The New York Yankees got its first taste of the new Yankee Stadium this week. The Indians will help them officially open the stadium on April 16.
It’s not exactly the House that Ruth Built, but its pretty darn close.
To be perfectly honest, from the stands it looks an awful lot like the old Yankee Stadium with a face-lift and a tummy tuck — that seems to be by design. The seats are still blue and the characteristic white facade lines the top of the park. The real difference is in the concourses, which are wide, breezy and go 360 degrees — around the new monument to the Yankees and the concession stands. — Per Bats.
The field dimensions remain virtually the same as the old stadium, with the exception of wider foul territory down the baselines and a shorter distance from the wall to the catcher.
“It looks exactly like the old ballpark from the dugout and when you get out there,” (Andy Pettitte) explained (in the New York Times blog, Bats). “It looks like it’s going to play big in left, short porch in right, which usually works out well for left-handed pitchers.”
The players and fans alike will be spoiled by the vastness of the stadium and the technology used in it.
The humongous club house now features personal laptops in every single locker, with a message system for communication.
”Every bit of this stadium has a ‘Wow!’ factor, and it’s going to stink for us to go on the road,” (Brian) Bruney said (to MLB.com). “Take a look around — there are screens in your locker, which is three times the size of other places. We have cubbyholes. We have a chef — crazy stuff. It’s the best venue in any sport, I can guarantee you.”
Food won’t be a problem for fans either, according to Kevin Devaney, at the Westchester Journal News.
I took two laps around the main concourse at Yankee Stadium this afternoon, which had to total about 12 miles in length. If you come to a game, you’ll never be wanting for food. They literally have everything, from tofu to fresh fruit stands to sushi to cheese steaks to Brother Jimmy’s barbecue. If you wanted a bowl of cereal, I’m sure it could be arranged.
Yankee Stadium sign of Apocalypse:
Official Yankees grass seed and sod pallets will soon be on sale throughout the New York area.
The sod is supposed to grow more frequently. The story notes that the Yankee Stadium grass is mowed twice a day. I don’t even like mowing the grass once a week.
Don’t forget about Boston
Not to be outdone, the Red Sox did plenty of renovations this off season on Fenway Park. Most notably (Per Extra bases):
– An improved right field roof box, where crews ripped out 383 seats, replacing them with 574 new seats and 100 standing room spaces with drink rails.
– Repairs to and waterproofing of a large portion of the concrete in the lower bowl area.
– All field box seats were replaced by seats with cushioned bottoms and cup holders.
– New food items will be on sale for fans throughout the concessions at the park. They include lobster rolls, pulled-pork sandwiches, burritos, boneless chicken wings, shrimp rolls, and steak tips.
I should have something up on the Mets new stadium soon as well.
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Well, I couldn’t give a crap about NY or BOS stadiums. But did anyone else hear the Jim Rome interview with Jeff Moorad today? You remember, the jerk who negotiated Manny right out of Cleveland. And stockpiled enough cashola to BUY the Padres? Well, if there is a more arrogant-sounding douche in all of sports, I’d like to know who it would be. This guy is just SOME piece of work.