First trip to Yankee Stadium

[Shel]

I saw my very first game at Yankee Stadium on June 2nd. It was definitely a unique experience for me.

If someone had told me at the end of last season that I would be traveling to and from NYC in one day to see a game at Yankee Stadium that didn't involve the Orioles...wearing a pinstriped jersey and Yankees cap...and doing so willingly...I would never have believed it. (Of course, at the end of last season, I would also never have believed that Mike Mussina would sign with the Yankees...but I digress.)

I love Camden Yards. I think it's a beautiful ballpark. Ditto for Jacobs Field. Yankee Stadium is an old stadium, and it looks old. The concourses aren't very wide, the letters that identify the rows are difficult to see (at least in my section), and many parts of the stadium could use a coat or two of fresh paint. But there is an aura about Yankee Stadium that Oriole Park and Jacobs Field don't have, and probably never will. When I walked through the tunnel to get to my section, I paused to look down at the field and around the stadium. I couldn't help but think, "Wow, this is Yankee Stadium." I'm not a longtime fan of the game -- as recently as 1994, I still regarded baseball as merely a way to pass the time in the summer until NFL training camps opened -- but I still felt a certain amount of awe thinking about the history in that stadium, and all of the great players (not just for the Yankees) who've played there.

The game itself was fun, but needless to say, I would much rather have seen Mussina pitch instead of Roger Clemens (who is not one of my favorite ballplayers...). I was "alone" for the first 6 innings or so, until my new friend Jim came up to my seat and asked if I wanted to move down to the empty seat next to him, which I did. I kept a concerned eye on the time, since I had to get back to Penn Station in time to catch my train home. I was planning to leave the game at 5:00, regardless of whether it was over or not, but Jim told me I wasn't allowed to leave until I heard "Frank." I'm an idiot, so it took me a few seconds to realize that he was talking about Frank Sinatra's "New York, New York," which is played after a Yankees victory. As it turned out, the game ended at just about 5:00, so I got to Penn Station in time to not only catch my train back to DC but also grab a bite to eat before doing so.

The worst part of the trip turned out to be the final leg -- I missed my bus home from the subway station, so I had to wait a half hour for the next bus. I was not happy.

I still can't believe that I went all the way up to New York and back in one day just to see a baseball game (and Moose didn't pitch), but it was great, and I had a wonderful time!

By the way, I rooted for the Yankees, although I momentarily slipped when I let out a small cheer for Jim Thome's first home run. (Ooops!)

[NetShrine]

Shel - congrats! Thanks for the post. Kudos to you for making the trip!!

Good point about the concourses. Wonder if that will be corrected in the new Stadium?

Two questions - - was it a day that you'll never forget? And, will you ever do it again?

PS - was Jim "Jim F"?

[BuzzBuzzard]

I have been to Yankee stadium three times in my life. I have no burning desire to go back, but I my feelings about that stadium from my first visit were identical to yours, Shel. There is a mystique, no doubt and it would be a loss to baseball if the Yanks were to ever move from there.

[NetShrine]

Buzz, - - - -my friend, who's a Met fan since the beginning (1962), said the same thing to me last year when I brought him to the Stadium.

Shea is fine he said, but, there's a certain feeling here (meaning YS).

He also noted that the fans were different - - in that Met fans seem happy to be at the game whereas the Yank fans expected a win. At least, that was his feel for it.

It was a game that Gooden pitched (Whitey Ford Day) vs. the Angels - where Nelson blew the game after Gooden had a nice effort. The fans ripped Nelson - which surprised my Met fan friend too.

"Nelson's been a good pitcher for you guys - I'm shocked that they're booing him so bad." Guess he was right about that expectation of a win!

[Shel]

Originally posted by NetShrine
He also noted that the fans were different - - in that Met fans seem happy to be at the game whereas the Yank fans expected a win. At least, that was his feel for it.

That's pretty much the way it is at Camden Yards, in my opinion -- many fans are there just to "be there." If the Orioles win, great, but if they don't, oh well. The die-hards want a win every time, of course, but the "wine and cheese crowd" (as the old-time fans who remember Memorial Stadium call the new breed of fan at CY) just seem to be happy to go to the game. The wine-and-cheesers have been known to actually tell people to sit down when they cheer.

It's funny -- old-time Orioles fans talk about how great it was at Memorial Stadium, with O's fans being very much into the games. They were there to watch the Orioles play, not to chit-chat. They would cheer for the O's and boo the other team. And they would give standing ovations to a drunken fan known as Wild Bill Hagy, who would spell out O-R-I-O-L-E-S with his body. That's exactly the kind of enthusiam I saw at Yankee Stadium on Saturday, and it's what I see from Yankees fans at Camden Yards...but many Orioles fans say that Yankees fans are "obnoxious" or "too rowdy" (both the old-timers and the wine-and-cheesers have said that). Hmmmm.....

Net, I can't honestly say that it was a day I'll never forget. But I do plan to go back again at least once more this summer. Oh, and, yes, Jim was "Jim F." (He's very young...I felt like an old fart.)

[NetShrine]

Jim may be young, but, he also may be the next Bill Gates! Never hurts to have friends that could be famous some day!

Sixth inning must be his inning - - that's about the time he came to see me when I first met him at the Stadium.

Glad it was a memorable event - that's what lfe is all about!

Maybe next time you go, I'll be there? And, I am old - - so, it should make you feel better!

Originally posted by Shel
Oh, and, yes, Jim was "Jim F." (He's very young...I felt like an old fart.)

Dude! I'm not that young! Besides, you couldn't have been more than 25?!?

But yes, one day I will be famous. I will make Bill Gates look like a wannabe . The Bronx-Bombers.com Empire is all-consuming! Mwahahaha...

And Steve, I love the sixth inning. It lets me get some exercise to look sober enough for last call...

-jim

PS - And Mex, JimF really does exist

[NetShrine]

Jim - THANKS for gracing us - and, welcome. I hope this won't be a "first time, only time"!

[Mexicani Blue]

Originally posted by JimF
PS - And Mex, JimF really does exist

WOW!!!! I thought Net was making up stories to keep people like me tuned in. (Obviously I am not really here for the baseball discussion!)

Welcome to the 'Shrine jim!!

Mex

[NetShrine]

Originally posted by Mexicani Blue
I thought Net was making up stories to keep people like me tuned in.

I usually only make up stories to keep the ladies turned on, not tuned in.

Whoops, forgot, that was 10 years ago. I'm a solid citizen now.............never mind.

[Shel]

Originally posted by JimF
Dude! I'm not that young! Besides, you couldn't have been more than 25?!?

I couldn't?? I mean...you're right, I couldn't!

ahem

Originally posted by NetShrine
I usually only make up stories to keep the ladies turned on, not tuned in.

Whoops, forgot, that was 10 years ago. I'm a solid citizen now.............never mind.

Oh, behave!

BTW, Net, as of now my next game at Yankee Stadium will be Friday, July 20th. But I might come up before that. I'll let you know.

[NetShrine]

Thanks Shel.

My upcoming games are 6/9, 6/10, 6/29, 7/21 (miss you by one day!), 8/4, 8/19, 8/29, 9/7, 9/11, 9/28, and 9/30.

Sure maybe we'll connect somewhere.

Originally posted by NetShrine
Thanks Shel.

My upcoming games are 6/9, 6/10, 6/29, 7/21 (miss you by one day!), 8/4, 8/19, 8/29, 9/7, 9/11, 9/28, and 9/30.

Sure maybe we'll connect somewhere.

You don't get to many games, do you?

-jim

[NetShrine]

Originally posted by JimF
You don't get to many games, do you?

Big Stein should put me on the payroll - - I'm 4 and 0 so far this year.

One game I had, and couldn't make, was Mother's Day. That's the game Paulie tied with a big HR in the 9th and they lost in extra innings........maybe I could have made a difference!