UConn-Yankees Ticket Offer @ Yankee Stadium

On Wednesday, April 13, the Yankees will be honoring the 2011 NCAA Basketball Champion UConn Huskies.  There will be an on-the-field pregame ceremony, and Kemba Walker will throw out the first pitch.  The actual Yankees game against the Baltimore Orioles will begin at 7:05 p.m.

Here's the kicker for all the fans: use the promo code "UCONN" and get $5 tickets in the Main Level Outfield, Terrace Level Outfield, Grandstand Level and Bleachers seats.  Not a bad deal.

So come on, UConn Country, show up to cheer on your Huskies.  Besides, the sagging attendance figures at Yankee Stadium could use your help!

Guest Post: Bowling Anyone?

I received this guest post from Alex O yesterday, but unfortunately haven't been able to post until today. I know that some of it has been completed, but plenty is still good and relevant. Here is Alex O with another guest post on the college bowl season:

Yankee Stadium was the snowy site of The Pinstripe Bowl (ESPN)

------------------------------------------------
How about a little December 30 MMX bowl chatter?

Army vs. SMU just kicked off, being played in Dallas. I always root for the Black Knights having grown up 25 minutes from West Point and going to a bunch of games through the years. There is not many places as great for a College Football game then Michie Stadium on the banks of the Hudson

Army was getting 7 points but is already up 7. I think they get figured out like they did vs. Notre Dame at Yankee Stadium and they end up getting lumped (unfortunately).

Three other games today including Kansas State (-1) vs. Syracuse. I used to work with a guy named Blatchley who went to KState. I am sure he will be watching somewhere today chewing on some beef jerky with a Bud Light in hand. This is of course is the Inaugural Pinstripe Bowl, little nippy to be “chillin” at Yankee Stadium for a Bowl game of slightly above average teams. The oddsmakers think it will be close so could be worth a gander. If gambling were legal I would take the point and go with the Orange. Here is Yahoo’s short preview.

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RIP Freddy "Sez", Your Pan Will Be Missed

They say that bad things come in threes. I came out of the movies last night to multiple messages on my Blackberry about the death of Freddy Schuman, AKA Freddy "Sez". For those who don't know, Freddy has been a fixture of Yankee Stadium ever since I can remember, with his pan and spoon trying to rally the crowd. He had creative (and usually rhyming) signs and walked around the Stadium from section-to-section. You always liked when that pang pang pang got louder because you knew that you were that closer to banging the pan.

Oddly, my first time banging the pan wasn't at Yankee Stadium. It was at the old All-Star Cafe for Game 4 of the 1996 American League Championship Series. I saw Freddy there and decided to go up to finally get the courage to go up to him and bang the pan (I have no clue why I was nervous...but I was). I asked him why he wasn't in Baltimore and he said he doesn't go on the road trips, and added "besides, why would I want to go to Baltimore?"

The Yankees won a slug-fest of a game and I'll always remember thinking that my pan-banging was a reason. Two years ago, as the Old Yankee Stadium was coming to a close, I saw Freddy walking around while I was talking with a friend. I realized that Freddy was a part of my Old Stadium experience as much as meeting at the bat, or walking through the tunnel to see that green grass, or hearing Bob Sheppard over the loudspeaker or chanting along with the Bleacher Creatures' roll call. I had my friend snap that picture to the right.

Last night, when I got home, I found it again and smiled at the one-eyed man with the pan, Freddy "Sez" who will join George Steinbrenner and Bob Sheppard as people watching over these 2010 Yankees. I don't think Yankee Stadium security will let 50,000 people bring in pans to the stadium tonight, but hopefully I hear that pang pang pang from my spot in the bleachers and know that Freddy's memory is still with us.

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Trivia Tuesday: 100 Win Edition

The Tampa Bay Devils Rays are trying to win 100 games for the first time in franchise history (coolstandings.com have them on pace for exactly 100, PECOTA at exactly 99, and Baseball Prospectus at 98.7) . Currently they are among a group of 8 current Major League franchises who have never reached the century mark according to Baseball-Reference. Can you name the other 7?

Bonus Question: According to MLB Park Factors from ESPN (Park Factor compares the rate of stats at home vs. the rate of stats on the road) Coors Field, Yankee Stadium and the Rangers Ballpark in Arlington are the three best hitters parks as far as run scoring is concerned. Which 5 MLB parks currently suppress the most runs according to MLB Park Factors?

Put your answers into the comments below. I'll reveal the correct answers later. Good luck!

The Night I Got Kicked Out of Yankee Stadium--and Snuck Back In

It's a story that I've told many times, but one that still seems to bring a smile and cringe to my face: the night I got kicked out of old Yankee Stadium. It's a slow day here and I figured it was a good time to finally put the story on the blog. So here it goes:

The stadium security policy got me kicked out of a game--but provided for a memorable night

It was April 18, 2002 and I headed down to the old ballpark in the Bronx with my buddies Jordan and Micah to see the Baltimore Orioles take on the New York Yankees. The Yankees had David Wells pitching vs. Scott Erickson who the Yankees had pretty much owned over his career (9-13 with a 4.98 ERA and 1.522 WHIP).

I had three seats for that night and we piled into Jordan's minivan and headed down to Yankee Stadium. I was about to have major surgery, I still hadn't decided on where I was going to college, I was nervous/excited/anxious about leaving home to go to school, and I felt like a night of baseball with my boys would help take my mind off what was going on in my life.

Backing up a bit, my invitation to Micah was in return for him inviting me to Opening Day. His father's law firm had acquired four season tickets for the 2002 season in the last row behind the visiting dugout in the Field Box section (I believe that was the name of the area--though @leokitty suggests Field Championship via Twitter which is probably right). We had played hooky, and took the train from Scarsdale on Opening Day to see them play the Devil Rays. I told him I would pay him back with a game and the April 18th game was the one. 

The game was a doozy. The Yankees led off the bottom of first with a Soriano single, then a steal of second and a hit by Nick Johnson put runners at the corners for Derek Jeter (no Bernie Williams that night so the make-shift lineup had Derek Jeter in the three-hole). Jeter singled home Soriano and then Johnson scored two batters later when Jorge Posada hit a line drive single to center.

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A Quick Story About The Late, Great Bob Sheppard

Like many Yankees fans, I was saddened to hear that Bob Sheppard had passed away this weekend. I never met the man and knew little of him outside of the stories that I've heard from baseball writers and people in baseball. But I will always remember his voice and no matter how many times my friends and I tried to imitate him, none of us could come close. I will also remember one story in particular involving Sheppard.

It was about 10 years ago when my distant Israeli cousin, Yitzhak (who was in his mid-50's), came to stay with my family and I for a few weeks during the summer. One of the things we decided to do with him is take him to a Yankee game. Although he had no interest in baseball, I convinced him that it would be a fun experience (or at least convinced him that if he was going to be in New York, it was one of the more memorable places to visit).

My family  headed down to the Old Stadium with Yizthak and we took our seats just before game time in the Tier Box. As I was trying to explain the rules of the game to Yitzhak (which was pretty much a failure with a cultural and language gap separating us), suddenly Bob Sheppard's voice came on and said "Good evening, ladies and Gentlemen... and welcome to Yankee Stadium"

My cousins eyes turned wide at the voice, he looked around at the speakers and then he looked at me and he said "WOW!" I smiled back at him and all I could say was "yup!" My cousin wasn't excited by much at the game that night, but that voice got to him like it did to so many others.

Most of the time I would take Sheppard's PA announcing for granted, but that was one night I listened extra carefully to it. I'm happy Sheppard's voice will always live on in Yankee Stadium and will follow Derek Jeter whenever he comes to bat as a home player (though I'm sad that Sheppard never got to work the last game of the Old Stadium or any game of the New Stadium). Yitzhak didn't care much about the game that night but he couldn't get over Sheppard's voice (nor the fact that they played Hava Nagila on the organ) for the rest of the trip. I will certainly remember that voice as well.

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View from the 4 Train Platform: Yankee Stadium Deconstruction Completed

I made the trip from West Hartford to NYC last week for a doctor's appointment.  Never one to miss an opportunity to observe Yankee history in the making -- however depressing that history may be -- I decided to kill some time between lunch and dinner by heading up to The Empty Plot Of Land Formerly Known As Yankee Stadium for some photo opportunities.

Below are the photos I snapped with my iPhone, documenting the old and the new.  The entire structure of the old Stadium is gone.  All we have left is scrap metal, crumbled concrete, mud, and (de)construction equipment.  Standing in between the two ballparks, I appreciated the beauty and grandeur of the New Yankee Stadium, but I resented it at the same time.  As I walked around the area on such a gorgeous spring day, I just wanted the old place back.

P.S. How sad is that bat, still standing all by itself behind where home plate used to be??

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Running Series: Yankee Stadium Deconstruction Update 5/10/10

Yesterday, while heading up to Westchester for Mother's Day through the Bronx, I passed by the New Yankee Stadium and the remnants of old Yankee Stadium. It's depressing. At this point, it is one piece of the stands and nothing else. Mud, debris, cleanup vehicles, The Bat...and this one structure that was one of my least favorite parts of the old place (it was the walkway on the side of the outfield).

The most amazing part for me? The fact that while the Old Stadium felt enormous, the footprint left is tiny in comparison. In other words, it's strange to think that the small plot of dirt that currently sits on this spot housed so many people at one point. I used to walk into the Old Stadium and I felt overwhelmed by the place. Now I look at the plot of land and try to remember the structure that was there. While my subway car was whizzing by, I decided to snap a few photos. Check them out below and let us know your thoughts as the last pieces of the House that Ruth Built are finally torn down.

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One if By Sea to Two New York Baseball Stadiums

The Mets and Yankees have continued to come up with ways that people can avoid driving to baseball games and here's another way: they can take a complimentary New York Water Taxi to either stadium (H/T Aimee via Sarah). The transport leaves from Pier 11 (at the end of Wall Street) and is a great alternative for businessmen and businesswomen who would rather not squeeze into a packed 4 train in business suit and sweat their way to 161st in the Bronx.

During the course of the season, the taxis will leave 90 minutes before game time and arrive at least 30 minutes before first pitch. There will be no return service.

The water taxis, adorned with the team and Delta logos, are equipped with air conditioning, a bar and satellite television, and can accommodate 147 passengers. Tickets will be available up to two hours before departure and can be found on the New York Water Taxi website or by going to Pier 11.

Now, before we celebrate, there are some drawbacks here:

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Yankees Over/Under: Starting Rotation

Yesterday we looked at the Starting 9 with a fun Over/Under game and today we'll check out the starting pitchers. Basically you just put in the comments the numbers and whether you think the player will be under or over in 2010. Tomorrow we'll finish with the bullpen, the coaches and the bench but let's get going with the pitchers (with details about the numbers in parentheses):

1. CC Sabathia - 19 wins (his win total from last year)
2. A.J. Burnett - 29 starts (his average amount of starts the past 5 seasons)
3. Andy Pettitte - 1/2 a run difference between his home and road ERA (his home ERA was 0.88 runs worse last season)
4. Javier Vazquez - 16 wins (his career-high mark set in 2001)
5. Javier Vazquez - 198 IP (his decade-low mark set in 2004 with Yankees)
6. Joba Chamberlain - 22 starts (his average the past two seasons)
7. Phil Hughes - 4.50 ERA as a starter (his career mark as a starter is 5.22)
8. Alfredo Aceves - 5 starts (his career total)
9. Sergio Mitre + Chad Gaudin - 9 starts combined (9 was Mitre's total alone last season)

And now a few non-stat related ones:

10. CC Sabathia - 4th in the Cy Young voting (his finish last season and "over would be mean better and "under" would mean worse)
11. Javier Vazquez - 1.5 times per game 2004 ALCS Game 7 shot of Vazquez shown
12. A.J. Burnett - 10 pies in the face after game-winning hits (the Yankees had 15 game-winning hits last season)
13. CC Sabathia- 290 pounds (his "official" weight)
14. Other starters - 3 starts by other pitchers than the 9 listed above
15. Andy Pettitte - 10 starts until a New York newspaper suggests he's "done"

Put your thoughts in the comments below. I'll tally up the results and we'll see how we did in October.

Picture from the New York Times

Yankees Finally Name Their Bowl Game (And It's Not "William Barthman Jeweler Bowl")

We knew about it since September. We even guessed on the name. But it's official now after this came from a press release from the New York Yankees:

The New York Yankees announced today that the college football Bowl Game to be held at Yankee Stadium is scheduled for December 30, 2010, and will be called the New Era Pinstripe Bowl with a four-year title-sponsorship agreement in place with headwear and apparel manufacturer New Era Cap Company, Inc...

The New Era Pinstripe Bowl will be nationally televised by ESPN, which has also secured national and local radio rights for ESPN Radio. The agreement for both broadcast platforms is for six years through the 2015 game.

The name is OK, but much better names were suggested by NYaT readers including: "Empire Bowl", "Yankee Bowl", "Big Apple Bowl", "Steinbrenner Bowl", "Citi Bowl", "Goldman Sachs Bowl", "Metlife Bowl", "William Barthman Jeweler Bowl" (my personal favorite), "Bronx Bowl", "Geico presents the Big Apple Bowl", "Boss Bowl", "Yankee Bowl", "YES Network Big Apple Bowl", "Freedom Bowl", "America's Bowl", "Liberty Bowl" (already taken), "Twin Towers Bowl", "Stars & Stripes Bowl", "National Bowl", "Metro Bowl, "Urban Bowl", "Empire Bowl", "Transit Bowl", "Amsterdam Bowl", "Skyscraper Bowl", "Verizon Bowl", "Hess Bowl", or "J.P. MorganChase Bowl".

The biggest issue is that the game will exclude the Yankees from hosting the National Hockey League's "Winter Classic" due to that game being played on New Years day. I thought there may be some flexibility on the date of the game in future years, but this part of the release makes me think there isn't:

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Running Series: Yankee Stadium Deconstruction Update + Barclays Center Construction Update 3/8/10

Out with the old, in with the new.  On the same day that Tom Kaminski snapped some new photos from Chopper 880, we got our first glimpse of the seating bowl in the Nets' soon-to-be-built Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

I have driven by the old Yankee Stadium several times since it closed its doors in late 2008.  However, driving on the Harlem River Drive this past Saturday afternoon, I got my first glimpse of the Stadium's external deconstruction.  It is plainly visible from the highway -- you can easily see how the upper deck in left field is missing pieces.  Anyway, here are the photos for your viewing enjoyment morbid curiosity:

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Why Tickets Don't Always End Up In Fan's Hands

I was perusing the Yankee postseason ticket information when I saw this little nugget:

Yankee Stadium has a seating capacity of 50,235, excluding standing room. For each postseason game, the first opportunity to purchase tickets is provided to current season-ticket licensees, which represent in excess of 37,000 full-season equivalent ticket licenses. Major League Baseball directs clubs to dedicate approximately 3,000 tickets per game for players of the participating clubs and to accommodate the media. In addition, Major League Baseball requires approximately 5,500 tickets per ALDS game, 7,000 tickets per ALCS game and 9,500 tickets per World Series game.

So how many does that leave for the rest of us? For the ALCS, that's 47,000 tickets (at least) taken by "full-season equivalent ticket licenses" (who are companies or people who have money since most cannot afford this luxury in a down economy), players, media, and Major League Baseball. That means that there are only 3,235 seats available for other fans. Considering The New York Times reported that there are 1,048 obstructed seats in the bleachers alone, that leaves 2,187 other seats (some of which are also obstructed by the foul pole or something else). Today, two days before the game, you cannot get a ticket any place in the Stadium on Stubhub for under $125 with the Stubhub fees. This is why the "average fan" has reason to get upset.

"I Was There"

"I was there." That's the difference between watching sports in the comfort of your living room or a bar and watching it live. I'll remember the back-to-back years with Yankees' perfect games, but I'll never forget being at Jim Abbott's no-hitter. I saw Mariano Rivera close out many games over the years, but I'll always tell people I was at Rivera's 400th and 500th saves. Friday night in the Bronx is one of those nights that I'll always be able to say "I was there."

The first playoff game I ever went to was Game 3 of the 1994 Eastern Conference Finals in the NHL Playoffs. A big Ranger fan at the time, I was pumped up to head to New Jersey and the Continental Airlines Arena to see the swing game in the series. My dad and I were pumped to go into enemy territory and see if the Rangers could steal one from their budding interstate rivals. The game was tied 2-2 at the end of regulation, it was tied 2-2 at the end of one overtime. And then, in the second overtime, Stephane Matteau ended it with a game winning, double-overtime goal. Many hockey fans will look at that and be confused, saying, "you must mean game 7."

Game 3 was the forgotten game of that series. It was one of 3 to end in double overtime (Game 1 went to the Devils). But as the Rangers did so often that playoff run, they found a way to win that night in New Jersey. As my dad and I headed back through the Meadowlands tunnel to our car, we were surrounded by dejected Devils fans and Rangers fans who, at the top of their lungs chanted "Let's go Rangers, clap, clap, clapclapclap". Over and over and over again. They banged the sides of the tunnel, they high-fived each other. And my dad and I joined in on the action.

The second playoff game I went to was the next year. My dad and I waited on line (and I put a space in there on purpose because in the pre-internet days, they used to line up people wrapped around the stadium to get playoff tickets) to get tickets to the American League Division Series to see the first-ever-wild-card-winning Yankees take on the Seattle Mariners in Game 2 of the ALDS. We had some of the worst seats in the house but we felt the stadium literally shake as Don Mattingly hit a majestic shot into the October night. It was the Yankee captain's first taste of October as well as mine. I loved every second of it. Jim Leyritz would end that game in extra innings on a walk-off home run.

Let's fast forward to Friday night. I'll post some of the pictures from that night here but I'll make some of the others available as well.

I went with my dad, which, as I've said before and I've told about earlier in this post, just feels natural for a game like this. Like our first baseball playoff game together, we had some of the worst seats in the house, but we were just happy to be there. There was a buzz in the air on Friday night that I hadn't felt before in the New Yankee Stadium. Every time Burnett had two strikes, people cheered. Every time he had two strikes and two outs, everyone rose and cheered.

The crowd also recognized how ridiculous it was that we couldn't get any hits off of Nick Blackburn. This is a guy who led the league in hits given up. And we couldn't touch him through four for as many as one hit. Jorge Posada's biggest fear had come true: the whole line-up was hitting like Jose Molina, especially Mark Teixiera whose jersey I was wearing.

The Yankees caught a break early on that made me feel like it may be their night. A.J. Burnett had one of his wild streaks, hitting two batters, and then gave up a base hit to right. The Yankees looked like they were about to fall behind, but got lucky when Carlos Gomez overran second, Nick Swisher alertly threw behind him, and the Yankees got the out without the run scoring. This was a play that I think got lost in the postgame analysis.

The two worst thing to happen to the Yankees in this game? Two outs and Matt Tolbert's olblique strain. The Yankees allowed a TON of baserunners with two outs to the point that my dad called two outs "poisonous" for us. And Matt Tolbert's olbique strain meant that Brendan Harris entered the game and had two big hits (including a triple that should have been caught but Damon plays the outfield field like Henry Rowengartner at the beginning of Rookie of the Year") and a huge defensive play at third. The first of his two hits put the Twins on the board and quieted the Yankee crowd for a bit.

But then A-Rod continued his hot October with a two-out RBI single which produced my tweets of "I think A-Rod should share Kate Hudson with Tex...he needs her if she's this much of a playoff slumpbuster" and "Maybe Kate Hudson should have gotten the Nobel Peace Prize because she brings A-Rod--and therefore Yankees fans--peace" and "A-Rod really needs to play the Twins every playoffs."

Side Note: I wrote these tweets from my Blackberry during breaks in the game. My dad asked me who was e-mailing me. I just told him "no one". I didn't know how to explain that I was tweeting at the game...and I really didn't know how to explain Twitter to him, either.

The Twins would break the tie off the Yankees previously infallible pair of Hughes and Rivera. And then came the 9th. The crowd was waiting for something--anything--to cheer about. All we needed was a baserunner and we knew the Yankees were in business because they had the middle of their lineup up. We also knew that Joe Nathan had blown a game back in May in Yankee Stadium and despite being one of the top 3 closers in the American League, he could be prone to the yips every once in a while.

Mark Teixeira started it off with a single which was big for him because he had been hitless in the playoffs and seemed like he was pressing with 3 very high pop-ups to start off the game. Then A-Rod came up against Nathan. He hit a long fly ball to right. The whole stadium held it's breath as it soared and soared. I grabbed my dad's arm. He wasn't so sure it was out. And then...IT WAS GONE!

The place erupted, the stands shook, and A-Rod got a curtain call. I high-fived the people sitting next to me, the twins sitting in front of me, the couple next to me, the guy behind me who yelled out "TURTLE!" every time Jason Kubel came to the plate (the resemblance is really uncanny, but I didn't need that yelled out every time), everyone. We went nuts. The whole crowd, maybe anticipating a tough loss, was shocked. We never should have been considering this team has been coming back all year. But A-Rod? In the playoffs? In a huge spot? Wow.

"A-Rod needs to play the Twins every playoff series," I tweeted. It's true. He was great against the Twins in 2004 and hadn't hit well in the playoffs again until he played the Twins again. Amazing.

In the bottom of the 10th, I looked up at the scoreboard and saw the Twins had Mauer, Kubel and Cuddyer coming up and the Yankees had Damaso Marte warming up in the bullpen. I felt like they needed to score there or else they may lose this one after a dramatic comeback. Jorge Posada started it off with a broken bat single. Brett Gardner replaced him to pinch run and stole second. An errant throw by Nathan put him on third. Jeter walked and there was runners on 1st and 3rd with one out and Johnny Damon coming to the plate. A deep fly ball wins it. And what does Damon do? Line one that is caught and then thrown to third to double off Gardner. "Fuck," I said to my dad, "that was not good." The crowd went silent.

Side Note: Some people call Garnder's running on the play a "blunder". It wasn't. You HAVE to send Garnder on contact there. He saw contact and ran. If that ball is a ground ball, he needs to be able to score. If it's a line drive, that's what happens. It happens. It wasn't a "blunder".

Marte would allow his two hitters to single and then Robertson came on. He gave up another single which loaded the bases. No outs. The crowd is dead. There isn't a peep. Infield is in. First batter: line out. One away. Cano and Jeets go back to double play depth. Next pitch is a chopper to the infield, they come home to get the force. Two away. The crowd is getting excited now. Next batter hits a fly ball to center. As Gardner catches the ball, the crowd goes wild. We got out of it. Tex, A-Rod, Matsui coming up. "It's pie time," I declare to the section.

Side note: The seats I had were good enough to see the whole field...except for the foul ground down the left field line. So I didn't see Mauer's ball/the blown call. Here's the one thing I have to say, though. Mauer still got on base. The Twins still loaded the bases. They left 17 men on base in the game. That's not the umpire's fault. Let's give some more credit to the Yankees for winning and less to the umpires for "blowing it"

The rest is a blur. I saw Teixeira hit the ball down the line. I thought it was a double. I saw it hit off the wall and I thought it would carom back onto the field. Except it didn't. I saw Teixiera raise his hand to the sky. I saw the Yankees celebrating. So I celebrated as well. Unlike A-Rod's home run, we didn't have the anticipation of that one up in the air. According to Tyler Kepner, the ball went out of the park in 2.88 seconds at a speed of 110 miles per hour. It was over in an instant.

But we celebrated. And celebrated. We all sang "New York, New York" at the top of our lungs. We waited for and cheered the pie. We all didn't want to leave.

I will remember this photo of Teixeira who seemed to look around to try to soak up the entire experience.


I will remember A.J. Burnett, as was his custom, to come up with a pie for Teixiera and deliver it on cue.


I will remember this scoreboard, the enormous scoreboard, that I cared only for what it said at the very bottom: Yankees 4 - Twins 3.



But, mostly, I'll remember that it was my dad and I who had yet another chance to say "I was there" together. It took forever to leave because everyone stuck around to cheer. When the line stopped moving, I suggested we walk by the field. I told my dad I wanted one more picture to remember this by. So we asked the security guard to snap one and got this shot of our elated faces.

And then we left like we left the Meadowlands 15 years earlier: to the sound of fellow fans chanting in the walkway. The video below was only a short part of a long "Let's Go Yankees" chant that carried us out of the stadium:

Like my first playoff game in the Old Yankee Stadium, my first playoff game in the New Yankee Stadium ended with a walk-off home run. I lost my voice on Friday night but I didn't care. This was certainly one of those nights I'll always remember being there. One which, when people talk about this game 15 years from now, I can say "I was there".

Should Yankees Fans Root For the Twins or the Tigers?

So you're sitting there tonight as a Yankee fan watching the Twins play the Tigers in a one-game tiebreaker playoff. You know the history of one-game playoffs and know that the team coming in will have to play back-to-back days (the Yankees, although they haven't announced it formally, will choose the series that starts Wednesday). You don't really want to root for either team, because you've gotten burned in the past rooting for a team to face, but you want to have at least a preference tonight. So who should you root for as Yankees Stadium awaits its opponent (picture from Sam Borden on the right)? Let's look at the pros and cons of each match-up:

Detroit Tigers
Let's face them!

• They blew a 3 game lead with 4 to play, and they were up seven games on September 6th...so this team is falling and falling fast.

• Miguel Cabrera, the most valuable player for the Tigers, decided it was more important to get drunk and party with the White Sox players until all hours of the morning while his team was fighting for a playoff spot. Then he came home at 5 AM 3 times over the legal limit for driving, woke up his child and his wife, got into a physical altercation with his wife (complete with some nice scratches), and had to go to the police station because he was "very uncooperative and highly intoxicated". What did he do the next two days, the two most important days for the Tigers? He went 0-4 and left four runners on base in the first game and went 0-3 in the last game. That's not being an MVP. Say what you want about A-Rod, but he'd never do this. The Detroit Free Press has more details and Shysterball talks more about the fact this is his second police incident in about a month.

• Remember Edwin Jackson pre-All-Star Game? Well that's not the same guy you're getting post-All-Star Game. The Yankees beat him in his first start after the break and the team was 7-8 when he started in the second half. Including that start, Jackson was 6-5 with a 5.07 ERA, giving up well over a hit an inning, his WHIP ballooned to 1.527, he struck out a batter less per 9 innings (down to 6.2 K/9), and his SO/BB went from 2.77 to 1.83. His OPS against jumped to .856 (.290/.356/.500) from a .617 (.212/.272/.345) first-half mark. And he got worse as the season came to its close going 1-3 with a 6.68 ERA in his last 28 days, 0-2 with a 9.75 ERA in his last 14 days, and 0-1 with a 14.40 ERA in his last week.

• Justin Verlander's one postseason start against the Yankees: ND, 5.1 innings, 7 hits, 3 runs, 1 HR, 4 BB and 5 SO. Overall that postseason (his only one) he was 1-2 with a 5.82 ERA and a 1.662 WHIP.

• The Detroit Tigers were outscored this season. Yes, that's correct: they gave up more runs than they scored.
  

Keep us away from the Tigers!

• This is the EXACT same scenario as 2006. The Yankees came in a tremendously hot team, the favorites of whoever they faced in the first round. And then it seemed the Tigers fell into their lap, faltering greatly down the stretch, blowing the division, but making the playoffs. Jim Leyland was the manager then, too and he got them up for playing the Yankees as they took the ALDS in 4 games behind superior pitching. Déjà vu? Could be

• Justin Verlander will go twice in this series on full rest, including a potential Game 5 start. He was a rookie in 2006, so we may be able to throw out his lack of success that year. This year he's again a top-5 pitcher in the American League and will get quite a few Cy Young votes (Cy Young Predictor has him 3rd) after leading the league in wins (tied for first), starts, IP, K, BF, and K/9. This is not the guy you want to face in an elimination game. Also, another wrinkle is that it was revealed today that Jose Molina will catch AJ Burnett in the playoffs. This means you may have a Game 2 and Game 5 with Jose Molina facing Justin Verlander in big spots instead of Jorge Posada...not good.
  

• Overall, the Tigers' starting pitching is very solid and starting pitching is what wins playoff games. If Rick Porcello is able to win tonight, that will give him added confidence going into the playoffs.

Minnesota Twins
Let's get the Twinkies!

• The Yankees are 7-0 against the Twins this year (they are 5-1 against the Tigers). The last time they were 7-0 against them was 2003 and they beat them in the first round in 4 games that year. They also beat them in 4 games in 2004, the last playoff series they won. Since 2001, they haven't lost a season series with the Twins. The Yankees seem to have their number.

• This team was 70-72 on September 12th after dropping the first two games against Oakland. They would go 16-4 the rest of the season, but they did play an above .500 team (except for the failing Detroit) along the way.

• The Yankees had three straight walk-off wins against the Twins. Joe Nathan blew the May 15th game, A-Rod hit a walk-off HR, and then Johnny Damon ended the third game. Sabathia pitched 7 innings of 3-hit ball against them and A.J. Burnett won the next night. In 285 PAs against the Twins, the Yankees put up a .300/.380/.490 line with 10 HR
  

• Justin Morneau, the 2006 AL MVP and last year's runner up, will not play vs. the Yankees. The Twins have gotten by without him so far, but can they really continue to produce offensively without him in the lineup?

• The starting pitchers for the Twins are Nick Blackburn, Scott Baker, Francisco Liriano and Carl Pavano, Jeff Manship. Do any of those names scare you?

• How about this for a 3-4 combination. Mark Teixeira against the Twins this season: .483/.531/.966 with 4 HR (and 11 RBIs). Alex Rordiguez against the Twins this season: .286/.484/.714 with 3 HR (and 8 BBs). That's dangerous.

Let's stay away from Minnesota!

• The Twins have an unbelievable home-field advantage, especially in the last year of the Baggie Dome. That will not be an easy place to go on the road and play.

• Joe Mauer is the AL MVP and maybe the best player in baseball. If one player could beat you, he would be the guy. They also have Joe Nathan who besides Mariano Rivera may be the best closer in baseball. He's much better than anyone the Tigers would throw out of their bullpen.
  

• The Twins went 16-4 to get to this point and would have to win a one-game tiebreaker playoff to get in with a rag-tag bunch of guys. This seems eerily similar to the Colorado Rockies team of 2007. Watch out for teams with that much momentum as they can keep it going into October.

• Minnesota has a large lefty-hitting lineup which could be troublesome in the New Yankees Stadium where many a ball has flown out to right...especially when the winds pick up again in October.

So who do you want to win tonight? Twins or Tigers? The Yankees are 12-1 combined against the two teams and an amazing 25-9 vs the Central this season so they should beat either one. Since tomorrow's game starts at 6:07, either team will have to play again in less than 24 hours so they'll come in with a bit of a disadvantage. But which one would you rather face? Let us know if the comments below.

Buster Olney says that tonight depends on Rick Porcello's fastball. Rob Neyer (easily) picks the Twins tonight. Mark Feinsand would also be surprised if the Twins didn't win tonight. Sam Borden puts forth a strong case for the Yankees wanting to face the Tigers...but in the end he thinks that the Yankees would be better off facing the Twins because of starting pitching. Bob Klapisch thinks that the Yankees should want the Twins as well.

One more point: After watching the Sunday and Monday night games there are two other factors here. Miguel Cabrera, like Rashard Medenhall, has that "I need to redeem myself" factor about him because of being benched the game before. Carl Pavano, like Brett Favre, has that "I need to redeem myself" factor because of his tenure with the Yankees. Just something else to think about...I could see Cabrera going off for 4 HRs in the series or Pavano throwing a 8 inning shutout.

Didn't Get Yankees Playoffs Tickets? There's Still a Chance

Just had a long conversation with someone from the New York Yankees ticket office. He was trying to get me to buy a plan for next season, but we ended up veering off on the topic of playoff tickets. Although a date has been set for public onsale, there will be little-to-no tickets available for that sale (all remaining tickets went to partial plan owners).

But that does not mean there are no tickets left for sale by the Yankees.

According to this employee, starting 3 hours before game time, the Yankees will sell on a first-come, first-serve basis tickets held back for public sale. These will include regular tickets throughout the stadium, but will also include standing room and new café style seating on the Field Level.

The new café style seating is right behind the wheelchair area and is bar-style seating according to the employee. These tickets (approximately 60) will be $81 per ticket for the ALDS and $131 for the ALCS. The standing room tickets (app. 200) will be $33 on the Field Level for the ALDS, $64 on the Field Level for the ALCS , $25 on the Main Level for the ALDS, and $48 on the Main Level for the ALCS.

So here are your options to see a Yankees playoff game in person this year, the first year of the New Yankee Stadium:

1. Know someone
2. Have had a season plan or package and gotten tickets
3. Be one of very, very few to get one on Monday for the public on-sale
4. Pay up the wazoo on Stubhub or another secondary market for tickets
5. Or get to the Stadium really early on game day to stand in line and try to score tickets

The last option isn't a bad one, especially compared to the prices charged on Stubhub. Not sure how many people know about the last option and hopefully the lines will not be too long.

Good luck to everyone. I fell into category #1 and am going for ALDS game 2 on Friday night. Hope everyone else is as lucky

Let's Name The Yankee Bowl

From the AP:

Yankee Stadium will host an annual college football bowl game featuring a Big East versus Big 12 matchup.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Yankees General Partner Hal Steinbrenner are to make the announcement at a Wednesday press conference.

The annual bowl game is expected to draw 40,000 visitors and generate $47 million in economic activity. It will start after next year's college football season.

The yet-to-be-named bowl will be the first in New York City since 1962 and the first in the Northeast since 1981.

Any suggestions for the name of the bowl? Do we take the Yankee tradition and go with no sponsor name such as "Empire Bowl" or "Yankee Bowl" or "Big Apple Bowl" or "Steinbrenner Bowl". Or do we use a New York corporate sponsor like "Citi Bowl" or "Goldman Sachs Bowl" or "Metlife Bowl" or "William Barthman Jeweler Bowl". What do you think the name of the bowl should be? And will people be allowed to sit in the luxury seats (unlike the NYU graduation)? So many questions to be answered.

Put your suggestion for the bowl name down in the comments

Steinbrenner Yankeeography Well Done, Very Funny

I just finished watching YES Yankeeography on George Steinbrenner. I was interested to seeing it, especially after writing a post this past week about the man and wanting to see what the Yankees and other had to say. Overall, I think it was a job well-done. The best part about it, I think, was some of the humorous George Steinbrenner anecdotes. The Boss was a pretty funny guy and I definitely laughed quite a few times at the various quotes they reproduced. The best one was from Lou Piniella:

I didn't know Mr. Steinbrenner at all. I had just been traded there. I was just joking around. I said (to Steinbrenner), 'Our Lord Jesus Christ had long hair, and things seemed to work out for him.' He didn't say a word. He said, 'Come with me.' We walked across the street to the Ft. Lauderdale swimming pool and he said, 'If you can walk on water, you can wear your hair any way you want.'

I think that they could have spent a little more time speaking about some of bad parts of Steinbrenner (the suspensions and his contentious relationships), but this is his network and they weren't going to throw the old man under the bus. I rather hear about his charitable work too, especially the story of how Ray Negron got his job (let's just say he was a little bit of a juvenile delinquent before The Boss got a hold of him)

Speaking of the old man, it was sad to see how much he's really deteriorated the past few years. They had some interviews with him in the early 2000s and he looked quite with it and was funny and clear thinking. It's sad to think he's slipped so much that he refuses to make many public appearances.

But it made me appreciate even more what he's done for the Yankees and knowing they'd never be where they are right now (the team, the ballpark, the recent history) had it not been for George Michael Steinbrenner III.

Tickets Going For Cheap Tonight

This is another one of those times where I wish I didn't have tickets in advance. I bought tickets way back in March for Yankees/Rays figuring that a September game between the two teams would be important. Little did I know the Rays would be out of it and the Yankees would be comfortably in the lead in the AL East with Chad Gaudin on the mound.

The reason I wish I hadn't spent the $30 face value on tickets for tonight, though, is because they're going for REALLY cheap on Stubhub. I took a screengrab and as you can see (you need to click on the picture to be able to really see the prices), there's a bunch of tickets on there for under $10. With service fees, you're still not paying much to make it down to the Stadium.

This is a good chance to catch the Yankees at the New Stadium if you haven't this season, especially with only 13 home games left in the regular season after tonight...

Yankees Postseason Tickets LESS Than Regular Season

This was a shock to me. From CNBC’s Darren Rovell:

CNBC has seen the final face value prices that the Yankees submitted to Major League Baseball and increases will be much smaller than the jump season ticket holders saw for home games played at the old Yankee Stadium in the 2007 postseason, the last time the Yankees were in the playoffs. In fact, some 2009 postseason seats will cost LESS than this year's regular season prices.

This is mostly due to seat licensing for suites and complex calculations that go along with that but that's good news for Yankees fans. He also said that all but one area of seats seem to be staying the same price. And the jump for the ALCS? Only 27% which is a far crazy from the bump they used to have in the old Stadium.

Will any tickets be left for non-season ticket holders? I doubt it. Maybe they'll leave off a few thousand for the public to buy, but I doubt that number will be very high. But for those who do have the opportunity to purchase and were hoping to grab some tickets for the playoffs without breaking the bank, this is certainly some good news on a Monday morning.