2008 marks the final season that the New York Yankees play at Yankee Stadium. "The House That Ruth Built" opened in 1923 and is the third oldest stadium in baseball behind only Wrigley Field in Chicago and Fenway Park in Boston. No baseball field has hosted more World Series games and some of the greats such as Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle, Reggie Jackson and Roger Maris called Yankee Stadium home.Although I have attended baseball games at over a dozen stadiums, Yankee Stadium is not one of them. I think there is an expectation from passionate baseball fans that I should attend a game at Yankee Stadium before it closes at the end of the season. However, with limited time available to attend a weekend game over the next few months (it is doubtful that I would be able to take time off from work to go during the week) and the high cost of tickets, I am questioning whether or not I should try to go. In addition, in his book "God Save the Fan," Deadspin’s Will Leitch wrote, "As far as I’m concerned, there’s not a stadium in all of sports that’s a less enjoyable place to watch a sporting event than Yankee Stadium." (There’s more about this at River Ave. Blues.) That’s not exactly a glowing recommendation.
Therefore, I put the decision in your hands. Please take the poll on the right side of the page and add any comments below.
If you think that this post was just an opportunity for me to use the poll feature, you would be partially correct.
Go for the sake of seeing it at least once, although some of my friends weren't enamored with it when we went last -- but sitting in the bleachers on a 90-degree day in late June with Kei Igawa pitching will put you in a bad mood.
ReplyDeleteHeck, I need to go at least one more time before it closes.
go to Pittsburgh instead. supposedly the best park in baseball now.
ReplyDeletefrankly, I'm torn... on one hand, I'm not a fan of going somewhere just because "it's historical"... maybe a big game was played there in the dim and foggy past... maybe legions of new yorkers watched hall of famers play here for years... but frankly, so what? that's their nostalgia, not mine...
ReplyDeleteon the other hand, if you choose not to go, it's a choice you can't un-make... you can always find ways to recoup the cost of going, but you can't decide that you'd like to see a game there after the fact...
speaking of the costs, I've kinda soured on spending money on professional sports, so for me, that's a personal negative... but I'm also probably headed to NYC at some point this summer anyway, so I might just make MY first trip to yankee stadium...
I tried to vote but the poll would not process my request...(it was YES!Go!!). Your intuition was already contemplating whether or not to go, that means you really want to, just need an excuse to give in. Yankee Stadium and the atmosphere is worth it for the memories.
ReplyDeleteI work for an online PR company that is currently promoting the Life Changing Box game on Facebook. Players have the opportunity to win many prizes INCLUDING an all expense paid trip to NYC plus free baseball tickets. I think its worth trying your hand at luck. Let me know if you or anyone else has any questions about the game!
Best of Luck!!
Katie
Abraham&Harrison
Life Changing Box
Thanks everyone for your feedback!
ReplyDeleteOh, to anonymous, I think I may try to make it to Pittsburgh some day.