Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Stadium Insider in the news!

Since our inception in 2007, the Stadium Insider sites (NYY Stadium Insider and New Stadium Insider) have been cited, quoted and mentioned around the blogosphere, in the mainstream media and even on the radio. Below are some of our more prominent mentions:

Mainstream Media:
Radio:
Top Spots in The Blogosphere:

Read the full post, after the jump

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

The Best 08 Back Page: "The Last Goodbye"?

The Daily News has asked it's readers to vote for its 
best back page of 2008. As New York Yankees Stadium insiders, we are imploring Yanks fans to vote for this one:


This is easily the best back page for any good stadium loving Yankees fan so, CLICK HERE to vote*!

* - I must admit, I DO have a soft spot for that New York Giants inspired "CHAMPS" back page... 

Talk about it in the NYYSI Forums!
Read the full post, after the jump

Merry Christmas

In the spirit of the Holiday season, the NYYSI crew thought it would be nice to let bygones be bygones and create a Christmas card for our favorite beat-blogger, Peter Abraham. So, here it is for all of you to enjoy. Consider it the gift that keeps on giving from Mr. Abraham.

http://www.nyystadiuminsider.com/uploaded_images/tubby/xmastubby.jpg

From Tubby and friends. Read the full post, after the jump

Let the expectations begin...

I made a rare visit to a New York Newspaper's webpage this morning (I swore them off sometime this past summer). Unsurprisingly, there was an asinine poll waiting for me upon arrival:



What did I expect? A poll inquiring about his 2009 OBP? (For his career it is .378, but it has been above .400 the past 2). A poll about his OPS+? (For his career it is 134). Nope, the poll question is about how many home runs he'll mash in 2009 because chicks dig the long ball.

No pressure, Mark, but I voted for 51 or more. I know you have averaged 36 home runs per year over your 6-year career, and a few of those totals were aided by playing in the bandbox in Arlington. However, I saw a poll on NYDailyNews.com and it made me think you MUST be a home run hitter if they had that poll up there. Then, I remembered that you are a switch-hitter, so you'd definitely get a chance to take advantage of the short porch in right field. 2009 is going to be a memorable year, Mark. Don't let me down.

The results of this highly scientific poll. My vote for 51 or more likely skewed the results, as I doubt the sample size is very large during the holiday season. I will say that it appears the more educated readers are voting in the poll since it is heavily leaning in the range of Teixeira career average HR total. Realistically, I believe Tex will hit 29 HRs in 2009, but he will contribute in many other ways that will contribute wins to the Yankees.

Talk about it in the NYYSI Forums! Read the full post, after the jump

The new Yankee Stadium covered in snow...

Those wily characters at wcbs880.com are up to it again - posting awesome shots of the new Yankee Stadium from Tom Kaminski's chopper 880:


Photo: Tom Kaminski/ WCBS 880


Photo: Tom Kaminski/ WCBS 880

Not to be outdone, Kaybli took this photo in the OLD Yankee Stadium:

The image “http://www.nyystadiuminsider.com/yankeessnow2.gif” cannot be displayed, because it contains errors.


Talk about it in the NYYSI Forums! Read the full post, after the jump

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

The Yankees throw season ticket holders a bone with exhibition ticket prices

The Yankees did the smart thing today and announced visibly reduced prices for the April 3 and April 4 exhibition games that will open up the new Stadium.

According to this release, full season ticket holders will get the games for free, while partial plan holders will have the opportunity to purchase bleacher tickets for 25 cents and grandstand (upper deck) tickets for $1.10. Apparently, these were the prices back in 1923 for the opener at the old Stadium.

This is a nice gesture, but it would have had a bit more impact if it was the first regular season game. This is yet another aspect of these exhibition games that are going to take away from the regular season opener. I may or may not have gotten up on this soapbox before.

Talk about it in the NYYSI Forums! Read the full post, after the jump

Merry Tex-Mas!


http://www.nyystadiuminsider.com/uploaded_images/santatex.jpg Read the full post, after the jump

Saturday, December 20, 2008

Milk em Tex, Milk em

http://www.nyystadiuminsider.com/uploaded_images/tex.jpg Read the full post, after the jump

Thursday, December 18, 2008

The NEW Yankee Stadium under the lights

I work in a high-rise building in Midtown Manhattan with amazing views of New York City. Looking out the north side windows, there are amazing views of Central Park and in the distance the Bronx. Lately, I have seen lights on in the distance in the vicinity of Yankee Stadium. I assumed they were testing out the lights in the new park, but I didn't dare venture up to the South Bronx in the dead of winter (I kid, I kid... Kind of).

It turns out that they ARE testing the new lights, and the WCBS 880 chopper did some flying this evening to capture some never before seen night-time photos of the new Yankee Stadium under the lights...


Photo: Tom Kaminski/ WCBS 880


Photo: Tom Kaminski/ WCBS 880

WCBS even took the time out to capture a photo of the Yankees' welcome to CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett:


Photo: Tom Kaminski/ WCBS 880

If that doesn't get you pumped up for the 2009 season, I'm not sure what will.

Talk about it in the NYYSI Forums! Read the full post, after the jump

Season Ticket Holders: Easily check the status of your relocation at Yankees.com!

Can't believe I didn't catch this sooner. The Yankees have a section of their website that provides periodic updates on the status of the season ticket holder relocation process for the new stadium.

The ticket office is currently making phone calls/sending packages out to FULL SEASON holders with a seniority date of August 2004. If you are a full-season ticket holder with a seniority date before August 2004 and you haven't received a call, you should probably initiate contact with the Yankees.

The long wait continues for B Plan holders like myself. This late in the game, installment payments are highly unlikely, so start saving that money!

Talk about it in the NYYSI Forums! Read the full post, after the jump

Friday, December 12, 2008

Yankee fans - Don't be surprised when AJ Burnett is hurt next year

Alex Rodriguez gets the best of Burnett here, but mostly A.J. has been a Yankee killer.
Laham/Getty


ESPN's Jerry Crasnick broke the news earlier today: A.J. Burnett (yes, unlike CC, he DOES like the periods between his initials) is your newest New York Yankee.

NYYSI has been and always will be against signing A.J Burnett to a long-term deal. Aside from the fact that he has questionable control, A.J Burnett is a MAJOR injury risk. Take a look at his stat sheet\. He has thrown over 200 IP 3 times in his career including last year. The previous two times, he came down with an injury the next year and was only able to start 4 games and 21 games, respectively.

A.J Burnett threw 221 innings last year - a career high by far. For us NOT to expect an injury would be setting ourselves up for disappointment. Brian Cashman typically is smarter than me, so I hope that is the case here as well.

Talk about it in the NYYSI Forums! Read the full post, after the jump

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Ho! Ho! Ho!

An early Xmas gift for Yankee fans
http://www.nyystadiuminsider.com/uploaded_images/ccsanta.jpg Read the full post, after the jump

Monday, December 8, 2008

Does this mean I can easily report the idiot behind me that is booing A-Rod?

Via PRWeb we learn some more news about the ongoing modernization taking place at the new Yankee Stadium. GuestAssist by qtags will allow fans to text message customer service in the Stadium if any kind of problem arises. The shocking part of this is that there will be customer service in the new Stadium. Never heard of such a thing in the old Stadium! Essentially it is a text message version of twitter that allows fans to complain about things within a monitored system using their mobile device.

Read the press release linked above for some of the practical uses of this system, including a heartwarming story about a couple who drove hours to the game, only to find that they had left their tickets at home. Apparently GuestAssist was able to save their irresponsible asses. Below is apparently what the system looks like for the customer service representative monitoring it (thanks to 4G-WirelessEvolution for the example):

Anyone who knows me, knows that this is a dangerous tool to have at my disposal. I have a bad feeling that they are going to disconnect my access to GuestAssist before April is over. Lets just say my complaints will be a bit more specific and a bit less urgent.

Old smelly guy without deodorant in front of me? Thats a GuestAssist complaint. Yelling like an idiot about true Yankees and booing A-Rod? Damn right I'm texttle-telling on your ass to the fine folks at Guest Assist. Don't "take ya hat off" during God Bless America? Well, in that case, I probably won't be the one to text message GuestAsssist, but you better believe that some typical Yankee fan will.

Just imagine they had something like this in the old stadium?
Waiting in line 4 Chx Fingers 4 25 mins. FIX IT...
The dude next to me @ urinal just splattered pee on me
- give me sum dividers!
Woman pouring Fosters 24 oz beer chatting with bff vendor instead of serving beer. Waiting in line 4 almost 3 innings 4 beer.

Hot chocolate sold out before game even started. WTF?

Can't wait to try it out!

Talk about it in the NYYSI Forums! Read the full post, after the jump

Friday, December 5, 2008

A-Rod's panties

Must... Resist... A-Rod's.... Undies...

I swear, my ebay user name doesn't start with a u and end with a p...



Talk about it in the NYYSI Forums! Read the full post, after the jump

Thursday, November 27, 2008

Yanks still chasing their Thanksgiving treat

http://www.nyystadiuminsider.com/uploaded_images/ccturkey.jpg Read the full post, after the jump

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Never too early to plan a trip to Spring Training!

The Yankees issued a press release yesterday, outlining plans for Spring Training 2009.

You can find the Yankees complete Spring Training 2009 schedule here.

There is definitely some noteworthy information for those of you planning a trip down to Florida (like myself). According to the press release, this is the earliest start to Yankees Spring Training games in the past 60 years (apparently that is as far back as their data goes)- good news for those late February travelers to Florida who usually see nothing more than players working out! More importantly, the World Baseball Classic will be running from March 5 - March 23, so expect some of the headline players to be absent from Spring Training for a good portion of the schedule.

Headline games of Spring Training will likely be March 3rd, when the Yankees host team USA (which team will A-Rod and Jeter play for?!) at Steinbrenner Field and the 7:15 PM game against the Red Sox at home on March 24th. The seamless transition from Legends Field to Steinbrenner field is complete. It is truly the "House that Big Stein built."

Now is the time to start booking the hotel, plane, rental car etc. Season tickets for the entire home schedule of Yankees Spring Training 2009 go on sale in the 2nd week of December (date TBA) and individual game tickets go on sale sometime in January (date TBA).

See you in Tampa!

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Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Dismantling of the old Yankee Stadium set for March 15, old Stadium Tours over

I don't typically link articles, but since this is the quiet season for NYYSI, I will link to this piece by the NY Daily News about the final tour at the old Yankee Stadium being given. It is a must read due to the buzz word "nostalgia" in the article. Nostalgia? Yankees? Yankee Stadium? No way.

No word on when the tours of the NEW Stadium will begin, but I would assume there won't be too much of a delay after the new digs are complete. That is free money and the Yankees are a money-making machine. This article cites March 15 as the start date for demolition of the old Stadium, which flies in the face of information that blog nemesis Peter Abraham mentioned a couple of days ago.

Talk about it in the NYYSI Forums! Read the full post, after the jump

Friday, November 21, 2008

Kiss the Ring

http://www.nyystadiuminsider.com/uploaded_images/cashhal.jpg

http://sports.espn.go.com/story?id=3715160 Read the full post, after the jump

Monday, November 17, 2008

Its official - Cubs to open up the new Stadium with two exhibition games

The news comes courtesy of NJ.com - The Cubs will officially usher in the new era of Yankee Stadium with two exhibition games in early April.

While exciting, it is also a bit disappointing. The first regular season game at the new Yankee Stadium is bound to be anticlimactic after these two games are played only two weeks earlier. Before you laugh, these "meaningless exhibitions" will have a lot more meaning than most. Lou Piniella will be back in town, along with old friend Alfonso Soriano representing the lovable loser Chicago Cubs. Tickets will likely be reasonably priced, although the ticket office is not yet releasing ticket information - meaning more real fans will be in the house that Big Stein built. April 3rd will have the feel of opening day night (the game starts at 7:05 PM] at the Stadium, a cool early early Spring evening, full house at the big ballpark in the Bronx. But it will only be a dress rehearsal.

The bottom line? This game will end up being a little too fun, taking all of the anticipation out of the season opener in the new Yankee Stadium. Yes, most teams warm up their new ballparks with exhibition games, but these are the Yankees we are talking about in the greatest city in the world. That game on the 16th should really be the day they break in the new digs.

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Check out our Wang!

NYYSI has ponied up $30 and is sponsoring Chien Ming Wang's baseball-reference.com page for the 2009 season. Why not support the best #2 starter in all of baseball in his bounce-back season? Seriously though, baseball-reference.com is the best baseball statistic site out there, and with as much as I use the site, they deserve my support.

Anyone have suggestions for other guys we should sponsor (if more ad money comes our way)?

Talk about it in the NYYSI Forums! Read the full post, after the jump

Thursday, November 13, 2008

The Swisher to the Yankees trade was years in the making

In case you are living under a rock, the Yankees acquired Nick Swisher (he of Moneyball fame - and the cheap, young man's version of Jason Giambi) for Jeff Marquez, Wilson Betemit and Jhonny Nunez.

What you may not know is just how long evil genius Brian Cashman was plotting the move (pretty much since he read Moneyball in April 2004). Lets review the moving parts in this trade and break down how the Yankees received them:

Wilson Betemit
The Yankees received Wilson Betemit for Scott Proctor who they had received for Robin Ventura who they got for David Justice who they had received in exchange for Ricky Ledee [INTL signing by Yanks], Jake Westbrook, and Zach Day the latter two they had received for fat toad Hideki Irabu [INTL signing by Yanks](along with Christian Parker)

Jhonny Nunez
The Yankees received Jhonny Nunez for Alberto Gonzalez who they got for Randy Johnson (along with Luis Vizcaino, Ross Ohlendorf, and Steven Jackson) who they got for Javier Vazquez, Brad Halsey [drafted by Yanks], Dioner Navarro [INTL signing by Yanks] the former they received for Nick Johnson [drafted by Yanks], Juan Rivera [INTL signing by Yanks] and Randy Choate [drafted by Yanks]

Jeffrey Marquez
The Yankees drafted Marquez 41st overall in the 2004 MLB amateur draft.

Like I said - Brian Cashman = evil genius.

http://www.nyystadiuminsider.com/uploaded_images/cashmanevilgenius.jpg

Much thanks to the indispensable MLBTR Brian Cashman trade history

Talk about it in the NYYSI Forums! Read the full post, after the jump

Out with the old, in with the new... (Stadium pictures)

Some more great Yankee Stadium photos, courtesy of WCBS880.com:

Monument park is just about empty in the OLD stadium:



But could this be its home in the NEW stadium?



The seats are going in down the left field line!!!



All photos: Tom Kaminski/ WCBS 880

Talk about it in the NYYSI Forums! Read the full post, after the jump

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

WCBS 880 Video of Monument Park being picked up and moved

Here is some fun video of construction workers picking up monument park and moving it. Mystique, aura and ghosts be damned:


Thanks to WCBS 880 for dropping me a line, alerting me to this video!

Talk about it in the NYYSI Forums! Read the full post, after the jump

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Stadium Constuction 12.5 Days ahead of schedule, set to finish on February 4th

Everyone knows that this blog has had its issues with Journal News Beat Blogger Peter Abraham. While we will never be fans of his opinion, persona or attitude, we do recognize that when he is doing what he is doing best - getting pertinent Yankee information to the fans before even the Yankees can - he is a revolutionary figure in the blogoshere.

With that said, Abraham is the first out of today's Yankees/Cisco press conference with up to the minute Yankee Stadium construction information.

Of note, the Stadium is 12 and a half days ahead of schedule. In a previous post, we had referenced the original completion date of February 17. Without any delays, the Stadium should now be complete on February 4 - 85 short days away! The new Metro North Station is behind schedule (like everything else the MTA does) and will not open until at least the third homestand (May 15,2009). Finally, Lonn Trost gave word that there are still 7 unsold luxury suites due to the economical downturn. Sell your stocks people, investing in the Yankees is the way to go!

You won't often find us citing Abraham's blog since you can find link dumps on many of the 1,085,093 Yankee blogs out there. However, when he is first with information pertinent to Yankee season ticket holders, it needs to be done.

Talk about it in the NYYSI Forums! Read the full post, after the jump

Cisco Systems and The Yankees bring us StadiumVisionTM




There was a fancy press conference in Midtown Manhattan today announcing a joint-venture between the Yankees and Cisco Systems that will provide cutting-edge technology to the new Yankee Stadium. Getting down to the nitty gritty, the new Stadium will have HD televisions - a LOT of them - displaying actual HD content. This is a far cry from the old Yankee Stadium where the only HD television in a public location that I ever saw was at a loge-level "Stadium Services" booth. This 42 inch flat screen regularly displayed standard definition Yankee classics stretched sadly to fit the 16:9 screen. It was really a microcosm of how outdated the "old" Yankee Stadium truly was.

Beyond the HD televisions everywhere, another item of note from the press release is the technology that the stadium is equipped for:
Fans of the Future: Cisco and the New York Yankees have also kept an eye toward the future to ensure that the stadium remains state-of-the-art for years to come. For example, the new stadium is equipped to support future fan use of mobile devices for ordering concessions from their seat, viewing instant replays or chatting in real time with friends inside and outside the stadium. In addition, the stadium has the capability to allow fans to communicate with players before or after the game using interactive video-based technology.
Note that the release is very clear that this technology is not to be expected right away. When the Stadium opens in April, you can expect a lot of new HDTVs, but not much other exciting tech-toys. To put things in perspective, it does not appear that there will immediately be anything cutting-edge in the new Stadium rivaling Seattle's Safeco Field "Nintendo DS Fan Network". They are "keeping an eye toward the future", so I am hopeful that some fascinating technology will be heading our way soon enough.

The entire release is available on Cisco's Website.

UPDATE: Not mentioned in the release, but information that came out of the press conference is that the ENTIRE stadium will be high speed wi-fi enabled. This will eventually be used for the "fans of the future" features explained above. No word yet if this will be an open network that your uber-cool Iphone will be able to access on opening day.

Talk about it in the NYYSI Forums! Read the full post, after the jump

Sunday, November 9, 2008

Yankee memorabilia auctions on Ebay for a very good cause

I received this email in the inbox today about some Yankee memorabilia auctions on ebay with proceeds going toward a very good cause.

Tom Clark, a clubhouse manager for the Yankees in Trenton shared the following story:
I've been a clubhouse manager in the minor leagues for 20 years, the last four employed by the Yankees. For many years I worked for the Canton/Akron AA affiliate of the Indians. About a week before opening day in 1997, my wife's sister was murdered by her husband in the most senseless, tragic act of domestic violence. For a long time it was all I could do to deal with the ramifications of this tragedy, and to do my best to raise my late sister-in-law's son.

Two years ago Phil Hughes was the most prominent player on my team in Trenton. I've never been much for collecting autographs, but toward the end of that season I figured I could ask Phil to sign a couple of balls for me that I'd auction off for the local domestic violence shelter. Phil was happy to oblidge, but about ten minutes later he came back to me saying, "Tonto, the balls are only going to bring about $50 each, but I've got some other stuff that would be pretty good."

By game time that night he had loaded up my desk with game used hats, gloves, spikes, photos...all signed. I raised a little over $2600 which at Phil's request we split between the shelter and a local Trenton youth baseball group.

Last year I collected what I could throughout the season and did the auction on Ebay, raising a little over $5000 for the shelter, much of it on some great stuff Joba signed for me.
Different stuff will be popping up at this link over the next week or two, with auctions ending on November 20. According to Tom, 100% of the profit from the sale of the items goes to the shelter, and each item comes with a certificate of authenticity from the Yankees AA affiliate Trenton Thunder.

Good to see Phil Hughes so active in a charitable cause like this, and a great idea by Tom to reach out to the blogosphere to spread the word.

Talk about it in the NYYSI Forums! Read the full post, after the jump

Saturday, November 8, 2008

Irrational Nostalgia already lives in the new Stadium!

C'mon people - you didn't think the late 90's Yankee nostalgia would die with the old Stadium, did you?

Today, there was a symbolic "dirt moving" ceremony from the old Yankee Stadium to the new Stadium. In a shocking development, stars from the 1998 Yankees were there to move the dirt.

No, this is not a bad joke, it is actually the only news coming out of Yankee Stadium these days.

Check out the quality journalism by Yankees.com writer Anthony DiComo. Riveting stuff, I know.

Talk about it in the NYYSI Forums! Read the full post, after the jump

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Say it ain't so, Joba

http://www.nyystadiuminsider.com/uploaded_images/jobadui.jpg Read the full post, after the jump

Does anyone want the season ticket holder's special edition 2008 All-Star Game Program?

You can check out my Craigs List posting for more information. I got two of them for my two season tickets, and I don't need two of them. One will be a keepsake, this one will go to someone who wants to pay face value ($15) for it.

I don't plan on making this blog a garage sale site, but I just thought this was pertinent place to offer it up.



Talk about it in the NYYSI Forums! Read the full post, after the jump

Monday, October 20, 2008

Yankees to have "homegrown" catering company provide food in the New Yankee Stadium

From BusinessWire comes news of Dallas Cowboys/New York Yankees partnership. Usually these business press releases fly right over my head, but in this case it is pertinent to frequent visitors to Yankee Stadium.

Lets go to the release:

The old model of stadium concessions is broken, stated Hal Steinbrenner, Co-Chairman of the New York Yankees. Fans want and deserve a better experience for their sports entertainment dollar. Working with Legends to leverage the talent and experience resident in the Yankees and Cowboys organizations will enable us to set a higher bar for sports franchises while delivering greater value to fans. When the new Yankee Stadium opens for the 2009 season, our fans will be able to experience first-hand the enhancements to our menus, concessions, retail operations and fan spaces that Legends has overseen.

The main bullet point of this press release is that the Yankees are cutting out the crappy middlemen such as Aramark and Centerplate catering and creating their own in-house option. Theoretically, this should cut costs for food items at the new Stadium, but that is highly doubtful given the overhead of starting up this operation and building the billion dollar Stadium. However, this does mean that we are free from the gummy chicken fingers and transfat-enhanced, year-old oil-soaked french fries that had haunted us for years at the old Yankee Stadium.

Many long-time vendors at the old Yankee Stadium are likely to lose their jobs based on this announcement, but for the average fan it is nothing but a good thing. I have seen some of the cooking facilities that Aramark and Centerplate use and whatever the Yankees come up with can't possibily be worse.

LONG LIVE LEGENDS HOSPITALITY MANAGEMENT!

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Friday, October 17, 2008

Video from inside of the new Stadium

This was a pretty cool find by Greg over at Sliding Into Home. Someone posted footage from inside of the new Yankee Stadium on YouTube. Good to see they are already forcing 16 oz. cups of watered down Budweiser down our throats. Will beers crack $10 next season (other than the 24 oz. Fosters/Heineken)? The anticipation is killing me.




Talk about it in the NYYSI Forums! Read the full post, after the jump

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Follow NYY Stadium Insider on Twitter!

It took me a while, but I finally figured out how Twitter works.

For those of you who don't know about Twitter, head over to Wikipedia.org and check out the Twitter page.

Once you are done with that and you are all pumped up about Twitter, you can then sign up, and check out the "Stadium Insider" feed. Be warned that I use that as my personal twitter as well as the blog's twitter (c'mon, having two accounts would be LAME). Therefore, you may get updates about how great Penn State football is, how much I want to smash the remote when Eli Manning throws three picks in a game, how much Time Warner Cable sucks, etc.

Anyway, as soon as I get season ticket info, I will post it there, so be sure to "follow" me NYYSI on Twitter.

Talk about it in the NYYSI Forums! Read the full post, after the jump

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Yankees to offer installment payment options for 2009 Season Ticket invoices

While I had a responsive member of the Yankee Stadium ticket operations team, I thought it would be helpful to the masses to inquire about payment options for their 2009 invoices.

I believe that the initial amount due upon receipt of the invoice will
be 10% of the total due and that there will be at least one or two
additional partial payment dates to follow. The option to pay in full
will certainly exist, and I think the number of payment dates will
depend largely on just how long it takes to make the seating
assignments. It's my understanding that payment on the smaller plans
(20 games and less) will be due in full as we don't anticipate having
those assignments completed until early '09.
Good news for people who want their Yankee tickets, but will be struggling to stay afloat this holiday season!

Talk about it in the NYYSI Forums! Read the full post, after the jump

New Yankee Stadium Season Ticket Holder relocation update

This just in from the Yankee ticket office:
I just wanted to send you a quick email to let you know that we started our relocation process this week with our Full and A Plan holders. Once we have completed the assignment process for the Full Plans we will move to the Full Season Pool and then to the 41-Game Plan assignments. We anticipate having invoices and seating locations mailed to Full and A Plan holders in about 3-5 weeks, so I imagine the Relocation Department will be in touch with you in mid-December. Please feel free to contact me with any questions you might have about the relocation process.
I have to give credit where credit is due. I have always voiced my displeasure at the lack of correspondence from the Yankee ticket office, but they have done the right thing here. In these crazy economic times, it is good to know that the new invoice will be arriving right around the holiday season.

If you are a season ticket holder, definitely keep an eye out for an email of this sort. It is NOT a form email sent within a template. It appears to be my ticket representative reaching out.


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I agree - it was all Bobby Meacham's fault


Thats right, Mr. Meacham - he is out and it is your fault. Keep up the good work

I am too young to remember Bobby Meacham as a player, but everyone old enough to remember his days in MLB tell me that he was a horrendous baserunner (among other aspects of his game).

The fact of the matter is, Meacham was set up to fail. Not only because he didn't have baserunning instincts, but because he was following in the footsteps of Larry Bowa - one of the best base coaches out there.That being said, I had low expectations for third base coach going into the 2008 season.

That being said, even I was shocked at how many times Meacham had to be mentioned because of his bad instincts. If he wasn't sending a guy home when he had no business doing so, he was holding a man at third when the outfielder had a noodle arm. It was a comedy of errors from the third base coaching position from the beginning. Rule of thumb if you are a third base coach - don't get noticed. The only exception to that rule is if you are Larry Bowa, since then you will be running down the baseline next to the baserunner and nearly sliding into home with him.

Am I overstating Bowa's influence on the outcome of baseball games? Probably. However, the New York Yankees baserunning cost them runs in 2008. Baseball Prospectus 2008 introduced baserunning as a key stat they were developing a system for evaluating. I can't wait to read their analysis of 2008 based on the above numbers.

Maybe it wasn't ALL Bobby Meacham's fault, but he definitely did not HELP the New York Yankees win baseball games in 2008. For that, he earned himself a trip to the unemployment office.

Another theory on this firing is that when he was younger, he looked like Melky Cabrera and the Yankees can have NONE of that:

http://www.baseball-almanac.com/players/pics/bob_meacham_autograph.jpg

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Are you all getting pumped?

For that Phillies/ Rays World Series?

Rumor has it there will be blood on the streets outside of the Fox Sports executive offices in L.A if the Rays and Phillies continue their march to the World Series.

The story will be the upstart "worst to first" Rays against the city starved of Championships, Philadelphia. I doubt the ratings will follow.



Talk about it in the NYYSI Forums! Read the full post, after the jump

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Concert for closing ceremony at Yankee Stadium canceled

This comes via the NY Daily News -

According to the Yankees Media Relations department, the team has decided against a concert on November 9 as part of a "closing ceremony".

What is not clear from this article is whether there will even be a closing ceremony. Former Yankees such as Joe Torre have voiced interest in attending such a ceremony and rumors have been running rampant that EVERY past Yankee player would be invited. As of now, those are simply unsubstantiated rumors.

Unfortunately, no date has been set nor has a closing ceremony even been confirmed. In addition, the Yankees have not set a dismantling date for the old Yankee Stadium.

UPDATE: AM New York was the first to report this, and they are saying that there will be no closing ceremony at all. Epic fail by the Yankees in their final season at the old Stadium. I can understand though, being in the stadium on a regular basis as a season ticket holder gave me a "good riddance" feeling toward the old Stadium. I can only imagine what it felt like to the people who had to work there.

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Wednesday, October 1, 2008

Cashman returns promising change

http://www.nyystadiuminsider.com/uploaded_images/cashchange.jpg


YES WE CAN!
Read the full post, after the jump

Tours of the "old" Yankee Stadium Still available...

This comes courtesy of River Ave Blues and NY1. It appears the Yankees have opened up some more Yankee Stadium Tour slots (they have nothing else going on in the Stadium this October).

I checked out the Ticketmaster.com page for the Yankee Stadium tour, and while select dates showed as active "events", I could not locate tickets. Perhaps there was a "River Ave Blues effect" and the tickets for the remaining tours sold out quickly.

If you really want to check out the "House That Ruth Built" before they tear it down, you can probably check out Stub Hub and Craigs List.

As I mentioned yesterday, New Stadium tours have not been announced yet.

Update: Here is another link (from the NY Post) about the Stadium Tours resuming.

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Tuesday, September 30, 2008

New York Yankees Media Relations: "We don't care about blogs"

This will come as little surprise to anyone, but the New York Yankees media relations department is far too important to be bothered by these new-fangled webblogs that all of the kiddies are talking about these days.

With the offseason upon us, I decided to take a proactive approach for story ideas to post on the blog. My genius idea was to call the media relations office of the New York Yankees, explain that I have a Yankees blog and see if I could get some questions answered.

Before I go any further, let me state that I work in public relations for a brand within a Fortune 500 company. That is about as much personal information as I will divulge. Currently "blogger outreach" is a HUGE part of the company's strategic goals going forward. Of course, I don't work for a sports franchise, but a consumer goods company, so I can see how the Yankees wouldn't have the same enthusiastic approach with bloggers. However, I never thought I would be met with the cold response that an unnamed member of the Yankees media relations staff provided.

The phone conversation

Me: "Hello, I calling to ask a couple of questions. First, is there any information about the Yankee Stadium closing ceremony on November 9th

Male Yankee Stadium media relations employee [cuts me off]: No, we have not released any information on that yet.

Me: "When this news is released, will the information be found at the press release section of Yankees.com"

Male Yankee Stadium media relations employee: yes

Me: "I have another question - when will Yankee Stadium tours start in the new Yankee Stadium - has that information been released yet.

Male Yankee Stadium media relations employee: no

Me: "I'm sorry if I'm bothering you, I own and operate a mid-size Yankees blog. I wouldn't say I am at the top line of the Yankee blogs out there, but I would consider my site up and coming. Am I wasting my time calling the Yankees media relations office for information? Do the Yankees have any interest in communicating with the blogosphere?

Male Yankee Stadium media relations employee: I don't want to say you are wasting your time, but the Yankees don't talk to blogs. We are never going to give you any information that is not readily available.

Me: "Ok, I had gathered as much. I work in public relations for a company with a completely different outlook on bloggers, so I thought I would reach out to you guys.

Male Yankee Stadium media relations employee: Yea, we are never going to have that approach.

Me: "Thanks for your time, goodbye.


[click]
(The above is all paraphrasing the actual conversation)

I don't know what I was thinking calling up the Yankees for firsthand information. God forbid someone other than the mainstream media writes and reports on the team. I have no interest in actively pursuing offseason stories, but the two items I called about pertain to Yankee Stadium. From analyzing the web traffic that NYYSI receives, it appears that many people find this site when looking for an answer to a Yankee Stadium question. For most of these google searches, this site indexes higher than Yankees.com for their answer. It behooves the Yankees to ensure that I have up to date and accurate information.

Sadly, as soon as I said the word "blog" I was looked upon as a mere fan, instead of the purveyor of information that this website has become.

It seems that my passion and loyalty are only appreciated when I am forking down thousands of dollars on season tickets.

Are all sports franchises this rigid toward bloggers, or is it just because the Yankees perceive the franchise to be at the top of the Sports World?

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Saturday, September 27, 2008

If you watched last night's Yankee game in its entirety..

You should go to YFA (Yankee fans anonymous).

Seriously - 3 hours and 38 minutes, plus 3 hours and 7 minutes worth of delays? Final score 19-8? Completely meaningless game with pretty much all of the regulars on the bench? Just because the names "Red Sox" and "Yankees" were on the jersey don't mean you MUST watch the games. Do you like to torture yourself?

I would love to see some ratings from last night to see just how many people watched the game.

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Sunday, September 21, 2008

My Yankee Stadium Memories - Part 2 of 2

1999
October 26th

My brother and I arrived early for game 3 of the World Series. We camped out in our usual batting practice spot down the left field line. On this day, Derek Jeter came out and signed autographs. Being a high school infielder, Derek Jeter had fast become my idol. Nick and I were able to get our World Series ticket stubs signed by Derek. Sadly, I'm not sure where that ticket stub is today, but the memory of getting Jeter's autograph before a World Series game will forever be with me. I can't remember the game at all, but the Yankees won both of those

2001
October 23rd

This wasn't a game at the Stadium, but it was the overnight stay that my girlfriend Heather and I spent outside of the Stadium camping out for 2001 World Series tickets. We didn't sleep much that night, but we were determined to get tickets and toughed it out. Growing up in downtown Manhattan, I never imagined sleeping outside on the streets of the South Bronx. Luckily, there were hundreds of other Yankee fans to keep us company. We managed to purchase tickets to game 4 and game 5 of the 2001 World Series and the rest was history.

October 31st and November 1st

Simply put, two of the most memorable games in Yankee Stadium history. We all know the story by now - no need to rehash. What sticks with me most is how hopeless things seemed both nights and how much more magical it made the game tying and walk-off hits. The world seemed bleak at the time, fresh off of the terrorist attacks of 9/11. Witnessing game 4 with my girlfriend, my brother and my father and experiencing the magic of Tino and Jeter's HRs revitalized the city of New York and will vividly remain in my memory forever. The goosebumps that singing God Bless America along with Ronan Tynan and 56,000 other people provided will never be forgotten . Scott Brosius' heroics the next night were icing on the cake, and sealed those two nights as my favorite Yankee Stadium memories.

2004
October 19th

I can't make this list without mentioning my worst Yankee Stadium memory of all-time - the "bloody sock" game. The weather was the worst I ever remember experiencing at Yankee stadium. The upper 40's and light rain/mist. Curt Schilling had ketchup blood all over his sock and the Yankees decided to just go about their business as if he was completely healthy. Bunting and putting some pressure on him never crossed their minds. When the famous A-Rod slap play happened, I thought that I was experiencing another bout of Yankee Stadium "mystique and aura". Then, he was called out and all hope was lost. I had no doubt in my mind that the Yankees were going to lose the next night.

2005
April 26th

A-Rod's 3 homerun game off of Bartolo Colon. This was the night that I realized how prolific of a homerun hitter I had the prividledge of rooting for each day. Each homerun was more impressive than the next and I left the Stadium in awe at A-Rod's greatness. That was probably the night that made me as huge of an A-Rod supporter as I am today.

June 21st

Things were looking down for the Yankees. They were sitting in third place, it was mid-June and Randy Johnson was getting bombed by the lowly Devil Rays. The Yankees went down 10-2 in the 4th inning and my brother and I started to commiserate about the state of the Yankees. In our minds, the run of consecutive playoff appearances were all but over and the Yankees were cooked. We started thinking about how Mariano Rivera wasn't getting any younger and they were wasting some of his last great years. We didn't leave the game. Instead, we decided we were going to endure the misery and really let the mediocrity soak in. Looking back, I am very glad we made that decision. Our gripes about the Yankees wasting Mariano's greatness looked silly when the Yankees came roaring back and ended up winning 20-11. This night will always stick with me because we all but gave up on the season IN JUNE and the Yankees made us feel silly about that right away.

2006
May 16th

As Yogi would say, it was "deja vu all over again". The Yankees fell behind 10-1 in the third inning behind a horrid performance by the suddenly crappy Shawn Chacon. Nick and I were at the game together (as usual) and we reprised our 2005 Mariano Rivera conversation. It was almost amusing as it was an eerily similar situation. This time, we drowned our sorrows in $7 beers and decided to stay for the balance of the game. Once again, we were rewarded for our loyalty. The Yankees came storming back and ended up winning the game on a Jorge Posada walk-off homerun. We had made our way down to the left field corner toward the end of the game to ensure a speedy exit from the Stadium. As many Yankee fans know, Japanese fans often purchase tickets down the left field line to get as close to Hideki Matsui as possible. In 2006, Matsui was out for the season with a wrist injury, but the Japanese fans were still showing up. A memory that will forever be burned into my brain is jumping up and down in jubilation after Jorge's walkoff that night and looking for Nick. Much to my surprise, he was embraced in a bear hug with one of the afforementioned Japanese fans down the left field line. It was hilarious and enlightening at the same time. I finally realized the impact that the Yankees had across cultures. Fans of Hideki Matsui had realized the magnitude of the franchise he now played for and had become true fans.

2007
April 19th

The Yankees were off to their annual sluggish start and entered the bottom of the 9th inning down by four runs. After two quick outs, the game was all but over. Suddenly, the cold, grey April day become sunny and the immortal Josh Phelps hit what looked to be a meaningless homerun. The Yankees rallied and set up a memorable walk-off homerun by A-Rod. It was already his second walk-off homerun in the month of April. Being a huge A-Rod supporter, this was finally some vindication. After a few years of fan abuse, the clutch hits had finally arrived.

August 3rd


Nick and I were convinced that we were going to catch A-Rod's 500th homerun. We had plans to simply trade the ball for meeting A-Rod and potentially getting a few future tickets to games. Our goal was to prevent a greedy person from sticking A-Rod up for a small fortune. I list August 3rd above, but we went to a few games that week. I will never forget the camera flashes with every A-Rod swing and the fracas in the left field seats every time A-Rod stepped up to the plate. Nick and I were actually positioned in the EXACT spot of A-Rod's eventual 500th homerun but a a day too early. After the fact, I was excited by the fact that A-Rod was going to hit countless more historical homeruns, many of which in Yankee Stadium.

2008
March 12th

Taking the behind the scenes Yankee Tour on my birthday

August 15th

My final trip to the Cathedral in the Bronx

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September 21, 2008 - A special night at the House that Ruth built that fell a bit flat

UPDATE (9/22) - I'd just like to add to this and mention that the post-game ceremony made up for ANY shortcomings in the pre-game ceremony. Jeter's speech was spot on and the "victory lap" was one of the classic moments in Stadium history. Kudos to the Yankees for getting THAT part right and letting the fans go home satisfied.

Without getting too wordy, here are some gripes I had with the ceremony at the Stadium tonight:

- The "ghosts" of the deceased players to kick off the ceremonies. Honestly, a corny Babe Ruth lookalike? That part just insulted my intelligence and the fans reacted appropriately - with disinterest.

- No representatives from the DiMaggio family. Why? They couldn't fly anyone in? Does he have no remaining family?

- No Donnie Baseball. OK, this was not the Yankees fault, but closing this ballpark just doesn't seem right without one last Donnie Baseball chant.

- Failing to acknowledge Roger Clemens' history with the franchise during the pitcher montage. I understand not inviting him, but to simply forget that he was a big part of the dynasty years and a member of the '07 team is really insulting to the fans of the franchise.

- Conveniently ignoring the historical managers in Yankee franchise history. The Yankees have had the likes of Miller Huggins, Joe McCarthy, Casey Stengel, and finally, Joe Torre. Anyone who believes this was anything other than a way to "stick it" to Joe Torre is kidding themselves. Joe Torre has a very distinct place in Yankee history and deserved to have at least a mention in this ceremony.

- Booing A-Rod when he appeared in a great third baseman video montage and the smattering he received during the starting lineup. Way to embarrass yourself, fake Yankee fans. Bravo.

Overall, the ceremony fell flat. There were some great moments sprinkled in; Willie sliding into second base, the return of Bernie Williams. However, in the end it reeked of Old Timer's Day redux. Perhaps the expectations for this ceremony were set a bit too high with the day-long coverage it received from the Worldwide Leader. The night will certainly go down as a special one in the history of "The House That Ruth Built", but not as memorable as I had expected.

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My Yankee Stadium Memories - Part 1 of 2

My real remembrance of the "old" Yankee Stadium can be found within a previous post, but I thought I would post a few of my favorite memories that have stuck with me for various reasons.

1992 -ish
June 8th (I think)

This is one of my earlier Yankee Stadium memories (I don't have a great memory, and this would have put me at 10 years old). My father got some Yankee tickets from work in the loge level on the first base side. The Blue Jays took a 9-0 lead in the fourth inning and I remember my dad asking me if I wanted to leave and I said yes. These were the dog days of the Yankee franchise. I'm pretty sure we took a short ride over to Yonkers to the horce-track to catch the last few races. I took some sort of solace in the loss by watching horses run in circles around a dirt track. Younger, simpler times.

1995
October 3rd

Inaugural Wild Card game. I went with my father and a couple of his co-workers. The car broke down on the way to the Stadium and we were on the Grand Concourse (not a place you want to be breaking down). We ended up walking around 15 blocks through the South Bronx to the Stadium. I had never done that before and will never do that again. Luckily, because of the playoff atmosphere, there were a lot of people around and it was safe. Once we arrived at the game, I remember being in awe at the surroundings. This was the first time in MY LIFE that the Yankees had been in the postseason and the first playoff game in the Stadium since 1981. Suffice to say the place was rocking. When Ruben Sierra clinched the game in the 8th with a 2-run HR, I experienced my first "Stadium Rocking" experience (when the Upper Deck is literally swaying because of so many people

1996
July 28

I was sitting in Main Reserved seats with a friend on the third base side of the Stadium. It was a classic pitcher's duel with Kevin Appier shutting down the Yankees for 8 innings and Doc Gooden pitching very well for the Yankees for 8. It went into the bottom of the 9th inning with the Yankees down 2-1. Tino led off with a walk and Daryl Strawberry followed that off with a prompt 2-run walkoff HR. The crowd went bonkers and I got a beer bath from the Loge Level for the first time. I was young enough to think it was awesome, even though I went home stinking like dry beer. Looking back, that was Straw's only walkoff HR as a Yankee. It stuck in my memory bank.

1997
October 2

Wild Card game two against the Indians with the Yankees up 1-0 in the series. I was a sophomore in high school and I had spent the entire 1997 season going to Yankee games. Once the school year started back up (beginning of September) I continued to go to games. I would arrive right around 5 PM for batting practice, try to snag a few souvenirs and then do my homework before the actual game started. Although the stakes were higher for this game because the playoffs had begun, I did not change my routine. Unfortunately, on this day, batting practice wasn't as fun as usual. I was standing down the left field line in the box seats waiting for a ball to be hit to me like so many times before. Unfortunately, this time the ball skipped off the warning track and smacked me in the side of the head. I remember being a bit woozy, but I wasn't knocked out. I was more embarrassed because I usually CAUGHT those balls. In any case, some of the Indians players came over to see if I was alright and Kenny Lofton brought over a ball to give to me. The whole rest of that game was a blur.

1998
April 13

I headed up to the Stadium after school to see the Yankees take on the Anaheim Angels. After emerging from the depths of the Subway, I realized that something didn't feel right. The usual buzz wasn't surrounding the stadium and people were milling around aimlessly. Then, I heard the announcement being repeated over the Stadium speakers that the game had been postponed because a concrete beam had fallen onto some seats in the loge level. This day was important for me because it was the day I realized that the Yankees needed a new Stadium. I would be lying if I said that from that day forward I didn't look at the Stadium in a different light. Every decrepit looking structure in the Stadium jumped out at me as the next that could fall. Luckily, nothing else ever fell apart and nobody was injured in the 1998 "collapse".

May 17

I have to sadly admit that I was at this game because I was in the Beanie Baby business. Those things were selling like hotcakes and I was a teenager in need of easy ways to make money. Why not go to a Yankee game, sell the giveaway and make a profit? A family friend had provided my brother and I with some great seats behind the visitors dugout. Little did we know that we were going to witness history. David Wells threw his perfect game that day and I can proudly say I was there to see it. Unfortunately, my memories from that day are not as vivid as I would like them to be. I have a feeling it is because the entire time I was thinking ahead to the next out closer to 27, instead of taking in the surroundings and savoring the moment. I do remember never feeling as nervous at a sporting event as I did that day. When the final out was made, there was pure jubilation at the Stadium like I had never seen before. Strangers were hugging, jumping up and down, crying - it was amazing. As a footnote, I ended up hanging onto the Beanie Baby from that day for nostalgic reasons and it lost all value. I think it is still buried in a box somewhere with old belongings.

Part 2 with my 1999 - current memories tomorrow

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Friday, September 19, 2008

Yankees reveal plans to let fans on the field before the final game

However, Big Stein has a message for you:


Yankee Stadium gates will open at 1 p.m. on Sunday as the Yankees invite fans to take one last memorable stroll through Monument Park. Fans will also be allowed to exit Monument Park onto the field where they will be permitted to walk along the warning track around the outfield and behind home plate.
You hear that kids? DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT STEPPING ON BIG STEIN'S BEAUTIFULLY MANICURED (pedicured?) LAWN! Trust me, you don't want to break the rules at Yankee Stadium. I took the Stadium tour this winter and the guards watch you like hawks making sure that you don't step foot on the grass. I think there may have even been snipers on the facade of the Stadium ready to act if I took a wrong step.

All kidding aside, this is a pretty cool thing for the Yankees to do. If you have tickets to the game on Sunday, you will most certainly have a memorable day at the old ballpark.

Check out the details of the festivities and don't forget that if you try to steal stuff, you will be arrested.

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Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Temper your excitement about the new stadium if you plan on sitting in the Left Field Bleachers

New York Magazine posted this small article featuring the following photo ripped from the new Yankee seating chart:
Not pictured: right field.

If the stadium relocation leaves you in section 239, I would recommend letting some other sucker buy the seats.

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Video of the same fan in the bleachers catching a Yankee homerun two nights in a row

Check out the unbelievable footage below:



That dude lost a lot of cool points with his ridiculous dancing, but what would your reaction be if you caught a HR ball two nights in a row? By a Yankee both times nonetheless.

Anyway, I have a feeling the Yankees are drawing up a rule against this for the new Stadium. "The same fan may not catch a homerun ball on consecutive nights" will be right up there with "all fans must stand and be attentive during God Bless America". I won't even touch the unwritten rule "all female fans in Derek Jeter shirts must be skanky".

UPDATE (9/18/08): As noted in the comments section, this guy is a well-known ballhawk. I never knew this type of person existed, but it takes a lot of the fun out of the feat. Here are some of his stats:
• 7 balls at this game

• 481 balls in 62 games this season = 7.8 balls per game.

• 558 consecutive games with at least one ball

• 124 consecutive games at Yankee Stadium with at least one ball

• 11 game balls this season (not counting game-used balls that get tossed into the crowd)

• 3 game home run balls this season (all of which were caught on a fly at Yankee Stadium)

• 122 lifetime game balls (115 foul balls, 6 home runs, 1 ground-rule double)

• 20 lifetime game balls at Yankee Stadium

• 3,758 total balls
I hope he is somehow making money off of this, otherwise it is a real waste of time and energy.

UPDATE 2:
Zack Hample has a book, a website, and is making TV appearances, so yea, he's making money. Also edited the title since he is not a Yankee fan.

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Monday, September 15, 2008

Failure















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Friday, September 12, 2008

September 13, 2008 - Sure to be a historic baseball day in NYC - 4 games in a single day!

Tonight there was a steady bout of rain in New York City, washing out both scheduled games in the city (Yankees and Mets).

Both teams have decided to play doubleheaders tomorrow, Saturday, September 13. Of course, the Yankees have gone with the split format. I'd like to think they did this to ensure that everyone got to use their tickets since the remainder of the schedule is sold out. The Mets, on the other hand are having an old-fashioned single admission doubleheader. Over the years, these doubleheaders have become less frequent as teams try to maximize profits and doubleheaders became a union no-no.

In a shocking turn of events, I will actually be attending the doubleheader in the old dump in Flushing, Queens. My cousin is a Mets fan from Virginia (poor guy) and has never been to Shea. Earlier this year, we planned a trip so he could see the Stadium one time before they thankfully level it.

I'm fairly certain that some overworked and underpaid research guru is sifting through the records at the Worldwide Leader right now trying to figure out the last time there were 4 baseball games in the city of New York in one day. I would take a wild guess that it was some time in the 1960's. Regardless of the last time it happened, the event is not common - most of the time the Mets and Yankees alternate homestands.

The way the times of the games are set up, one person can reasonably attend 3 major league baseball games in one day. How many people can say they have done that?

The itinerary would be as follows:

- Get to Yankee Stadium for the 1:05 start.
- Hope for a fast game, or else leave a bit early, allowing a reasonable amount of time to cross the river and head to Queens for the 3:55 start.
- Stay for both games at Shea (two for the price of one).

OR, if you have a lot of money to burn, you can follow the following itinerary:

- Get to Yankee Stadium for the 1:05 start
- Hope for a fast game, or else leave a but early, allowing a reasonable amount of time to cross the river and head to Queens for the 3:55 start.
- Leave the 3:55 Mets game in time for the 7:05 Yankee game back in the Bronx.

Sadly, pre-existing plans prevent me from living out this historic feat, but if anyone plans to do it, please write in - you'll be the hero of baseball fans everywhere.

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Yankee ticket office: "We have no idea why you didn't get your relocation guide"

I called the ticket office today to find out why I never received a hard copy of the relocation guide. The unsatisfactory answer was that I can access it online and fill out my questionnaire online.

I relayed my concerns about not receiving correspondence in the mail from the Yankees and how this may affect me in the future (invoices, etc). The unhelpful guy on the line did not know what to tell me. He just told me to expect my invoice in November.

So, there you have it, the unhelpful Yankee customer service people strike again.

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Yankee fans - I implore you to not make idiots of yourselves

The final Yankee Stadium homestand will commence tonight, and as we all know, the Yankees have a nearly 0 percent chance of making the playoffs. In New York, that means a booin'. Don't do it.

While these games are meaningless from a baseball standpoint, the world will still be watching because of the Stadium closing.

Don't make fools of yourself and boo every move that A-Rod makes and every bad thing that happens. Prove to the world that New York fans are not the same as Philadelphia fans. Enjoy the surroundings, enjoy the stress free atmosphere, enjoy the sport of baseball.

Finally, if you are still looking for tickets to the final games, don't believe the hype that they are COMPLETELY unaffordable. Just check out Craigs List regularly and something affordable will come your way.


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Tuesday, September 9, 2008

Curt Schilling's inane babble hits an all-time low

This will serve as an open letter to Curtis Montague Schilling.

Dear Curtis,

Today, you opened your big mouth (), something that sports fans everywhere have become accustomed to. However, this time the idiocy that came out was worse than ever. Let me get this question out of the way immediately - why do you think that Jets fans are the same thing as Yankee fans? Lets go to the quote:

“The Yankees suck this year and (New Yorkers are) bitter and mad and they’re making excuses over that and now they got Tom (Brady) going down, so New York’s excited,” said Schilling while appearing on Boston’s WEEI radio network Tuesday. “It’s unfortunate, but when you crawl to the top of the pile you will have people trying to knock you down."
What an odd leap of faith you took there, Curtis Montague. You assume that because the Jets play with an "NY" on their helmet, and the Yankees play with an "NY" on their baseball caps, the fan base is one and the same? In case you forgot, there is another football team in NY called the Giants. You remember them, right? They are the team that made the record 18-1 famous and shocked the world by beating your butt-boy Tom Brady's Patriots in the Super Bowl last season. As a matter of fact, in a non-scientific poll that I took recently, there is a strong correlation between being a Yankee fan and being a GIANTS fan.**

I may be coming off a little bit "bitter and mad" here, but really, I'm just confused. Tom Brady goes, down with a knee injury, New York papers create catchy headlines about the injury and how it relates to the Jets and suddenly Yankee fans are bitter and mad? Don't you have a team to be playing for blogging about?

To conclude, I have to admit that I agree that a lot of Yankee fans are bitter and mad right now. When considering your asinine statements and the fourth place position in the AL East Standings, that is understandable. As a matter of fact, I started this blog to make fun of a lot of these "Yankee fans" you speak of who hold on to their nostalgic feelings from the 90's dynasty. I just don't understand how you connected that to Tom Brady's injury. Sadly, I may never know the answer to that question.

Sincerely,

Ross
NYYStadiumInsider.com

P.S Did kids in school make fun of you because your middle name was Montague? Isn't that a town in Long Island?

** I took no such poll, but I know a few people who are Giants fans and Yankee fans.

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Monday, September 8, 2008

Yankee fans - get ready to welcome home your fourth place team

It feels like yesterday that I introduced PECOTA's amazing projections for 2008 to the 3 loyal readers of NYYSI. The future looked bright and all signs pointed to a glorious exit for the "House That Ruth Built". Now, after losing 2 out of 3 to the lowliest of lowly Seattle Mariners, and with a 3 game set against the Yankee-killing Angels looming, it is more than likely that the Yankees will return home for their final homestand as a fourth place team. Further, the Yankees elimination number (combined number of Yankee losses and Red Sox wins until the Yankees are eliminated from playoff contention) is down to 12.

Hey, look on the bright side - at least the Orioles have a firm hold on last place in the division.



Talk about it in the NYYSI Forums! Read the full post, after the jump
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