Bronx, N.Y., Apr. 8, 2003 — “Tell it like it is!” “If you want a job done right, do it yourself.” Time is money.” And the one particularly germaine to this column, “Keep your eye on the ball.” These are just a few of the cliches and platitudes that resonate here and you know that those who coined them were attempting to describe our American way of life. Hideki Matsui would be wise to study them if he wants to succeed here in this foreign country in which he has decided to ply his trade. Continue reading
Twenty Years of Opening Days
Bronx, N.Y., Apr. 7, 2003 — To talk about Opening Day in Yankee Stadium is not just to report on sports in the new millennium. Yes, over the years the Yanks have played some great games on this day, and their status as the most successful sports team franchise in history is undeniable. But to simply reduce the event to a recitation of pitchers and their stats, and position players and their plays and at bats, is to ignore much of the glamour, the pageantry, and the youthful exuberance of the experience, and to miss out on the romance and the poetry with which our favorite game is thoroughly imbued. Continue reading
No Longer ‘A Whiter Shade of Pale’
TAMPA, Fla., March 8 — Robin Trower, turning 58 on March 9, played guitar for Procul Harum on the rock anthem alluded to in this column’s title, and I thought of the song, and our pallid expressions upon our arrival in Florida, as we left our last game today. Glistening from the sweat and the sun, and basking in the glory of an end-of-week victory that rescued us from a losing trip, Sue and I braved a traffic jam caused by a concert ushering Spring Break into Clearwater, and made for the Tiki Bar. The soft sand, a mild Gulf breeze, and high but dark clouds shepherded the sun through our last spring 2003 Florida sunset as gulls swooped overhead and a lizard huddled in the corner.
Old Friends
Tampa, Fla., March 7 — For years, Sue and I have been playing a game called, “Find the Hidden Yankee” as teams with shifting rosters visit Yankee Stadium. Sometimes seeing an “old friend” is a cause for joy, as when it’s a player we’ve lost track of, like Andy Fox or Andy Stankiewicz. On other occasions it is filled with dread, as facing David Cone with the Sox in 2001, and seeing Ramiro Mendoza in Beantown, or Mike Stanton and Cone (once again) in Flushing will be this season, both on the road and in the Bronx.
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The Butler Did It
Tampa, Fla., March 6 — I couldn’t resist the Murder Mystery title, and truthfully, no one was murdered (maybe no one even died), but we have a bona fide mystery on our hands. Putting on my Columbo, Sam Spade, Agatha Christie hat, let’s take a look.
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Silver Linings
TAMPA, Fla., March 5 — You might think it would be difficult to find any good moments in a 12-2 loss that was both ugly and over early, but my first response is to share the game time temperature: 83 degrees under gloriously sunny skies. In fact, although I was fine after a couple of innings and the ice cream cup, the heat initially drove me from my seat (20 minutes before game time). But before I continue with a Top 12 Great Things about being a Yankee fan in Tampa today, perhaps I should describe how things got so lopsided.
‘Yankee Fans? Right This Way…’
Tampa, Fla., March 4, 2003 — One thing you learn early when coming to Spring Training, the Yankee organization is like an army: They march better on their stomachs. There are a number of restaurants in this area that have baseball connections — the tasty but decidedly mainstream fare at Pete & Shorty’s (think White Castle hamburgers with a liquor license). The first whose hospitality we’ve enjoyed is the original Pete & Shorty’s in Clearwater, where George and Boomer lunched last year before agreeing that Mr. Wells and the Bronx belonged together, and David rejoined the rotation. There is another branch on Dale Mabry in Tampa, right down the street from Legends Field (which we’ve visited also). Continue reading
Another Day for This Dog?
Tampa, Fla., March 3 — Baseball can be so many things to different people. To some it’s nothing more than a reason to peruse the morning sports pages over a cup of coffee. Some, on the other hand, live and die with each and every pitch. To others it provides a connection to warmer days whether they’re living in a frigid part of the planet, in the cold of winter, or in a little “dark night of the soul” of their own. It can bring a smile to those whose accustomed window to the world is a frown; or it can become an excuse for exhaustive research and study for some who barely passed their classes in school (or who didn’t).
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MidAutumn Night’s Dream
Bronx, N.Y., Nov. 25, 2002 — It was an offseason night like any other for a baseball fan. I had put in some long hours at work, and we had reworked the boat test graphic so many times that on my last look at the color laser I thought I saw the boat zip across from one side of the page to the other. Calling it a night, I grabbed a pizza with everything on it on the way home, deciding that I owed myself a treat. The night was cold and wet. And the cruel wind had the effect of increasing my resolve that tonight was a night devoted to Yankee Baseball. Continue reading
Sticking Points
Bronx, N.Y., Oct. 27, 2002 — I got to thinking a little bit ago when it made the headlines that Boston was interested in interviewing Yankee exec Gene Michael for their opening at General Manager. As one who always falls in love with the Yankee players and ex-players, wishing them well wherever they go, I was on the one hand delighted that others were acknowledging him for the job he’s done as a talent evaluator these last 15 years or so. But I do have to confess: Although I read some conflicting reports about whether or not Gene would have been interested in accepting such a challenge, I was delighted that George and the Yankee brass just said, “No!” Continue reading