Guest post: Nick from SF
Posted by: Peter Abraham - Posted in Misc on Jan 24, 2009 
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Nick from San Francisco has posted hundreds of comments to this blogs since 2007, many of them late in the evening and many of them quite witty. Nick in fact lives in San Francisco but was born and raised in New York. He started attending games in the mid-70s and loved Thurman Munson.
Here’s his post:
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Someone recently wrote: “Nick in SF, you’re so witty, so insightful, so full of Yankee knowledge, why don’t you write something for that LoHud blog thing?”
To which I replied: “Thanks, Mom! But can you just call me Nick?”
The Yankee fan experience on the West Coast is a little different from that in the northeast. While some of us get to feel the Ponsanity on TV, that’s no substitute for living and breathing a full season in New York. Sure, we get the ShamWow commercials, but we won’t be enjoying the Chris Britton Scranton Shuttle races on the new stadium’s plasma screens. Missing Kei Igawa Sunglasses Day was bad; missing Alex Rodriguez Cravat Night (first 15,000 metrosexuals only) and Hideki Matsui Etch-A-Sketch Day will be brutal.
While some east coasters dread the late start times when the Yanks go west, those are the games we wait for all season. For me that means a trip across the Bay to Oakland’s Tightwad Associates Coliseum, also known as Yankee Stadium West. I’ve seen the Yankees visit the Athletics more times than I can remember, from mid-season Dollar-Wednesday games to October showdowns.
Game 3 of the 2001 ALDS was one of the best; it was a tense, taut game even before Derek Jeter skipped across the infield and into our imaginations and Jeremy Giambi decided he’d rather lose on his feet than score on his rump.
A personal favorite was an August 4, 1998 doubleheader. The Yanks won the Ramiro Mendoza-pitched opener 10-4 with homers from Chuck Knoblauch and Darryl Strawberry. They trailed 5-1 heading into the 9th inning of the nightcap, a game started by Mike “Who?” Buddie, but loaded the bases before pinch-hitter Strawberry tied the game with one swing. The Yanks scored five more times that inning for a 10-5 victory. One ticket, two games, 20 Yankee runs, and a bonus appearance by Mo; it was true domination and the crowd was about as pro-Yankee as any I’ve seen west of the Hudson River.
One thing that all these games have in common is a much larger crowd than the A’s usually draw. This phenomenon is not unique to Oakland; boosted attendance at Yankee road games is crucial to many teams across baseball. Interleague play is nothing but a scheme to get the Yankees to visit NL parks (What, you thought it was due to decades of built-up AL fan curiosity about those fascinating Padres?). And yes, the Red Sox also draw well on the road, but that’s not because local fans care much about them one way or another; it’s because so many Boston natives have fled that Bay State cesspool for greener pastures. How do you like them apples?
In 2009, with a rebuilt roster stocked with familiar favorites, exciting new additions, and rising stars such as Joba Chamberlain and eventually Phil Hughes (also known as Generation Just Us Two) the Yankees will continue to be the greatest road show in sports. So shut up, whiners, and enjoy the gate.
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Thanks, Nick and thanks for reading the blog. Coming tomorrow: Frank from Chasing 880.
Awesome Nick!
Nick: You rule.
You have single-handedly made California cool again.
Nick is among the GOAT posters on this board. Funny, opinionated, ready to call out the occasional dunderhead.
No one brings more common sense or enthusiasm – and, no! I am not his mother or relative!!!
And his marksmanship on barrel-fish in non-pareil!
I had to look up Cravat, that line is brillant!
that was the best. thank you nick–you delivered as always
an everyday lurker, mike eff
“Missing Kei Igawa Sunglasses Day was bad; missing Alex Rodriguez Cravat Night (first 15,000 metrosexuals only) and Hideki Matsui Etch-A-Sketch Day will be brutal.”
========================================
Hahaha
Awesome post Nick. Well done
ughghghghghgh, worst guest blog yet. was there even a point to this garbage besides he went to some games in california and…. umm??? please please please let there be some yankees news so we don’t have to read more of this drivel. and I can’t believe you morons are kissing this witless clown’s butt. i hope he appreciates it.
Nick, excellent stuff!! I was looking forward to reading your post as soon as I heard you were doing one and it did not disappoint. Had actually forgotten all about Ponsanity, LMAO.
oh, and yeah, guest post of the month fo sho
Nick your killing me. Great job. Thurm has always been my favorite too.
“The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage
And then is heard no more: it is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.”
Nice one Nick. I live here in the bay area as well, and I was for both those games you mentioned. I was sitting in the right field ‘bleachers’ for the flip. At the time it was so bang bang that I had no idea what just happened other than the umpire calling fat Giambi out at the plate, me and my friend jumping up and down for joy and getting pelted by all sorts of snacks and condiments for our troubles.
That double header in 98 will always be remembered by me, one because it was my Birthday and two, because of how batty everyone went when Darryl hit that Grand Slam. That was at a time when the A’s were just over the McGuire days and they were a team in transition. That meant most of the fair weather fans stayed at home and the Yankees being so dominant carried on into the stands. We owned that stadium that day. There must have only been 20-25K fans in the stadium that night, but easily 3/4 were Yankee fans.
Of course the next night Tom Candiotti and his Knuckle ball baffled us, and even though Darryl came up again with another chance to win the game, he whiffed and took an ugly a swing as you’ll ever see.
There was some bad moments there as well. Giambi’s game winning home run in the 9th against Stanton. Mo’s blowing a one hit gem from Pettite. I could go on, but it’s better not to dwell on the bad times.
Best guest post yet! To celebrate, I’m making meatloaf tomorrow!
What!
No magic puppets? No Cal marching band? No YouTube links?
I did find the secret coded message though. Clever Nick. Took me a few minutes to figure it out, but it was worth it.
Actually it was quite complex – associating each word for a number – multiplying Thurman’s uni (15) – by his career ave (.292) and dividing by the total number of free Arod cravats (15K).
This is what came up –
thanks MOm
metrOSExuals only
across the BAy
peRSonal favorite
DT-
Good stuff!
Mom-
Save some meatloaf for me!
Thanks for the comments. I also submitted a picture, but after the Sam I Am fiasco, Pete was understandably gunshy:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/9.....221291165/
mmmmmm, meatloaf. I’ll bring dessert.
Nick,
Great job! I have to say that you are dead on about “Generation Just Us Two!” With CC, wang, AJ, Joba and eventually Hughes – Kennedy is nothing but a sixth starter at best if that for the NY yankees. Not to say he could not be more if he is traded but i dont know if he has too much of a future in NY as a starter with those five locked up for years to come. He may become great insurance for us or good value in a trade or perhaps, he wont become much of anything but this certainly is just generation us two.
Good job Nick! I was looking forward to the promised 1920′s Yankees related poetry but I guess this was entertaining too.
I enjoy 10am Sunday baseball when I’m out near the left coast.
Buddy
If you have to look up what a cravat is, sorry, but you’re not metrosexual enough to receive one in the give-away.
I recognize that pic. It’s Raissman of the Daily News.
Who knew he was a Yankee fan?
pat-
Great post Nick! I live in Redwood City (about 20 miles south of SF), and I understand how it feels to be a Yankee fan in SF. A’s-Yankees games are great, although I wish they had more of them (only one series in Oakland this year, and I’ll be in Minnesota!!). Saw Godzilla hit a grand slam on his birthday last year in Oakland, which was amazing. My favorite part, though, is hearing all the A’s fans chant “Yankees suck!” after we beat them day in and day out. They really hate us over there for ruining their playoffs so many times haha.
Thank you Nick for the out-of-town perspective.
Seeing the Yankees on the road is something every die hard fan should do. And seeing them while in SF is definitely extra special.
I saw the Yanks in Oakland a few years back when Tino was playing his swan song and hit a couple of dingers to rescue The Unit. I was also lucky enough to see them when they played the Giants in 2007 and lost in 13 innings after ARod hit a game tying homer to CF in the 9th.
I also caught one of the worst sunburns of my adult life that day proving that the coldest winter may be the summer you spend in San Francisco but that doesn’t mean you should forgo the sunblock.
Had to work our old friend in there somewhere.
Also,
“How do you like them apples?” – nice use of an obscure GWH reference!
Does anybody else think all of these sheets rumors are ridiculously bogus nonsense? Within one month, we have had so much garbage stuff down our throat about sheet’s health, i am beginning to think that none of it is true. From the end of the season to the third of january, we could only read his dl history which made it clear that he had some chronic problems but a minor injury in september to his forearm was the only reason he landed on the dl all last year.
Then, reports come out January 4th saying that he had major problems with his back, shoulder, arm, etc. that were more serious than teams were originally led on to believe which explained the complete lack of interest in sheets. Today we learn An updated medical profile sparked renewed interest among many teams throughout the league.
So three dramatically different reports all about the exact same subject and all within the last month. And i could only imagine that sheets while rehabbing from his forearm tear is not doing anything too physical this off season so I doubt throughout all of this that anything much changed with his actual current status.
The first set of beliefs were probably legit because they were taken right off his own dl history, the second came up on January fourth by multiple sources in the media to try to explain his lack of interest and the third I think was actually sent out by sheets or his agent and somehow got teams to change their minds even though sheets himself was behind those reports.
I was definitely skeptical about all the BS coming out in early January and Im even more dubious of the worst of the newest set of lies, I mean reports. But most of this blog bought into the second round of trash so I guess people will believe this report as well – i DONT BELIEVE ANY OF IT as I was raised to question the sources of information like this. Who even knows what the real truth is at this point but i guess the yanks missed the boat because sheets is no longer a bargain – this is exactly the reason I was so into sheets for a price of one year and 6 to 8 mil. He most likely would have been a steal at that value because now his price has skyrocketed all b/c some report it is believed that sheets himself sent out. Are the minds of teams and execs really being changed by this report? Wow.
@Bronx Jeers: Yeah, I saw that game too. Great game, even if the end result was bad. Yeah, SF can be pretty damn cold, but I have also gotten some nasty sunburns from Giants games.
Wow the bad posts just keep coming.
JUST KIDDING.
you didn’t teach us much but you were very witty, funny, and interesting.
thanks nick!
Thanks Nick – entertaining post.
Time to bring back Sam I Am!
Just kidding. I love this post!
How do you feel about the A’s and the Giants? I mean, when they aren’t playing the Yankees? Do you root for them over other random teams?
Well done, sir. Your razor wit had me in stitches.
Good job Nick.
I had a horrible experience in Yankee Stadium West. I went to 2 games there in 07, and the Yankees lost both. The Sunday loss occurred when Mo gave up a 3 run homer to Marco Fracking Scutoro, who was batting .050 at the time. The red eye home was painful.
Sheets just sent out a new medical report. He’s healthy! It’s got to be down to Pettitte and Sheets at this point for our #5. If the Mets re-sign Perez instead of signing Sheets he’ll become more of a possibility for us.
You got it right on Nick — I’m a west-coaster too now and although I “love” watching the games on mlb.tv at 4 pm instead of 7, I also love heading to Seattle to watch the boys in the away grays and being called a bandwagoner by 20something fratboys for wearing a Yankees cap to Safeco. (Not sure which bandwagon they think I’m on considering it isn’t 1996-2000 anymore…)
Great job, Nick!
As an away game fan (Minnesota, Milwaukee [when they were AL], Chicago, Kansas City) I can really appreciate that perspective! Watching on DTV is a great blessing after years of catching a once in awhile game on satellite, and seeing the gray unis is fun, but it is a must for us to make the once a year trek to the stadium, just to see the pinstripes!
Very funny! Do you have a blog?
U GO NICK! goes to show u dont need a blog to bore people in january!
my obligatory west-coast ballgame story is we went to the big A in aneheim and yada yada yada, they ran outtta pitchers in a blowout and wade boggs pitched the last inning throwing knuckleballs, walked the bases loaded and struck out the side!
keep up the good work nick!
Nick,
Living in MA, I take exception to your comment “it’s because so many Boston natives have fled that Bay State cesspool for greener pastures.”
Having said that, both of my kids have moved out of state (one to Cali even) to escape the Bay State cesspool. I’m proud to say they both maintain their strong Yankee allegiance
There’s a certain churlishness to the Shamwow guy that I just love. He’d be a fine addition to the Yes stable of announcers.
Good stuff, Nick.
Enjoyed the post as someone who lives outside of NYC. Any digs at the Sox and their fans are all right by me.
Nick….good job!
As for all of the tranplanted Sawx fans from the “Bay State cesspool” is there any more room out there in SF for Barney Frank?
Another West Coast elite trying to infect us with his San Francisco values…
Just kidding.
Well done Nick. I especially enjoyed the “Alex Rodriguez Cravat Night” reference. I think you may be on to something there.
Nick in SF (via NY and travelling points along the way) -
You, sir, did not disappoint! Hands-down, this was the most enjoyable pinch-hit post of the season. Grand slam!
Thank you for a great jump-start to the day.
Pete,
Just out of curiosity, do you think Lace and/or Stilleto would be kind enough to give posters on this site a “blog discount”?
Instead of a trip to Scranton this year, I motion for a blog get together at Lace…
or Stilleto.
This is a link on MSNBC.com right now:
Report: Mets not interested in Manny Rodriguez
Great job, Nick. Can I call you Nick? Just woke up so I’m late to the party, I guess.
Your recollections of Yankee games in Oakland got me thinking about the park out there. I don’t know how old you are, but I used to go out to Oakland Coliseum before Mt. Davis was built to watch the Yanks play whenever my summer trip to SF and the Yanks west coast swing coincided.
I loved to sit in the upper deck behind the plate, and watch the game with the Berkeley hills in the distance. One of the most enjoyable places to watch a game ever, I thought.
Then they built the incredibly awful Mt. Davis, blocked off the view of the hills, made the Coliseum seem claustrophobic and pretty much killed the beauty of the place.
However, I gotta say AT&T Park (is it still called that this year? Is there some ordinance in SF that requires a new name every year? I know you have a lot of strange laws out there) is one great place to watch a game. So for you interleague play must have some real advantages.
Anyway, good work.
Nice post. One day I will follow the Yankees to every stadium around the country for the fun of it.
That was a very good job Nick, very funny. Kei Igawa sunglasses night is always a hit LOL. You forgot Carl Pavano bobblehead night complete with a cast on his butt and all.
Great job Nick! Almost good enough to save pinch hitter month on the blog.
Great Job, Nick!! a great saturday morning read…
Good job Nick, no surprise there.
Nice job Nick. During the week those west coast games get tough to stay up for. But west coast weekend games are the best games of the year for me. You get to go out and enjoy a few frosty adult beverages, and for me those games are actually the ones I look forward to during the long season.
Great post Nick. You had me at cravats, Arod and metrosexuals!
Thanks, Nick–I was going to try to make a clever remark in honor of your post, but then realized I was just going to get myself in trouble.
Nick in SF January 24th, 2009 at 12:38 am
ughghghghghgh, worst guest blog yet. was there even a point to this garbage besides he went to some games in california and…. umm??? please please please let there be some yankees news so we don’t have to read more of this drivel. and I can’t believe you morons are kissing this witless clown’s butt. i hope he appreciates it.
*************************************************************
LOLOL – and that is why Nick is so well- liked around here, he never takes himself too seriously and makes us laugh when we start to.
Nick, nice job.
Nick – I hear you brother…I am also a lifer Yankee fan living in SF…it is not easy to go to those coliseum games, but I go every year.
Thanks Nick in SF…i was looking forward to your post and when i scan through comments I always stop on yours. Funny stuff including your own comment about your own post.
What was the whole SAM I AM fiasco?
well u can’t get worse than this pinch hit. Some random trying out his bad night club act.
“While some of us get to feel the Ponsanity on TV, that’s no substitute for living and breathing a full season in New York. Sure, we get the ShamWow commercials, but we won’t be enjoying the Chris Britton Scranton Shuttle races on the new stadium’s plasma screens. Missing Kei Igawa Sunglasses Day was bad; missing Alex Rodriguez Cravat Night (first 15,000 metrosexuals only) and Hideki Matsui Etch-A-Sketch Day will be brutal.”
The ponsanity
….CB Scranton Shuttle, Cravat Night….Hideki Matsui Etch-A-Sketch was brilliant Nick 
Nick
Good read. I was at apr. 07 game in Oakland when Mo gave up the home run to lose the game. Hit off foul pole right to our right. Bad end to a good experience. Lots of Yankee fans around us which was fun. You would have thought they had just won game 7 of the series. I guess thats as good as it gets for them.
“Sal
January 24th, 2009 at 1:07 pm
well u can’t get worse than this pinch hit. Some random trying out his bad night club act.
Uh, he’s not random! He’s a very well liked REGULAR poster here. Where did YOU come from?
Again, great job, Nick!!!
well nick , as usual , i learn something from your posts whether i want to or not, ” cravats”? no problem ,wikepedia to the rescue.ponsanity? google to the rescue.
but actually, while enjoying your must read post today, i think you’re at your best counter punching and going like a laser to the absurdity of someone else’s position and reducing it to ashes with your humor.
i do have to tell you though that livan has taken you off his christmas list. he’s not overly fond of your assessment of his pitching ability or his ability to eat innings and anything else he can get his hands on.
he does want you to know that despite cashman offering him the ten million that was earmarked for pettitte, he refuses to come to the yankees as long as there is a snack ban in the cluhouse.
it’s too bad because with the yankees offense i figure that he’d go at least 15-9.
Good one Nick.
From the southern part of our state, it’s hard to compete with your repartee – the sun bakes the funny out of our brains down here.
But I can seriously relate to your tales of road games. Unfortunately things haven’t always gone so well lately on this front. I catch a lot of grief from the fans of the local boys from Anaheim or LA or whereever, including my brother-in-law and son-in-law.
But its fun to be there anyway. 2 quick tales from my ebd of the state.
First, over 20 years ago now, biggest thrill of my golf career. Midweek round at the local course, a friend and I were paired up with 2 others. Noticed one of the 2 looked awful familiar, lefty with an odd accent. As he crouched over his putt on the 1st green, his necklace slipped out of his shirt revealing a NY pendant with the familiar interlocking letters. By chance, I got to play 18 holes that day with none other than Louisiana Lightning himself! Sweet!
Favorite tale of fan interplay at a game was in the dark days around 1990. In OF bleachers in Anaheim, two obviously sunbleached SoCal teens were sparring verbally with a just as obvious transplant from the Big Apple. At one point the latter fires off “Where’d you leave your surfboards?” The response – “Where you leave your switchblade?” Had me rolling, and surely summed up the respective preconceptions on either side.
Good to hear from another transplanted New Yorker living on the West Coast.
Longtime fan since 1956, I managed to get to 2 of the 3 games at AT&T in June of 07. Though NY pitching was horrid (Igawa and Mussina)I enjoyed the view from the nosebleed section behind home of the fans arriving via ferry on SF Bay. The sausage, peppers and onion hoagies and the garlic fries were awesome.
SoCalYankeeFan
Nick,
Great post. I’m even more impressed that you refrained from mentioning the Warren Spahn Award.
i likesitlikesthatsh
As for the large presence of Boston fans attending Red Sox road games Nick refers to, prior to 2004, there weren’t that many of them. But since, after finally winning something, those people have been coming out of the woodwork like cockroaches. Somebody call the exterminator.
Nick,
As a fellow Northern California resident, I really enjoyed your guest blog. I’ve taken in many a Yankee game at the Oakland Coliseum since 1999 and I do to sort of see the Network Associates/UMAX/McAfee Coliseum as a Yankee Stadium West. Reggie, Catfish, Rickey Henderson, and Jason Giambi starred on that field as well before they became Yankees. Of course, we actually give the A’s attendance (who shows up to A’s games on non Yankees/non Red Sox/non Giants/non Bobblehead games?). And I remember that warm night in October 2001 when the A’s fans were stunned silent when Jeremy Giambi got called out at home. I remember the A’s fans driving down the freeway with brooms expecting to sweep that series. It’s because of being at that game that the 2001 New York Yankees are my favorite Yankee team. They weren’t as talented as the 1998 or 1999 teams but they played hard and well with what they had.
I enjoyed that.
Nick in Sf – nice job representing the many left coast Yankee fans who pack that craphole every time the Bronx Boys come to town. I’ll be there at A’s fanfest with the other few hundred Yankees fans to get first crack at the seats for this year’s games. Last year’s highlight was Matsui’s grand slam for what proved to be the winning margin just before the All star break when we still looked halfway decent. I look forward to still supporting Giambino the Stache this year, as long as he whiffs against us. That will be good theater. See you in Oaktown.
Kickass post Nick. Good job.
I’m living in San Diego now so I’m waiting to get my Yankees @ Anaheim tickets for July. I’ll probably head up to Oakland in August as well.
I don’t want to say I didn’t get to see any games the year the Yankees won #27.
Good job Nick.
Hey Awesome Job Nick…actually i think it was crap but i’ll hop on the bandwagon! J/k
I’m sorely dissapointed that your fellow bay area neighbors didnt get any shout outs. I mean you could have thrown me an It’s It bone(bar). Or at least mentioned something about moose bars.
No really though – good job this place is a tough audience
I just paid for my oakland a’s half season plan, im 3 rows from the field. Which, cost me less than what it would cost me if i bought tickets to just the 3 yankees’ games in worse seats. But i did however, secure field box seats for the wed night yankee game if you are interested in attending. These seats are basically in the visitor’s dugout. Let me know.
Nick,
Well done. I like you.
I love Yankee games in Oakland and was great to go the games in SF recently too.
Last year was pretty ridiculous in Oakland as the games were not sold out(about 15,000 in attendance, which is well short of capacity and the normal attendance when the Yankees come. But, there was no shortage of Yankees fans as A’s fans took the games off apparently. Meaning the already heavy presence of Yankee fans, was even more dominant. As usual with just about every game I’ve been to at the park, there was a drunk A’s fan yelling at some kid and his dad, who of course want no part in the heckling… I’ve stood up for these kids numerous times and EVERY time, said A’s fan sits down looking stupid. Anyways, I wish we could get 2 series’ again out here as its been a few years.
Oakland Yankees represent
Hey michelle, thanks. I am definitely in for that game in Oakland, sounds great. Are these seats you purchased or are they the ones you said your contact might be able to get for you?