The LoHud Yankees Blog

This from the Associated Press from today’s game story:

The 1,800 Legends Suite seats in the first nine rows ringing the plate, which cost between $500 and $2,625 each, were more than half empty at the start of the game as dozens of waiters and waitresses filled the aisles serving those who were there. Others patrons lingered over meals on the second floor of the duplex Legends Suite Club behind home plate.

Not a single spectator was in the final 30 first-row seats down each foul line during the first inning, and only a handful of those seats were filled later, when the rest of the section was perhaps more than half full.

Just behind them, separated by a walkway and wall that resembles a moat, were padded field level seats that go for $325 as part of season tickets and $375 individually. They, too, were about half-empty.

There were many spots available in the Audi Club ($75 plus an automatic $65 prix fix meal) and the Mohegan Sun Sports Bar ($90), although the back of the bar was full. While the first row of the Bleachers Cafe seats ($125) was about two-thirds filled, the second row was nearly empty. And only the smallest of the seven party suites in right field appeared to be in use.

Other than that, the rest of the stadium was packed.

There have been 34.5 innings played at the new Stadium and 17 home runs have been hit.

That’s far too small a sample size to draw any conclusions from. But that does seem like a lot. Is the wind howling through those open concourses? Is there some sort of wind tunnel toward right field? And this in cold weather, too.

The details:

April 3 vs. Cubs, exhibition game: 3 homers: Cano, Matsui, Ransom.

April 4 vs. Cubs, exhibition game: 5 homers: Soriano; Jeter, Teixeira (2), Duncan.

April 16 vs Indians: 3 homers: Sizemore, Martinez; Posada.

April 17 vs. Indians: 6 homers: DeRosa; Damon, Teixeira, Cabrera, Jeter, Cano.

Journal News photographer Frank Beccera Jr. took a terrific 360-degree shot at the Stadium yesterday. You can use your mouse to check out every angle of the Stadium and move the photo. You can zoom in as well. It’s really cool.

Check out the shot by clicking this link.

Xavier Nady will have two more MRIs tomorrow, one with dye to enhance the image.

That’ll make it three MRIs, two x-rays and a CT scan. His right elbow will be shot more times than if A-Rod got out of a cab with Madonna at Gate 4.

But with Nady already on the disabled list, it makes sense for the Yankees to check out every possibility. A second Tommy John surgery is not something a player wants to rush into.

UPDATE, 5:25 p.m.: On second thought, it sounds like Nady is only have one MRI tomorrow. It wasn’t clear when Girardi explained it after the game.

YANKEES (5-5)
Jeter SS
Damon LF
Teixeira 1B
Swisher DH
Posada C
Cano 2B
Cabrera RF
Ransom 3B
Gardner CF

Pitching: RHP Joba Chamberlain (0-0, 1.50).

INDIANS (3-7)
Sizemore CF
DeRosa 3B
Martinez C
Hafner DH
Garko 1B
Choo RF
Francisco LF
Graffanino 2B
Cabrera SS

Pitching: RHP Anthony Reyes (1-0, 6.00)

Joba Chamberlain vs. the Cleveland hitters.

Anthony Reyes vs. the New York hitters.

Notes: RHP Dave Robertson was optioned back to Scranton and 1B Juan Miranda was called up. Miranda is on the 40-man roster, so the move makes sense from that standpoint. Jose Veras is out of options and the Yankees do not want to expose him to waivers. … Hideki Matsui has a sore left knee, which is why he is out. Matsui was on the bases four times yesterday, which probably has something to do with it.

UPDATE, 11:19 a.m.: Matsui had fluid in his knee from being on the bases that was drained. This would seem to be a problem, no? Because you kind of want your DH to get on base.

The Yankees are sticking to that May 15 date with A-Rod. But I will be shocked if he’s not playing by May 1.

UPDATE, 11:50 a.m.: Xavier Nady had a CT scan on his right elbow. He’s hoping to find out today whether he needs surgery or not. At this point, he has had an MRI, two X-rays and now a scan. They should be able to determine what the issue is.

As was reported here the other day, the MRI indicated a ligament tear. But the Yankees are doing the right thing and checking it out.

Hopefully for X’s sake it’s something he can rehab. Otherwise he is done for the season and then will be a free agent. It would be a surprise if the Yankees took him back at that point. They’ll need two corner OFs and will probably throw a pile of money at Matt Holliday.

UPDATE, 1:13 p.m.: They’re underway in the Bronx and it’s 1-0 Cleveland as DeRosa homered off Joba. I’m off today but keeping an eye on the game as I do expenses and catch up on things at home. I’ll check in from time to time.

UPDATE, 2:33 p.m.: Did the Yankees inadvertently build a launching pad? Through four innings today, there have been 15 home runs hits at the new ballpark. There were eight in the two exhibition games against the Cubs, three yesterday and four so far today.

And that is before the weather gets warm.

15 homers in 30 innings? Yikes.

UPDATE, 4:02 p.m.: Brian Bruney is a beast. His last six outings: 5.2 innings, 0 hits, 0 runs, 0 walks, 12 strikeouts. In other words, he has struck out 12 of the last 17 batters he has faced.

Bruney is the latest example spring training not meaning a thing to an established player. Bruney pitched terribly almost all spring, appearing as though he was trying to throw the ball through the catcher. But when the lights came on, he has been terrific.

UPDATE, 4:13 p.m.: Um … Another home run? Good for Jeter and the Yankees. But it would appear that the Yankees built themselves a launching pad. There are six homers today and all of them went to right field.

The Triple-A Scranton Yankees are 8-0. They beat Buffalo tonight as Shelley Duncan, John Rodriguez and Todd Linden homered.

The game was tied in the eighth inning when Buffalo put two runners on with two outs. In came Mark Melancon, who fanned Fernando Martinez and Nick Evans swinging.

This is why you look foolish and short-sighted to complain about the bullpen on April 16. The bullpen is very likely going to look much different on June 1 than it does now. And it’ll probably look even more different on Aug. 1.

Only a few fans had a clue who Joba Chamberlain was before he showed up on the scene in 2007 and started striking everybody out. Edwar Ramirez was playing in an indy league a few years ago. Brian Bruney once got released by the Diamondbacks. Phil Coke was closer to a job with UPS than the majors at this time last year.

Relievers are the most interchangeable parts of a baseball team. If Jose Veras can’t cut it, they’ll find somebody who can. Although I still cant figure out how Damaso Marte got $12 million that market. That’s a post for another day.

As for me, I am off to bed after a long day. I am not covering a game again until Monday. But the blog will roll on, so check back tomorrow. The Yankees host the Indians at 1:05.

Here is what I really liked:

• The Yankees had the retired numbers painted on a wall in left field and the list of 26 championships painted on a wall in right field. The retired numbers are too small. But it’s a start.

• The flags atop the stadium really change the feel of the place, I think. It looks a lot more like a ballpark now instead of a coliseum.

• When you sit in your seat (provided there is no obstructed view), it feels so much like the old Stadium. And that’s a great thing. The Yankees don’t need gimmicks.

However …

• Monument Park needs to be fixed before 2010. It’s a disaster. “Monument Cave” is what Anthony McCarron of the News called it and he’s exactly right.

The old Monument Park was a park in that there was landscaping and a path you could walk around. Now Monument Park is stuck under a sports bar and behind the fence in center and under a net. It looks and feels hastily done. There is no way for people to flow in and out of the area, either.

The Yankees are all about their history and they stuck it under a sports bar named after a casino. Bring those Monuments, plaques and retired numbers into the light. I don’t know where they should put it. But where they have it now is the wrong spot.

• The sound system is a mess. But that’s the sort of thing engineers can fix through trial and error.

• The concession stands were chaos from what I saw and heard. But that also will improve as the workers figure out what they need to do.

• Here is my biggest concern: The crowd. Maybe it was Opening Day, which always draws a different sort of fan. Maybe it was the way the game played. But the place was funeral home quiet for long stretches. That’s not Yankee Stadium.

The Yankees noticed the difference and so did the Indians. It was a popular topic of conversation after the game.

New parks are designed to have open concourses. As a result, the seats go back in a gentle slope, not steeply up like they at the old park. The fans are further away from the field and today it felt like they were in Washington Heights. I’ve stood in center field in the old ballpark and it felt like those upper tier seats were right on top of you.

You have to wonder if the Yankees priced the real fans out of the place and are left with a wine-and-cheese crowd. Time will tell because, as I mentioned, Opening Day is a different sort of crowd. Lots of pretenders and poseurs. Hopefully the crowd will again be part of the game.

————

Meanwhile, when the attendance was announced in the press box today, they also announced that 2,000 standing-room tickets had not been sold. Why that is, nobody could say. Those willing to stand, I bet, will also make a lot of noise.

George Steinbrenner attended the game but played a very minor role in the proceedings.

He was introduced at the start of the pre-game ceremonies and waved to the crowd from his box behind home plate. The scoreboard showed only a brief shot of Steinbrenner before it was replaced by a photo taken at least 15 years ago.

An overzealous phalanx of security officer protected Steinbrenner, who is in ill health. When he left the Stadium via golf cart after the game, security tried to force members of the media into a nearby room so they could not see Steinbrenner pass by.

There was a similar incident before the game.

• Mark Teixeira had a cortisone shot in his left wrist and was examined by a specialist before the game. He said the shot will “put me over the top.” Teixeira said he would be playing tomorrow.

• Xavier Nady had a second x-ray today and will get a CT scan tomorrow on his right elbow. While he is on the 15-day disabled list, there seems to be at least some hope that his injury is not a completely torn ligament that will require a second Tommy John surgery.

(Meanwhile, Tommy John was here today. Just saying.)

“If there’s a way I can avoid that surgery again, that’s the route I want to take,” Nady said. “They’re taking all the tests they can and that’s good.”

YANKEES (5-4)
Derek Jeter SS
Johnny Damon LF
Mark Teixeira 1B
Nick Swisher RF
Jorge Posada C
Robinson Cano 2B
Hideki Matsui DH
Cody Ransom 3B
Brett Gardner CF

Pitching today: LHP CC Sabathia (1-1, 4.50).

INDIANS (2-7)
Grady Sizemore CF
Mark DeRosa 3B
Victor Martinez 1B
Jhonny Peralta SS
Shin-soo Choo DH
Ben Francisco RF
Kelly Shoppach C
Tony Graffanino 2B
Trevor Crowe LF

Pitching today: LHP Cliff Lee (0-2, 9.90)

CC Sabathia vs. the Cleveland hitters.

Cliff Lee vs. the New York hitters.

HOMES OF THE YANKEES: Hilltop Park (1903-12), Polo Grounds (1913-22), Yankee Stadium (1923-2008), New Yankee Stadium (2009- ).

NEW PARK IN TOWN: Yankee Stadium is the first new AL park since Comerica Park opened in Detroit in 2000.

CC SEES THE TRIBE: CC Sabathia was drafted by Cleveland in 1998 and was with them until last July when he was traded to Milwaukee. He was 106-77 in 237 starts.

BRUNEY’S THE BEST: Bruney’s last five outings: 4.2 0 hits, 0 runs, 0 walks, 10 strikeouts.

LEE VS. THE YANKEES: Cliff Lee is 3-3, 5.62 against the Yankees. He beat them last May 7, throwing seven shutout innings in the Bronx.

CANO’S CONSISTENT: Robinson Cano has hit safely in 8 of 9 games.

BILLY BEANE WANTS HIM BACK: Nick Swisher has been on base in 16 of 32 plate appearances.

Back with more later. My flight lands around 9:40 and then comes the mad dash to the park.

UPDATE, 10:18 a.m.: I’m in a car but my colleagues from the paper just texted to say that RHP Dave Robertson was called up to replace Xavier Nady on the roster.

UPDATE, 12:09 p.m.: Just arrived at the Stadium thanks to an outstanding job by Dave the car service driver, who got us right to Gate 4 where the press entrance is.

After getting up at 4:30 a.m., the fun part of the day is ready to start. Keep checking back as there will be lots of updates.

UPDATE, 12:12 p.m.: John Sterling just introduced George Steinbrenner, who waved from a private box next to his wife, Joan.

Now the West Point Band is performing in center field.

UPDATE, 12:15 p.m.: Here’s a photo of Yogi Berra, who was in the press conference room (we have one those now and it’s great) talking about the first pitch he’s going to throw out.

UPDATE, 12:17 p.m.: It is very good to see my friend Jack Curry of the Times here today. Jack was hit by a car in Philadelphia on his way into the stadium to cover their opener two weeks ago. But he is here working with his arm in a sling.

UPDATE, 12:26 p.m.: This is cool, John Fogerty is playing Centerfield in center field. They’re showing highlights of great Yankee CFs on the scoreboard.

UPDATE, 12:30 p.m.: And now a great center fielder, Bernie Williams, is playing his guitar in center field. Fittingly, it’s Take Me Out To The Ball Game.

UPDATE, 12:33 p.m.: Bernie finishes up as people chant his name.

UPDATE, 12:55 p.m.: They introduced 40+ former players along with the players from both teams. The former players are lined up along the infield in special jackets.

UPDATE, 1:00 p.m.: Kelly Clarkson (baby’s got back!) sang the anthem and the flyover was perfectly timed.

UPDATE, 1:01 p.m.: Whitey Ford and Don Larsen just took some dirt off the mound.

UPDATE, 1:03 p.m.: Yogi Berra came out alone and threw out the first pitch. They should have had Posada go out there with him.

UPDATE, 1:05 p.m.: We’re about to get underway.

UPDATE, 1:16 p.m.: A few firsts …

First pitch: CC Sabathia to Grady Sizemore. It was a fastball outside that was called a ball by Tom Hallion.

First out: Grady Sizemore grounded to Mark Teixeira, who tagged first base.

First strikeout: Sabathia struck out Victor Martinez with a 2-2 fastball in the first inning.

UPDATE, 1:17 p.m.: This is really cool. Just before Jeter his, a bat used by Babe Ruth to hit the first home run in the first game at the original Yankee Stadium was placed on the plate. The Bambino belted a three-run circuit clout to help beat the Red Sox 4-1.

Jeter then picked it up, pretended for a second like he would use it, then gave it to a bat boy.

Jeter should have homered but he flew to center.

The bat is on loan to the Yankees from the collection of Richard Angrist and will be displayed in the Yankees Museum until the All-Star break.

UPDATE, 1:21 p.m.: Damon gets the first hit at the new place, a clean single to center.

UPDATE, 1:24 p.m.: Thanks to my colleague Kevin Devaney Jr., here is the audio of the pre-game press conference Joe Girardi held:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

UPDATE, 1:27 p.m.: Who do you think will hit the first home run at the Stadium for the Yankees? Vote on the LoHud.com Yankees page.

UPDATE, 1:50 p.m.: No score through two innings. Meanwhile, the “Yankee Trivia” is now hosted by some perky girl named Tara and the volume on her mic is set to “make everybody deaf.” It’s very annoying.

Meanwhile, the pennants are atop the frieze, a welcome addition since the Cubs games. The retired numbers are now painted on a wall in left field that everybody can see. That was a good addition as well.

UPDATE, 1:56 p.m.: The crowd is dead quiet. Dead. But Opening Day, especially this one, figured to bring out a lot of pretenders.

UPDATE, 2:19 p.m.: What a play by Cody Ransom. He dove to snare the ball off the bat of Ben Francisco and from his knees threw out Jhonny Peralta at the plate as Posada blocked the dish with his knee.

UPDATE, 2:20 p.m.: The crowd is just brutal. Yankees come to plate and there is barely a smattering of applause. I don’t know if the crowd is quiet or the design of the stadium is the reason, but it’s like being in church so far.

UPDATE, 2:56 p.m.: CC is in bend-but-don’t-break mode. He has put nine runners on base in nine innings but allowed only one run.

Meanwhile, the Yankees need to get something going against Cliff Lee as they trail 1-0.

UPDATE, 3:01 p.m.: We have the first home run in the place, a solo shot to center by Jorge Posada, the great underrated Yankees catcher. Now it’s 1-1.

For Posada, that’s 223 homers, moving him past Don Mattingly into seventh place in team history.

UPDATE, 3:12 p.m.: This report from the AP:

New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez took another step in his rehab from right hip surgery, hitting three home runs in 49 swings during his first full batting practice session.

A-Rod homered to right, left and deep left-center on Thursday. He hit numerous liners and had several other balls land near or off the outfield fence.

UPDATE, 3:13 p.m.: Sabathia started the inning with 105 pitches. … The Yankees are 0 for 7 with RISP. They have left 10 on base.

UPDATE, 3:22 p.m.: The Yankees got their money’s worth out of Carsten Charles today as he tossed 122 pitches. Unfortunately for him, that only got him through 5.2 innings.

It’s 1-1 and Edwar Ramirez is in.

UPDATE, 3:42 p.m.: I’m falling asleep and not because I woke up at 4:30 a.m. to catch a flight. This game is boring.

1-1 after six.

UPDATE, 3:44 p.m.: Kyle Veras just walked DeRosa to start the seventh before Martinez hammered a double to right.

Mark Melancon. Mark Melancon. Mark Melancon.

UPDATE, 3:49 p.m.: Well, that was brutal. Walk, double, two-run double. 3-1 Indians and Marte in to try and clean it up.

UPDATE, 3:54 p.m.: Damaso Marte hasn’t been much better. He hit Choo then when Francisco bunted, he threw a change-up to third base and the runner was safe. Then came an RBI single.

4-1 Tribe and still counting.

UPDATE, 3:59 p.m.: And Marte gives up a slam followed a long solo drive by Martinez. It’s 10-1.

The crowd is chanting, “We want Swisher.”

Now they’re booing Marte as the inning finally ends.

Marte is a one-lefty-at-a-time guy. He’s dangerous otherwise.

UPDATE, 4:03 p.m.: God Bless America now comes with a musical accompaniment. It’s like a Disney song now.

Meanwhile, remember those West Point Cadets who unfurled the flag before the game? They got obstructed view seats in the bleachers. How to honor the troops.

UPDATE, 4:07 p.m.: Anyway, it’s 10-1 and half of the wealthy folks in the Legends seats have left the place. They’re probably checking their tickets, figuring that $2K meant they’d see a win for sure.

UPDATE, 4:24 p.m.: Hey look, Robertson throws strikes and gets guys out.

UPDATE, 4:48 p.m.: Boy, this is grim. The place is just about empty and the Yankees are down 10-2 in the ninth. Not exactly how they dreamed it would turn out.

Back with more later on.