the season before they tore down their stadium — they gave it a proper season-long goodbye. To think the Yankee front office hasn’t done a tenth of what the St. Loo people did is disgusting.
Did Pete suggest 45-minute ceremonies before each game? No! But how about something meaningful other than the same old sh*t in-between innings? How about something nice five minutes before each game? Or during the seventh inning stretch?
The most cynical thing to me is how the publicity folks and front office love calling it “The Cathedral.” Yeah. Right. They’ve done so little to TREAT it like one this last season, but that won’t stop them from selling every bolt and paint chip to the highest bidder.
For those of you who think it isn’t important to give the old stadium a proper, fitting send-off . . . you’re incredibly short-sighted and just as cynical as the Yankee front office. Sad, and sick.
Drive 4-5 it is his freaking fault, we love George don’t get us wrong but he wasn’t the main builder of that dynasty ! That was Showalter, Watson, “Stick” he then inherited the situation and started going on spending sprees damaging the future the team had left. This is why we are where we are, Hank and Hal just stepped into this situation and are accessing it how is this thier fault ? Damon Oppenheimer has only built up the farm system how is this his fault, how about Joba Chamberlain who drafted him again ? our Brandon Laird in A ball or Dellin Betances, Opp. just started what 2-3 yrs. ago this isn’t his fault, this is Lynn Garrett/George Steinbreiner/Brian Cashman’s mess.
Nady has slipped a lot lately… right to the .280 platau where he should be hitting.
Bases loaded for Manny and he strikes out to end the inning. Not a boo to be heard.
Two of the best posters on here today ..Doreen and Vadar. The voices of reason and fans who are fans ..as myself…through the tough times as well as the great times. Fans who do not tear down their players or team with rediculous statements such as they don’t care about winning. Fans who don’t think they know better than those that run the team since they aren’t privy to the inside workings and every day dealings of running a monster organization such as the Yankees . Thank you both for wonderful commentaries ..a pleasure to read and I’m happy to see you both get it !!!!
I will have attended over 40 games this year both at the Stadium and away…I’ve seen plenty of ceremony at the appropriate games …Opening Day, All Star, Old Timer’s and I’ll be attending the final game too. I didn’t care as much about ceremony as I do about winning but unfortunately it was a down year for the team due to many different factors. I know one thing tho’ …we will be right in the thick next year because the organization will do all in it’s power to make sure of it. For that I am truly thankful and win or lose …I’ll always love My Yanks !!!
Go Yankees !!!
I don’t think doing something special for the stadium is irrelevant or would have caused distraction from winning. Heck they didn’t do anything special and the team is still playing like crap, so there.
In fact I think the way they have botched this whole thing is just one symptom of organization-wide incompetence that also affects performance on the field. Look at the way they are handling the season ticket relocation, completely laughable. They set the Sep 10 deadline that many season ticket holders still have no clue about because the notification has been completely mishandled. Strong companies tend to do everything better, crappy companies find a way to mess up across the board. It all starts at the top.
“Strong companies tend to do everything better, crappy companies find a way to mess up across the board. It all starts at the top.”
what are you some kind of radical free enterprise person who thinks doing something really well attracts customers?
Having not done anything to this point, suddenly celebrating would certainly feel perfunctory and phony. The Yankees management was well aware of the escalating odds that this season would not hold up to the success of the previous 13 years. Now, any celebration would be funereal- would it be the end of the stadium or the end of an era that we are supposed to be recognizing? If a ceremonial feeling had been instilled early and throughout the season, it would hurt less. Perhaps the thought was that doing some big ceremonies at the end of the year would be the only way to pack the house and grab ratings. Or maybe they thought they could wait for the playoffs…
Pavano speaks.
“A lot of times when I was in Tampa, I was really angry, because I’m away from my team, and I’m down there not getting the support that you feel you need to be successful,†Pavano said.
“You know people are doubting you that should be helping you,†he added. “You know people are kicking you when you’re down, and they should be picking you up. That’s the nature of this environment.â€
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09.....ref=sports
Dee …
How was it mishandled? I received my licensee package, read it and filled in the questionaire which gives them an idea of who is going to return, where your location is now and if you would like an upgrade. They even ask if you would prefer better seating location as opposed to aisle seating. I feel as if they are giving you some say in the matter. I’m actually amazed that my seating prices will be less this year. I thought for sure all the ticket prices were going up.
I had no problem at all and neither did any of my friends. Maybe some people just don’t read properly when they receive notification.
Go Yankees !!!
Pavano
Tampa now leading Toronto 4-3.
Brandon,
Who do you think hired Gabe Paul, Gene Michael and Bob Watson and Buck Showalter? Let me give you the answer. George Steinbrenner.
I don’t know how many of you are old enough to remember the end of the Dan Topping era and the CBS/Michael Burke era. Anyone who doesnt appreciate what Steinbrenner did to bring back the franchise after that mess is an ingrate.
The Yankees didnt win 39 American League pennants by running the operation like the the Chicago White Sox. Steinbrenner understood that and turned $10 mil into $1.5 billion along the way.
His mistake was at the end he took counsel in people with no vision. Those same people, the Levines and Trosts are more concerned with maintaining cash flow. The other problem is that his baseball people, including Oppenheimer and Cashman, are running a minor league system without a single prospect in AAA and few in AA. For every Joba there has been 10 Eric Duncans.
I am a 12 year season-ticket holder and have been going to games for 35 years. Ever since George became less involved with the organization, it has become just a business. The fans no longer matter and everything is based on the almighty dollar. I realize that the Yankees are a business but this is ridiculous. All this final season at the stadium means is that the Yankees get to slap the final season logo on anything that you can think of and sell it for $20 or more.
You think it is bad now? Wait ’til next year (and beyond).
Wow, step away for a bit and the blog implodes with passion!
-Doreen, you are en fuego today. Nothing to add.
-I can’t believe me eyes. The guys are more sentimental than the gals.
-Please, Lord, don’t let us miss the postseason for 3-5 more years. I won’t survive all the moaning and griping and whining.
Thought I’d weigh in on that “did the Yankees do enough” discussion.
Frankly, I do not have a problem with this supposed lack of celebration. I was much more concerned about the way the Yankees were playing than whether they were bringing back old heroes.
Now that the season is over, if they want to start bringing some people back, that’s fine. But I’m not complaining that it didn’t happen sooner.
You’ve been a leading voice regarding this situation Pete and i agree with you 100%. I was lucky enough to go to about 8 games this year, and generally they had no-names who work at some company pulling the lever. The one exception was seeing Oscar Gamble do the honors. Was he a great player – of course not. But besides the legendary afro, he had some big hits as a Yankee, in fact I can remember him and Reggie going back-to-back in Game 5 of the 1981 playoff series vs the Brewers, a game the Yankees won on their way to the World Series. It was a nice memory to remember … why the Yankees high command didn’t do more of that is beyond me. They failed in this area … terrible. And the next few games can’t make up for it in my opinion.
Now lets give Girardi a break please.
OTOH, if the Yankees had hired “Dr” Charles Steinberg to do the Last Year PR, this blog would be swimming in pools of vomit from unending overdone touching productions. There’s “not enough” and there’s “way overkill”
1. Drive 4-5 – You are completely right. Like you, I am old enough to have lived through the awful late 60s-early 70s, when CBS owned the team. George Steinbrenner should be congratulated by Yankee fans. Yes, he has his faults and made his mistakes. Like many people, he is a complex person. But fans of many other teams wish he owned their team.
2. Interesting online story about Pavano, written by Kepner in the Times, linked above. There are some things, though, that don’t make sense. The story/Pavano says that the Yankees decided and told Dr. Andrews what kind of operation to do, to remove bone chips instead of TJ reconstruction. A good physician, certainly a respected one like Dr. Andrews, acts in the patient’s best interest, not that of a third party. Pavano then foes on that he had to get 4 medical opinions before one, Dr. Altcheck, agreed to operate. The others, Drs. Hershon, Andrews, and Yokum, apparently felt it was not necessary. The implication is that only Altcheck got it right. Well, the other three are not exactly chopped liver.
Just some things that don’t make sense to me. But, it’s about Carl Pavano.
TOR trying to get something going against Percival. 2 on with 1 out.
it’s a building, it’s being torn down.
the yankees are not leaving the city. the yankees are not folding as an operation.
the yankees are moving across the street.
I would rather have Pavano in the rotation next year than Hughes or Kennedy.
“what are you some kind of radical free enterprise person who thinks doing something really well attracts customers?”
Are you living in some alternate universe in which the Yankees have been bereft of customers this season?
Personally, I feel that our most important memories & everything we associate with the stadium is directly related to the Yankee baseball teams fielded there. Unfortunately, this year’s team can only leave us with abysmal memories of this last season at the hallowed cathedral. Since many of us are used to so much better play from the NYY BB teams before them, we will not have bad memories of Yankee Stadium overall (except for a little lingering memory of how bad the team was in the final year of the stadium).
I don’t need additional boring time-consuming ceremonies before the game as a stadium send-off, but possibly some small give-away memento for the fans in attendance would have been thoughtful.
How can Troy Percival be the closer for the #1 Rays and be this bad?
“I don’t need additional boring time-consuming ceremonies before the game as a stadium send-off, but possibly some small give-away memento for the fans in attendance would have been thoughtful.”
From what I’ve been hearing, the fans have been taking some mementos of their own!
I think they’ll have a great last homstand to honor Yankee Stadium in terms of results on the field and people who will be there on hand to celebrate.
Holy Cow! TOR wins on a Grand Slam by Zaun.
a grand slam – unbelievable…the Rays are imploding and it’s all on him!
I guess this is the collapse of the Rays that people were predicting. They most certainly aren’t finishing strong down the stretch.
Zaun….I’m your newest fan…lol
Longoria is coming back
Do we really want Toronto winning? They are now tied with us for 3rd place and every Rays loss puts Boston in the driver’s seat for the division and homefield throughout— and no team is going into Fenway and beating them.
Management could have done better with the farewell, clearly they are focused on selling luxury seats in the new house. They need to be given the massive amount of money borrowed to build it. This is no excuse for ignoring the present.
There will be some ceremonies at the final game and a final farewell in November with Springsteen so they have not totally dropped the ball.
I am more disappointed with the on the field product combined with much higher ticket prices in ‘08. They milked the final season for big bucks and did not deliver on the field.
Wow on the Ray/Jay game. I turn it on in the 9th, hoping to see the Rays lose. Then they go and score three runs to tie. They add another run in the 13th and I think all hope is lost. Thank you Zaun!!! Now THAT is clutch.
Yankees win tonight and they are only 10 games back of the Rays for the Wild Card…with the Rays having to play 22 games and the Yankees having 20 left….If we can go 17-3…and they can go 7-15…..we Pass them….Don’t laugh…it can happen….We just need to beat them every time we play them AND they need to continue the SLIDE that they are on….( which they will )…Boston ( dang ) is going to win the Division….we need to focus on the Rays….
Rays lose again. I don’t know whether to be happy, unhappy, or indifferent.
we do NOT want toronto winning…the Rays losing also helps the Sox. We were all rooting for the Rays (well, except for Ray
)
“Do we really want Toronto winning? They are now tied with us for 3rd place and every Rays loss puts Boston in the driver’s seat for the division and homefield throughout— and no team is going into Fenway and beating them.”
I didn’t say that I wanted TOR to win. I was just reporting the scores. I do not want us finishing behind TOR. BOS is going to the playoffs regardless so I’m not going to fret over that.
Nah I still think we have a better chance at catching the Rays. I’d rather not have to go into Fenway and have that series determine how our post-season play.
ray….I am sending you a towel to cry on, friend…(DVAB)
“.If we can go 17-3…and they can go 7-15…..we Pass them….Don’t laugh…it can happen”
Have you seen the Yankees play this season? I’m sorry to report that it can’t happen. We’ll be lucky to go .500 the rest of the way.
“Are you living in some alternate universe in which the Yankees have been bereft of customers this season?”
i’ll give you two answers. pick the one you like better.
#1 it’s too crowded, no one goes there anymore.
#2 the blue jays, indians, and orioles used to draw really well too.
“I’d rather not have to go into Fenway and have that series determine how our post-season play.”
I suspect you’ll get your wish!
Nick, indifferent.
whats it matter if we finish below the blue jays…pride?..thats lost when you dont make the playoffs…its irrelevant in my eyes whether we finish 3rd or 4th
We would not be having this conversation if we were going to the playoffs. It is all about winning.
So since we are not winning, then more focus should be on promotion but the owners may think why should we put out any effort we already sold out for the season.
This may come back to bite the ownership.
We should make every game a great occasion. You never know who is going to be atttending.
BTW maybe we should have went after Greg Zaugh he just hit a walk off 13th inning homer to beat The Rays. Also The Rays made no moves to improve their team by the trading deadline. The Yankees did make moves on the field to improve. This counts more than promotions.
randy, when the Yankees can’t crack 2 million, I’ll concede that you may have had a valid point.
Drive 4-5 -
George brought the franchise back to glory. That cannot be denied and I won’t deny it. But there’s a bit of nostalgia that goes on, especially now, at the end of quite a run.
Taken as a whole, I would rather my team have an owner that is committed to winning and puts his money where his mouth is. But I think he could have done better and sold himself and his franchise short by taking shortcuts with respect to the farm system. It’s not the free agents, per se. It is the seemingly indiscriminate pursuit of them, especially for someone like George who very much respected and wanted to restore grand Yankee tradition. People talk about whether someone is is “true Yankee.” I am surprised that George couldn’t be sold on raising his own Yankees from scratch. Look how Jeter, Posada, Pettitte, Bernie, Mariano turned out.
So, my diatribe was directed at George’s shortcomings which are becoming only too visible as this team ages without solid replacements. And an impatient fan base. So, I’m saying if we’re patient, the payoff will be big and long-lasting.
I think the bigger question is can this Yankee team come up w/ a 7-3 strectch or a 6-4 stretch, does Boston have a 4-6 or 2-9 stretch in them that’s the only way this team has a chance, other than that I don’t see it.
“whats it matter if we finish below the blue jays…pride?..thats lost when you dont make the playoffs…its irrelevant in my eyes whether we finish 3rd or 4th”
I disagree, Ralphie. Yes, the playoffs are lost, but there is something to be said for how you finish out your season. You can either give up and phone it in or play for your self respect and give 110% like you’re supposed to. I’d like to think that the Yankees still have some pride and want to finish as high in the standings as they can.
Drive
I’m also old enough to remember life before George. I do appreciate everything George did. He is the type of owner fans love to have because he isn’t afraid to open his wallet and he cares about winning. I also understand that somewhere along the way, George decided that opening his wallet took precedence over building a team and hard work took a back seat to instant gratification. No one complained at the time because it was working but as I said earlier, the piper was going to have to be paid and the bill has now come due. Wouldn’t have traded the fun ride for anything and will gladly hang with them during the transition. Anyone pre-George is likely to do the same.
The George we all remember would have called out any player who tried to take a short cut instead of putting in the effort and that is what the Yankees were doing pre-2005 when Cashman was given more control over the farm system.
Recognizing that takes nothing away from all the good George did.
“BTW maybe we should have went after Greg Zaugh he just hit a walk off 13th inning homer to beat The Rays. ”
JB, the Blue Jays fan that comes here every now and then, said that Zaun was available. I think that Cashman was swayed by Pudge’s HOF credentials and went that route. Plus, we don’t know what TOR would have wanted in return. Maybe it was someone we were not prepared to part with.
Did anyone think that maybe, just maybe the Yankees were waiting for the playoffs to do the great send off?
Well, one thing happened on the way to that great send off…they won’t make the playoffs.
If they had been doing the promotional send off throughout the season, like Kareem getting the rocking chair and all the other BS in his last year, people would be giving them shit too.
I flew to NY last week for the Boston series and took my dad as one last trip to the old stadium. In addition to getting totally blown out, I was shocked about how tired the placed looked and how NOTHING was done to make the last few games more memorable. Not only was it the last Boston series, but game #15 and for the God Bless America (time to end that anyway) they had some scratchy old record playing Kate Smith. The lever was pulled by someone nobody knew, and it was a total disappointment. The field looked like crap too.
I live in LA and as much as I hate the Angels/Dodgers, the games there are special, all year. There is a real effort placed on making it an experience, instead of some Chock Full of Nuts sponsorship (they still make that stuff)? Anyway, I kind of wished I hadn’t gone.
“Plus, we don’t know what TOR would have wanted in return. Maybe it was someone we were not prepared to part with.”
For helping someone in their own division get better, I’m guessing plenty.
Brandon,
I know i am biased but I don’t see the Sox going on 2-9 stretch or something like that. Lowell just came back and Beckett came back last night.
Not saying it isn’t possible. I know we have choked in the past but I don’t see it happening this year.
“owners have come and gone and the yankees as a franchise has risen to peaks multiple times. it’s really time for new ownership. george was overall a good owner, but sad to say he’s gone.
his kids don’t have the passion it takes to own the new york yankees.”
There’s Randy again with the patience of a 2 year old in a candy shop. Can we at least give the sons more than a year of being in control before we definitively say whether or not they have the passion of the Yankees?
Manny’s HR has the Dodgers up 3-0. If I’m the Cubs, I’m pulling for the Dodgers. Their chances are better against the Dodgers than ARI.
Rishi,
Because Percival is what he is. Nothing special. He got there and was a leader as far as being a veteran. They got off to a great start as he helped stabilize the bullpen. The Rays are learning what the Sox already know. It’s not easy being the frontrunner.
I’m glad that Percival wiped out today. His comment to the media about balls & strikes before Alex’s bomb really peeved me. The Yankees get robbed all the time, but they respect the game enough to not call out certain umps.
“You can either give up and phone it in or play for your self respect and give 110% like you’re supposed to. I’d like to think that the Yankees still have some pride and want to finish as high in the standings as they can.”
“As they can” is the key phrase. Effort doesn’t always equal results.
That would have meant spending money.
“I know i am biased but I don’t see the Sox going on 2-9 stretch or something like that. Lowell just came back and Beckett came back last night.”
Ray, unless the whole team comes down with Bird Flu, I don’t see them going 2-9 either. Some people around here want to hang on to the fantasy. I’m tired of deluding myself. This was not our year. End of story.
By the way, don’t be offended, but I hope BOS loses in the first round.
Cubs will beat up whoever comes out of the NL West.
Mets will beat the Brewers unless CC pitches in relief on the days he doesn’t start.
From a baseball standpoint, Mets-Cubs will be a fun a series.
It was bad enough that the Yankees finish on the road instead of at the Stadium. Seemed only fitting, but MLB screwed that up. Still can’t wait for the 09 season though!
If you like college football and appeciate a little schadenfreude, the Notre Dame/San Diego St. game has been very entertaining.
Currently 7-7 and ND just threw an INT/touchback.
I just had the biggest laugh.
Manny at the plate with bases loaded. Gets a 2-2 pitch that he pops sky high near the warning track. At first I thought he was posing for a HR, but actually I think he knew it was a popup. So Justin Upton goes back, stands under the ball with his hands at his sides. And the ball drops 10 feet away from him and pops into the stand for a ground rule double.
I can’t believe that Upton didn’t shield his eyes to find the ball.
“Cubs will beat up whoever comes out of the NL West. ”
Yeah, because Webb, Harden and Johnson are such pushovers!
*Haren
mel, maybe someday Manny and BJ can go to card shows together, like Bobby Thompson and Ralph Branca.
The inattention to detail regarding the final year of the Stadium is a metaphor for what is wrong with this organization. I have been a fan since the mid 50’s and so I have witnessed both great and bad times.
The Yankees are not about the steel and concrete that make up the building – it is about the people who played there, the fans who came to witness and honor their success and suffer along with them in their failure. It is so sad that the team did not take the opportunity to honor so many greats and/or their surviving family members.
nick in sf-
the yankees are so bad this year the highlight of my yankee year was your humorous insults.
that’s how low this yankee year has sunk.
i didn’t mind so much when the yankees imploded in the late 60’s because i was in a vw bus out west discovering an alternate universe.
when they imploded in the early to mid eighties , i was playing a lot and cared more about baseball itself than the yankees sinking.
now they have all the signs of imploding again and i’m too old to hit the road or to see if i can still hit .
i do know if they do implode again, i’ll be doing something other than financing that imploding by supporting and enabling it.
i’ve heard buenos aries is a cool place to go. if the red sox win a 3rd world series title in 5 years, that will become more and more appealing.
here’s an idea for pete a. to boost his blog hits. every day run a should he stay or should he go poll on a different player. start with abreu, betemit, giambi, irod and pettite.
randy, respectful and playful jabs, not insults!
If you go to Buenos Aires, let me know, I had a great steak dinner there once.
Nick,
I don’t know who those guys are, but I’m sure others will appreciate your wit there!
Back to CFB. I’m beginning to think that Charlie Veiss was the vorst thing to happen to Notre Dame.
Ya think that The Ohio State was thinking about their matchup with USC today? Or are they overrated? Again.
And East Carolina on the verge of another upset.
I agree that this year could have been done better but I also think that no matter what they did people would find fault with it.
In adition if we had a team that was winning some of these problems would not have been it so much to the fore front. I imagine that the last series will have lots of special moments.
Of the 18 games I have been too this season so far each of those games is special to me because of my own memories not the memories that someone else made for me.
As with other years Like seeing Alex hit his 500th HR or Jeter hitting hit first Grand Slam against the Cubs, being there for Old Timers Day this year and hearing the applause for Willie Randolph. Sitting with the same people in front of me for the past years and building a relationship with them. THAT is what makes the memories for me not what the Yankees or some other team artfully do wih pomp and circumstance.
The things that makes it sad for me is not that the actual building is being torn down but the memories I have made for myself while I was there. It is a shame that I will not be able to sit in those seats again. IN fact probably wont be anywhere near them as where I sit now for next year they are only available for full season ticket holders. But regardless of whre I sit once again in the New Staium it will be the memories I make for myself that will make it special.
AJ YANKS, I’m totally with you – I don’t want you-know-who to win the division, since my Yanks can not. & by Toronto providing this service, now we have to fight just to stay in 3rd place. I can’t understand how any true NYY fan is happy to see the Rays lose now (scratches head) … unless these people are so delusional they feel we still have a shot…
“Can we at least give the sons more than a year of being in control before we definitively say whether or not they have the passion of the Yankees?”
no.
raynagnetic-
i’d rather have you in control of the yankees( with whozat as your gm) than those two nabobs of nepotism.
as misguided as you are,at least you guys care.
that’s more than i can say for them. it’s just a job they never wanted handed down to them. i guarantee they’ll sell at the first chance when george is out of the picture.
“And the ball drops 10 feet away from him and pops into the stand for a ground rule double.”
Would that be considered “clutch”?
I am very disappointed with the Yankees organization this year. When you think of how they played, the fact they did zero for the fans for the last season (All Star Game does not count in my mind), jacked up the price for season tickets in the new stadium, the “ticketing glitch” with buying tickets to the All Star game, yadda, yadda, yadda. It really ticks me off. I am not going to get season tickets next year and am thinking real hard if I should ever set foot in the new stadium. In fact, I am thinking real hard of forgetting baseball all together! $400 dollars just for tickets to sit in decent seats and take your family of 4 to a game for the honor of spending $5 dollars on a coke and $10 on a beer?? I am hanging up the cleats.
As fans we need to tell the Yankees enough is enough.
The only nice thing they did for season ticket holders was the ability to buy tickets to the last game. So my 8 year old and I are going on the 21st and when the game is over we are going to say good bye to the Bronx for good.
FYI my tickets for next year will be going down in price I now pay $85 per ticket and next year the best seats I can get are $75 per ticket. And believe me I am not one to complain about price complainers but for those yelling about $400 tickets and not being able to go because of this if you actually look at the prices of the new stadium the $400 dollar tickes are field level behind home plate and rigt on the 1st and 3rd base lines. Most of the seats which are NOT field level are pretty much the same price and bleachers are $12. What they seem to be doing is jacking up the prices on field level and levels right behind home plate so they can keep the other seats at the same price is noit a small $5-$10 increase on some of the opther seats where most people will sit. These are still good seats and you can see the game. So while I am not happy that I wont be on the field like I am this year. I will till be in the ball park for actually $10 less than what i pay now.
Once Wang and Posada went down, the starch was taken out of the team and they never really recovered.
Handing starting rotation slots to Hughes and Kennedy during spring training was a chancy thing to do amd most realistic fans had their fingers crossed with the decision.
Joe Girardi’s field and lineup decisions may have cost the team 8-10 wins.
The team never did establish an identity.
“How was it mishandled? I received my licensee package, read it and filled in the questionaire which gives them an idea of who is going to return, where your location is now and if you would like an upgrade.”
You are lucky, but not every season ticket holder received a mailed questionnaire. Some early birds filled out the questionnaire online 2 weeks ago without knowing that it was the wrong questionnaire. The Yanks pulled the questionnaire from their site and put up another version a couple days later. People who filled out the first version would not have been counted, but you wouldn’t know it, there was no email telling you it was invalid and you have to fill out another one. Some unlucky people are going to find out down the road that because of Yankees’ error with the first questionnaire they lost their place in the pool to reserve a seat in the new stadium.
I thought old timer’s day was pretty special this year, but everyone seems to have forgotten it already.
It’s strange that the Yankees haven’t done more, since they’ve always been all about history and tradition, not just winning. Hard to believe it didn’t occur to an organization that knows how to put together a ceremony for retiring a number or unveiling a plaque in Monument Park.
Maybe people are right, and this uninspired, barely-noticeable nonobservance is on the bureaucrats aka Trost and Levine. But it just doesn’t jibe with the Yankees’ usual fondness for pomp and circumstance. One would like to think that the Steinbrenners, whatever their feelings, know it’s in the best interests of the organization to maintain a sense of continuity from the old house to the new one.
It’s not often that the Yankees make a change of this magnitude. After all, this is a team that has kept essentially the same uniform, team colors, and logo since the early 20th century. There aren’t that original big league ballparks still in business – Wrigley and Fenway are the only others that come to mind. Both of them are iconic symbols of baseball within the sport and throughout the culture. So is Yankee Stadium. You can love the Yankees or hate them, but either way, everyone knows where they play. The Stadium deserves a send-off as big and memorable as its place in the city and in the game with which it is synonymous.
Oops – should be “that **many** original big league ballparks”
I agree with the lack of ceremonies to close YS. It might be cynical on my part, but the seats were sold for most of the games so there was not the added incentive to create a buzz. Still, more could have and should have been done.
they should of played highlights of every year in the stadium throughout the whole year.the last week a video countdown with live fireworks.
Pete,
You are right on the money. Maybe if enough people write or say something about it they will get of their butt and honor the stadium the way it should be.
PS I think Girardi should change his number from 27 to 14 (thats how long its been since we missed the payoffs)
get over it people.
do you think the yankees owners and players care what we think?
jeter after the season will go back to his mansion that is payed off with his 2 girls at a time and forget about the season in a few days while us dumb fans talk like it’s the end of the world.
this year is over.i care but i can’t be that sad because of the money these players make.
if they were making 50 thousand dollars a year then i might care more.
they will be back.they produce good players just like boston they just have to build a good team and it starts with pitching wich thet don’t have at all.
they have no ace,wang is a number two pitcher impersonating a number one.
you need 3 great potential number one pitchers and a decent 4th and 5th for starters.
the yankees could not overcome their injuries.
they need to rebuild quickly.they need to sign sabathia,then they have cc,wang,joba,that is a start.
trade hughes,ajax and a prospect for a young potential star center fielder 24-26 yrs old,trade cano,kennedy,prospect for a volquez type pitcher,same age,trade a bunch of prospects for a 24-26 yr old first baseman,then trade prospects,matsui,damon and use free agency to get a second baseman and 2 corner outfielders.
i would try to keep 2 minor leaguers,montero,brackman but if they help us land a lock down player they have to be let go.
now you have a great rotation,new outfield,first baseman and they are all young and probably a little cheaper.
keep drafting properly but back to the main point,get over it these players and owners are multi millionaires.
how can i feel bad for jeter when he walks out of his ten thousand dollar a month penthouse with 2 girls on a bad day and only works 6 months out of the year?
As to the teams play, I guess I’m disappointed but at the same time not surprised. This felt like a rebuilding year to me going in, so even though I was very excited at times during the year by the occasional flash of good play, things with the team on the field have gone about as expected.
As far as what they are doing with the emd of the Stadium, it really does seem like the organization is treating it largely as a non-event which is disappointing, to say the least. Hopefully they’ll surprise us in the end.
I agree. I am also a season ticket holder and I have sold tickets to a few games this year because I don’t feel like I am missing anything. Not only has the play on the field has been inconsistent and sloppy, but the treatment of the Stadium’s farewell has been handled very poorly.
If any organization in Baseball could be accused of overdoing it with ceremony and tradition it’s the Yankees. That’s what makes this total lack of special moments during the Stadium’s final days so shocking and sad.
The All – Star game pregame was fantastic, but All _star Week aside I have seen little that was special or memorable at the Stadium this year
Injuries can never be used as an excuse. But who, in April or May of this year, would ever have foreseen the collapse of the starting rotation (Kennedy ineffective, Hughes injured, Joba excelling then getting hurt), the loss of Jorge Posada, the long-term absence of Hideki Matsui, the off-field (and distracting) hi-jinks of A-Rod and his wife?
These have all taken a tremendous toll on this team. As far as Stadium history goes, the biggest sin of all was not bringing Bernie Williams back into the fold beyond his token appearance at Old-Timers’ Day. To not honor Bernie with some sort of ceremony before this ballpark closes (assuming they won’t before the season ends) shows, in some way, how little the current ownership values “Yankee tradition.” It pretty much confirms that George is no longer in his right mind, because the Boss would never have let such a situation come to pass.
I think it’s fairly obvious that Steinbrenner’s kids don’t care as much about the team. Hank attended something like two games all season. Girardi doesn’t have Joe Torre’s heart, but even more important, he seems to make a lot of un-thought-out dumb decisions.
Possibly there was too much going on with all these changes for anyone to focus on pomp and circumstance. It might’ve been nice, but its not as much of a problem as the way the team played. I, and I’d guess most fans, care much more about that. All in all, it’s a sad season for the Yankees and their fans.
nobody will read this, but here it goes:
i think they did plenty, especially the all-star game. this was a way to celebrate the stadium for all of baseball.
for the yankees and their fans, i’m sure you will see a lot in the next couple weeks.
the countdown lever, while corny, was fine the way it was. i think it was more of a tribute to the people who actually got the pull the lever. ask anyone who pulled that lever and they’ll tell you that they’ll never forget that moment for the rest of their lives. if they ran out the big name of the moment or some of the biggest stars of the past at every home game, how different would that be from throwing a first pitch?
Hey, I am glad that someone read that post haha. Of course I have to agree with you Peter, and looking over some of the comments some people were saying it would be nuts to make a 3 hour game any longer. Over the years, I have seen opening ceremonies where people parachute in the game ball, fighter jets fly over head, celebrities sing the national anthem, and even blimps and sky writing over the stadium. None of these things have taken place this year. There was not even an announcement commemorating the many games the Yankees and Red Sox played together and a brief montage of some of those moments at their last series together in the Bronx. None of these things would have taken more than a few added minutes here or there, and would have been enough to make the game special. This year it was the audio recording of Kate Smith for every game, and the tired YMCA and Cotton Eye Joe. Time could have been better used, as I am sure Cotton Eye Joey cries himself to sleep every night to that very song…..P.S. Peter while/if I have you attention thanks for all you do, I value your voice in the Yankees and have most of my friends in out Fantasy League reading as well.
“Well, Pinoy Online Portal is up and you might want to chect it out.”
Great post! ace blog