This year, many sports fans, particularly baseball fans, are making the trip to one of the world’s most historic sporting, before it closes forever at the end of the season. Yankee Stadium. Legends such as Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Yogi Berra, Mickey Mantle, Joe DiMaggio, Roger Maris, and many more have played on the field of Yankee Stadium since it opened in 1923. While a new Yankee Stadium is set to open next season, many Yankee fans don’t want to abandon, “The House That Ruth Built.”
“I’m really gonna miss it,” said New Yorker Carl Swenson. “No stadium can replace the history of this one.”
At this historic place, there are so many things to see in addition to the ballgame. While the Yankee fans rarely leave their seats, tourists are always attracted to Monument Park, located in left center field. Before games, you can see the plaques of the greatest players ever to don the Yankee pinstripes. Players such as George “Babe” Ruth and Joe DiMaggio have their plaques displayed and you can touch them, just as Roger Clemens did before each home game as a Yankee.
The team’s retired numbers, 15 with number 8 retired twice, are also displayed in Monument Park on large baseballs. There’s #3 for Babe Ruth, #4 for Lou Gehrig, #7 for Mickey Mantle, #44 for Reggie Jackson and so on.
But hurry, because the entry line is cut off about half-hour after the gates open.
In center field sits another valuable asset to the ballpark. Standing on the top of the American flagpole is a baseball bat. Legend has it that Lou Gehrig’s widow gave it to the stadium after he died. No one knows for sure where the bat came from, but the legend is enough for a great picture.
Once you take your seat, there’s more to see. At the bottom of the stadium’s archaic cement steps, you’ll find photos of the Yankee teams that won 26 World Series Championships on the walls of many sections. One that stands out is the 1961 Yankees Team picture. In 1961, not only did they win the World Series, but Roger Maris broke Babe Ruth’s record of homeruns in a season by hitting 61. By spreading the photos out, they can cover the stadium with these hailed rosters.
Across the street sits the New Yankee Stadium, which will be under construction until April of 2009. This new one will hold slightly fewer fans, but have the same field dimensions and far more dining and lounge options. There will be 56 private suites and 410 party suites as well.
The team’s Web site quotes Yankees president Randy Levine, “This new stadium will present new comforts, new features and be state-of-the-art in every way.”
Above all, Yankee Stadium has an atmosphere that will send chills down you back, even if you cheer for the Red Sox. The fans are constantly cheering and heckling the opposing team, chanting out “Derek Jeter” and “A-Rod,” and everything in between.
And if you are lucky, and the game gets tight at the end, you may get to see one of the greatest closers of all time, Mariano Rivera. It’s hard to describe the fans’ reaction when “Enter Sandman” blasts through the stadium loudspeakers, the door in center-field opens and Rivera comes out. Nor can their reaction when he strikes out the last batter to end the game.
Whether you are a baseball fan, sports fan, or just want to be able to say you went to The House That Ruth Built in its final season, Yankee Stadium offers it all.
Get to the ballpark at least two hours before game time if you plan to buy a ticket there because they go fast. And if they are sold out or don’t have the ones you want, wait around the ticket office for a while as they will suddenly release the tickets reserved for umpires and players to the public. By being first in line for the release of tickets, my friends and I got great tickets for $80 instead of the $350 tickets the box office had earlier. Have fun!
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