A Bronx Tale

I finally made it up to the new ballpark in the Bronx this weekend. Naturally, my seats were in the front row. OK, front row of the bleachers, but front row, just the same.

I attended my first Yankee game at the real Yankee Stadium on Memorial Day Weekend exactly 49 years ago. The Yanks split a doubleheader with the old Washington Senators that day. I still remember Yogi Berra hitting a home run in the victory. Those were the days when you could attend a doubleheader for a single admission -- just like God and Abner Doubleday intended.
 
I'm one of those diehard fans who think there was no good reason in the world to spend $1.5 billion on a new ballpark for the Yankees. Having now seen the new edifice with my own eyes, I remain convinced that this move was a shame and a pity.
 
I will concede that there's much to like about the new ballpark. It looks gorgeous from the outside, the inner concourse is impressive, and it still has that new-car smell. But as far as those centerfield bleacher seats are concerned, I'd like to meet the moron who designed this boondoggle. As you may have heard, they've plunked a restaurant down right in the middle of the centerfield seating areas. This wasn't a big issue for me -- after all, I was in the front row (!) and had a nice panoramic view of the entire field. But for the folks in the 20 or 30 rows behind me, the solid exterior wall of the restaurant obstructed most of the view of centerfield and leftfield. Imagine watching a baseball game with seven fielders, instead of nine, and you've got a rough idea what this looks like.
 
To add insult to injury, from the bleacher seats there's no way to view the giant centerfield screen to watch replays of what you missed on the field. Yes, there are three or four flat-screen TVs on the restaurant's wall of shame where you can catch all the action. You know, like when you watch a game at home.
 
Another beef: The public address system appears to have been wired by the same folks that did the New York subways. So not only do the bleacher creatures miss a significant portion of the action on the field, they also have no audio clues as to what's going on.
 
It's a fine mess. I guess the Yankees saw me coming. The game I attended Friday night was their first loss after nine consecutive victories. Seven home runs were hit, further reminding fans of the new stadium's most serious flaw. This is a building where lazy flyballs soar over fences with alarming regularity. Babe Ruth definitely didn't build this house, but he would've had a field day here.
 
 
 
 

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Tags: Berra, Yogi | New York Yankees | Yankee Stadium

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