A few random thoughts on the Yankees and baseball:
- One of my co-workers, Adam, a die-hard Red Sox fan, had two Yankee season ticket stubs at his desk today from the 80s (a picture of them posted to the right from 1980 and 1982 for Field Box seats). Check out the price for a season plan on those tickets. The Sports Illustrated Photo Vault had posted the ticket prices from 1987 a few weeks back but these make you saw "wow" even more.
- While it doesn't look like the Yankees will be raising ticket prices to pay for Cliff Lee, the Yankees will be raising the parking prices. If people are still paying to park at Yankee Stadium, I'm very sorry. Meanwhile, the Red Sox will be raising ticket prices next year so they can retroactively have had enough money to sign Mark Teixeira.
- A report by Big League Stew at the end of October stated that the Florida Marlins were considering dealing their top prospect, Mike Stanton, for...wait for it...Ozzie Guillen. That amazing story had River Ave Blues and Tango trying to figure out what the Yankees could get for an actually good manager like Joe Girardi.
- When Joe Girardi was a Yankee, he went from the starting catcher to being slowly replaced by the young stud, Jorge Posada. Now Posada is the veteran who may be giving way this spring to super-stud prospect, Jesus Montero. With Posada only signed for one more season and Montero having nothing left to prove offensively in the minors, this makes all the sense in the world to me. I know he may not be great defensively but, really, is Posada or Francisco Cervelli being mistaken for Bench back there? Meanwhile, as Steven Goldman writes for Pinstriped Bible, Jorge is bowling for controversy with his comments. I think the Yankees should just tell the moody Posada he'll be lucky to catch more than 90 games in 2011 (though Joel Sherman thinks it will be a lot more). Make it simple
- A former Yankee catcher, Jim Leyritz, has a story that keeps on getting sadder and weirder. It's seeming like he could be free in the end but, in all honesty, that's a shame considering that his drunk driving killed someone.
- Yankee haters are waiting for Mariano Rivera to decline, but Joe Pawlikowski writing for ESPN says that they may have to wait just a bit longer for that to happen.
- Yankees fans, if it makes you feel any better, you were probably not going to win the World Series. I would have loved to get there to see what we could have done against that Giants squad, but, in the end, I think they would have crushed the Yankees with their pitching.
- And to make us all feel a lot better, ESPN has finally broken up the Sunday Night Baseball team. As long as they don't replace them with Joe Buck and Tim McCarver or anyone who has ever broadcasted from TBS, I think we'll all be much, much better off. Joe Morgan can go tell everyone that his Big Red Machine teams were better than the Yankees teams in a different venue now.
- Lastly, the Oakland A's acquired David DeJesus from the Kansas City Royals for fellow New Jersey-native Vin Mazzaro. DeJesus, a New Jersey native, has been one of the more underrated players in baseball (and a bargain at $6 M) and someone I would have loved at different periods for the Yankees to acquire. I like this move for the A's.
More later...
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I really wish that NBC had a national baseball contract, because I wish I could hear more of Bob Costas. He does some games for MLB Network with Jim Kaat, which is a great combination.
ReplyDeleteHi Andrew, Thanks for posting those ticket stubs. When I was a kid, my father's company owned those season tickets in the old Yankee stadium. The House that Ruth built ... and Steinbrenner knocked down to generate more revenue.
ReplyDeleteAs for the Red Sox raising prices, let's be fair. The article headline is actually "Red Sox Journal: Some ticket prices to rise" and says that only 30% will rise a whopping "up to $5 per ticket".
Given that the Red Sox Nation has sold out Fenway some 600+ times and counting, I don't think anyone there is complaining. And in addition to the fact that Red Sox ownership would never knock down an historical landmark the way Steinbrenner did, Boston fans are actually seeing a nice improvement to Fenway next season, for the 10th year in a row.
http://boston.redsox.mlb.com/news/press_releases/press_release.jsp?ymd=20101019&content_id=15715452&vkey=pr_bos&fext=.jsp&c_id=bos
"The House that Ruth Built" was not really the house that Ruth built since it had been majorly redone. Besides that it was a dump. It's all about supply and demand, that is why the Mets are lowering prices. i am one Yankee fan who likes the new stadium, although I think the TV is gawdy and a bit distracting. i also love the train option to the game. I will have to track down my stub collection for you to check out Andrew---- my wife almost made me throw it away recently. I can't remember if my first Yanks game was in there (1979), vs. the Sox and a loss 5-0. I was just happy to see Nettles, and Reggie and my favorite Yankee Thurman Munson.
ReplyDeleteCorrection--- The game was Sept 5, 1979 and Thurman was gone a month earlier. The accident happened while I was visiting grandparents in Europe and my parents did not tell me until I got home--- they had no knowledge of baseball but knew their son was becoming a fanatic and his favorite player died. I think going to the game was a way to make me feel better. My Mom took me and she did not know what was going on (no knowledge of baseball). In later years I went to a few games with both parents and more with my Dad after I taught him about the game. This was a fter few backyard games with the hardball in which my Dad not only ran the bases with the bat but thought it was in the rules to throw the ball at me to get me out...... what memories!
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