Yankee Stadium Memories

Now that "The House That Ruth Built" is no more, I thought it'd be a nice idea to post some of our memories of it.

Feel free to add your own. I'll start with a few:

It was April, 1967 and the Red Sox came to the Stadium to open their season series with the Yankees. I cut school that day with a few friends and we headed up to the Stadium to catch the game. (This was back in the mid 60's when the Yankees really sucked and you could just walk up to the gate and buy tickets). We were treated to an almost no-hitter when Red Sox rookie, Bill Rohr pitched 8 2/3 innings of no-hit ball. Yankee catcher, Elston Howard, broke up the bid for immortality when he blooped a single with 2 outs in the ninth. I think there may have been only about 10,000 people at the game.

Also, in the mid 60's, I went to an Old-Timer's game at the Stadium. As was usual then, Joe DiMaggio was the last of the players announced (and got a tremendous ovation) but the real "royalty" at the game was the presence of both Mrs. Babe Ruth and Mrs. Lou Gehrig (who sat together in one of the field boxes). The Stadium crowd went absolutely wild when they were announced. It was pretty exciting to see and hear.

I saw my second major league game, and first in the Stadium (must have been 1958 or '59) and saw Mickey Mantle get a couple of hits. I honestly don't remember who the Yanks were playing, but was amazed at how big the park was.

I probably saw 50-60 games there over the years and will remember the stadium fondly.

I'm not a Yankee fan, but I saw my first football game and baseball game there. I really hate to see it, or any of the real old ballparks go.

We spent my daughter's 18th birthday there and we paid to have her name on the Jumbotron (it's only $10, btw). The Yankees blew away the Mariners and we had a great time. It's probably one of the last birthdays that we'll spend together as a family with her, so it was really special.

I always wanted to see a Mets/Yankees game and a Red Sox/Yankees game at the Stadium and am glad I can say I did. I saw the Mets/Yankees games years ago and don't remember much from it other than I had a great time and I believe the Yankees won. As for the Red Sox/Yankees game, I remember it was my 21st birthday and unfortunately we bought seats in the non-alcoholic section (didn't even know they had them). I still managed to sneak a beer or 2 up there and the Sox lead early but the Yankees rallied late and won. I remember one play in particular that still seems to get a lot of highlight time. I can't remember which but a Red Sox player hit a sharp grounder to A-Rod with the bases loaded. He dived, scooped up the ball, tapped 3rd base with his glove then through home from his knees as David Ortiz was trying to score to get out of the inning.

Also that year, I flew from Texas to New York to see A-Rod's first game as a Yankee. We had bleacher seats and a pretty decent view.

As I wasn't a Yankee fan, I didn't get to Yankee Stadium until I was in college. It was a bus trip with some friends, and it was Lou Piniella Day, I'm guessing August, 1985. The Yankees, I think, shut out the Brewers on one or two hits.

Over the years I've been to several Yankee-Red Sox games, which were good. I was also at the game where John Rocker made his first appearance at Yankee Stadium after he ripped NY in SI. He did his customary charge from the bullpen and was nearly hit with a few beer bottles. He struck out O'Neill with the bases loaded and posed in front of the dugout for the fans.

The magic of Yankee Stadium was knowing that on the very field you were looking at, stood Ruth and Mantle and Maris and Gehrig, etc. It made up for the small aisles, poor vantage spots and inadequate amenities.

The most remowned game that I ever personally attended was the Chris Chambliss home run game against the Royals in '76. They went on to get swept by the Reds in the series, but for a 17 year old kid (even though I was a Met fan), it was pretty exciting.

My favorite games at the Stadium were the old "Mayor's Trophy Games," which, prior to Interleague play, were the only time you got to see the Mets play the Yanks. It was a mid-season exhibition game, strictly for "bragging rights." Anyone remember those besides me?

I remember them both. The Chambliss homer is still one of a handful that has ended a postseason series.

Do you remember Cliff Johnson running into the umpire after scoring a run? I'm guessing it was around '78.

Even in the UK it's a famous name.

People who don't know anything about baseball know it is the place where the Yankees play!

I would like to have gone one day but never mind....

I'm not sure of the year, Klyd, but I remember the ump was out cold for like half an hour.

I don't remember the year, I was a kid - 10 yrs old??, my father took me to see the Yankees play the Washington Senators. I remember the shortstop was Zolio Versailles - cool name. He was slick. The Yankee pitcher was Art Ditmar. My disappointment was that Yogi didn't play.

Many years later I took my daughter when she was about that age. We sat in the upper deck, right behind home plate, second row. It was great. She's still a Yankee fan at 29 and she was at the game this past Saturday.

The Stadium was always magnificent; the grass so green.

Sure, everyone thinks of the Yankees and playing baseball.
But we spend many Sundays there watching the Giants and some great football!

I finally got around to reading the Sports Illustrated piece. When the Popes said mass at Yankee Stadium, they didnt prepare themselves in the team clubhouse, but in a special clubhouse between the home and visitor houses. I never realized that this clubhouse was used for Sunday Mass for players and personnel, and the lecter was Bob Sheppard.

It was told that if you loved the way he announced, "Now batting...Numbeh 2...Derek Jetah," you should hear him say Deu-ter-ON-a-my. I also knew that he was old, but didn't know he was 97! He turns 98 in 2 weeks. He was 12 when Yankee Stadium opened.

How was the article klydon? I bought the SI but haven't read it yet (it's rather lengthy for a SI article)

It was informative and nostalgic, told from the point of view of the stadium itself. Another tid bit that I didn't know was that it was built with a reinforced concrete, developed by Thomas Edison, that had been used only once before.

Tom Verducci wrote the piece, and while he could only brush upon the rich history, he conveyed the legendary significance of the stadium pretty well. You'll certainly enjoy it.

Sweet, thanks klydon

I just ordered the last program from Yankee Stadium on eBay ($27 plus $6.95 shipping for a total of $33.95). Sure it may seem like a lot now but it'll be a collector's item in no time

That's what I call living history.

Since I was a Giants fan, I never went to the Stadium to see the Yanks play. But the football Giants played at the Stadium. And in the early Sixties, before the bleacher seats went to reserved status, you could still show up and buy a ticket at the gate. I went to plenty of football Giants games. Sitting in the bleachers was a real trip. Even then it was incredibly rowdy. The band played in the bleachers. Half the people were drunk. When the other side scored, and the band played their themesong, bottles would rain down on the band--often missing and hitting others. Lotta people wore football helmets in the bleachers, and believe me, they weren't players on the sidelines.
If memory serves, there was a football Yankees team in the early Fifties--and they played at the Polo Grounds.

The baseball Yankees played at the Polo Grounds too.