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.

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