Sad day

[Cannon Shell]

Today the last game will be played in the best sports venue that I have ever been to. Despite hardly being a fan of the Yankees it is a sad day that Yankee Stadium is closing. Though I only knew the renovated version I was always floored by the history and the way that place seemed to bridge the old and new. From the trains rolling through right field to monument park it always seemed like it was THE place to watch a baseball game. Though I usually disagree with them and they could take obnoxious behavior to a new level, Yankee fans at the stadium always seem like real fans. They are almost universally biased but know the game and dont need the hokey crap to know when to cheer or boo. I have been to almost evey stadium on the East Coast and Midwest and some on the West Coast and there is really nothing like it. Fenway is great and Wrigley is a cool place too but too much of it seems contrived and so many of the fans there seem like they are there because they are the 'in' places as opposed to being real fans. Several years ago, I had the great fortune to be able to go in the Yankee clubhouse and dugout before a game and it was one of the highlights of my life. Sitting there in that dugout knowing this was where so many greats have sat was wild. I understand that money rules the world and life goes on but it seems wrong that this place which is still a great place to watch baseball (isnt that the idea?) and is truly a historic American place will soon be gone.

[Hickory Hill Hoff]

Great post! I totally agree with you, theres no denying the history in that building. It's too bad that tradition has gone by the wayside, but the memories and history of that structure will live on forever.

[declansharbor]

Well said. I think, from time to time, of all the history that Yankee Stadium holds. Unbelievable actually. I'm glad that I got to experience it and was able to take some very fond memories away from it.

[Heels1989]

Well said Chuck. As a life long Sox fan, the Yankees have been, well, THE YANKEES. With that said, the Stadium has always been one of my favorites for all the reasons you mention. I had the good fortune to attend a number of games in the Bronx. By far the most memorable was attending Game 3 of the 1978 World Series verse the Dodgers with my dad. I will never forget coming out from under the stands to see the emerald green glowing under the Stadium lights. Billy Crystal's description is all so true.

Sports fans lose a very special place today. Next to the old Montreal Forum, the Stadium is arguably the most historic venues in sports.

[MaTH716]

Nice post Chuck. I agree there is nothing like Yanke Stadium, the place is an absolute shrine. No matter how many times I have went, I always get that same special kind of feeling whenever I walk through the tunnel and see the field (just like the first time I saw the field as a kid). I have been to a handful of stadiums on the east coast and the thing that strikes me most about Yankee Stadium is that it's all about the baseball (Fenway was pretty cool too). What I mean is you hear people talk about parks like Camden Yards and the Phils new park (I think it's Citizens field) and people only talk about the ribs or all the things for the kids to do. I guess it's more about entertainment than it is baseball. Yankee stadium is 100% baseball. I personally don't see the need for a new stadium in the Bronx, but I guess it is all about the $$$$$$. I will definitley miss the old place.

[SCUDSBROTHER]

Dodgers lost there miserably in '77, and '78. Dodgers won it all there in '81. Didn't equal the score (to me atleast,) and I won't be sorry to see it go(then again, I've never been there.) I predict(I can't promise because it's "unacceptable") that whoever comes out with a plan to tear down Dodger Stadium, is gunna take one in the neck.

[Mortimer]

I declare a National Day of Snoring.

I'm devastated. New York is the best in everything.

[Mortimer]

Except the Eastern Div. of the AL.

[SCUDSBROTHER]

Originally Posted by Mortimer

Except the Eastern Div. of the AL.

[Mortimer]

[philcski]

I'll be the counterpoint here, with the notation that I absolutely HATE the Yankees. I've been to many games there, and while sitting with the Bleacher Creatures (before they banned beer out there) is an experience like no other, I've always found it to be a pretty mediocre experience. Give me Camden Yards or Pac Bell or Fenway or Wrigley ANY day. It's kind of like Belmont Park to me, OK facility, great history, but kind of dated.

I'm a Met fan with many fond memories of Shea, but I won't shed a tear when the Big Blue Boat is gone next year- it's the worst stadium in baseball by far.

[philcski]

Originally Posted by Mortimer

Except the Eastern Div. of the AL.

but...but...it's the place where A-Rod choked like a test subject of Dr. Heimlich.

[ateamstupid]

The saddest part is that, unlike Shea, it doesn't need to be torn down whatsoever. Shea is a dump, Yankee Stadium is still as great as it's ever been.

[SCUDSBROTHER]

Originally Posted by philcski

I'm a Met fan with many fond memories of Shea, but I won't shed a tear when the Big Blue Boat is gone next year- it's the worst stadium in baseball by far.

Dodger road announcers( the worst possible....f'n half blind Charlie Steiner and another guy) always talk s-h-i-t about Shea. What is it that's makes it so awful? Just wondering.

[Hickory Hill Hoff]

Originally Posted by SCUDSBROTHER

Dodger road announcers( the worst possible....f'n half blind Charlie Steiner and another guy) always talk s-h-i-t about Shea. What is it that's makes it so awful? Just wondering.

It's a 60's style stadium....outdated.

[dalakhani]

Originally Posted by philcski

I'll be the counterpoint here, with the notation that I absolutely HATE the Yankees. I've been to many games there, and while sitting with the Bleacher Creatures (before they banned beer out there) is an experience like no other, I've always found it to be a pretty mediocre experience. Give me Camden Yards or Pac Bell or Fenway or Wrigley ANY day. It's kind of like Belmont Park to me, OK facility, great history, but kind of dated.

I'm a Met fan with many fond memories of Shea, but I won't shed a tear when the Big Blue Boat is gone next year- it's the worst stadium in baseball by far.

I love the Yankees but im with you philly. And your analogy is perfect. I love Belmont park as long as i dont have to go there.

Camden is soooo much nicer.

[philcski]

Originally Posted by ateamstupid

The saddest part is that, unlike Shea, it doesn't need to be torn down whatsoever. Shea is a dump, Yankee Stadium is still as great as it's ever been.

No argument there. Yankee Stadium is still very viable and the new Yankee seems like a blatant ripoff with cleaner bathrooms.

Originally Posted by SCUDSBROTHER

Dodger road announcers( the worst possible....f'n half blind Charlie Steiner and another guy) always talk s-h-i-t about Shea. What is it that's makes it so awful? Just wondering.

Just about everything. It's a football stadium so the seats don't face the right way, the sightlines are awful, the bathrooms suck, the corridors are about 10 feet wide, and it's massive so theres no intimacy.

[santana]

Originally Posted by philcski

I'll be the counterpoint here, with the notation that I absolutely HATE the Yankees. I've been to many games there, and while sitting with the Bleacher Creatures (before they banned beer out there) is an experience like no other, I've always found it to be a pretty mediocre experience. Give me Camden Yards or Pac Bell or Fenway or Wrigley ANY day. It's kind of like Belmont Park to me, OK facility, great history, but kind of dated.

I'm a Met fan with many fond memories of Shea, but I won't shed a tear when the Big Blue Boat is gone next year- it's the worst stadium in baseball by far.

I am not really sure how you can say that Shea is the worst place by far?

The sight lines are good, and maybe it doesnt hold the history of Yankee stadium, it has its own history....
Shea has everything you need to watch a game....maybe it was the airplanes that bothered you?

I watched Many double headers at Shea....and just walked home thru Flushing Meadow park to get home......safely.

Can you say that about the Bronx? www.nydailynews.com
has a great piece about Shea....