Pride, Power, and Pinstripes: What Yankee Stadium Means To Me

To say that Sunday night was memorable would be a great understatement.  I once again looked upon Yankee Stadium from my television, hundreds of miles away at college.  I watched the pre-game ceremonies bearing the names of the legends I spoke of earlier as well as the guys I grew up idolizing—O’Neill, Brosius, Boggs, Cone, Wells, and Girardi.  I must say, when Bernie Williams jogged out on the field, it was difficult not to choke up.  Having Julia Ruth throw out the first pitch, was icing on the cake as far as I’m concerned.  Her presence made Yankee Stadium even more special, as she began the ending to the Stadium her father built.

The game itself was something special.  While most would have drawn up the last game at Yankee Stadium being Game 7 of the World Series, unfortunately it could not be.  However, the game had a must win Game 7 feel.  Appropriately, Andy Pettitte took the mound and did not disappoint.  The crafty lefty surrendered three runs in his five plus innings of work, recording his 2,000^th strikeout and becoming the last winning pitcher in Stadium history.  He offered vintage Pettitte looks, tipping the brim of his hat, and covering his face with his glove so that only his focused eyes could be seen, a familiar picture of the late 90s Yankee dynasty.  Pettitte left the game in the top of the 6^thinning to a standing ovation, receiving a curtain call in the process.  Perhaps it was appropriate that Joba Chamberlain also pitched in this game.  The young right hander will likely play a huge part in christening the new stadium, and it was great to see him be a part of closing the old one.  It was also tremendous to see Derek Jeter taken out of the game in the 9^th inning.  The Yankee captain got an outstanding ovation on his way off the field, and he too received a curtain call.  However, seeing Mariano Rivera close out the game was something very special.  As the opening lick to “Enter Sandman” struck up on the Stadium loudspeakers, I got the same chill on the back of my neck sitting on my couch as I have so many times before at the Stadium.  Watching Rivera pitch a 1-2-3 ninth and grasping the game ball was something I’ll never forget.

My hat also gets tipped to ESPN.  The network did a tremendous job in making the final game memorable.  Between the pre-game coverage they offered, all the way until Derek Jeter’s speech and tour of the Stadium, they did an outstanding job.  They did the last game justice by showing the Stadium’s subtleties that together add up to form Yankee baseball.  They showed roll call from the bleacher creatures.  They allowed names like Whitey Ford, Yogi Berra, and Reggie Jackson to enter the announcer’s booth.  They didn’t cut to commercial during the seventh inning stretch and showed the Stadium’s famous Irish Tenor.  They even allowed Yankee broadcaster Michael Kay to commentate an inning in the booth.  The fact that they caught every image right up until the end was great, and they deserve all the praise they can get.

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