New York Yankees Blog

From the Pope to Babe Ruth, Yankee Stadium has had a history right out of a made for television drama. Built in 1923, the stadium was dubbed, “The House that Babe Built” as a reference to the baseball legend. But Yankee Stadium became more than just a setting for a cast of characters; it became an integral part of the action.

It is hard to imagine a professional team, in a day of multi-millionaire athletes, sharing a home field with another team, but that is what occurred here. The Yankees shared a field with the Giants at the Polo Grounds in Manhattan. After the Yankees won their first American League Pennant, the Giants owner was ready to ship them out. Charles Stoneham’s palatable resentment caused him to wish that the team would relocate to “Queens or some other out of the way place.”

When Yankee Stadium was built, the owner’s wished to have a field that no one could view from other vantage points –such as a subway platform. The design itself was over the top for the time, but soon became more sparse when the job was completed. However, the owners put a great deal of money and risk into their venture. They wished to build a stadium that could hold double what the stadiums at that time held.

It seemed a risky venture that paid off for these owners. They built an iconic facility that endured as a home base for the Yankees. Over the years, renovations occurred and improvements were made but except for the addition of lights –the stadium looked very much the same until improvements in 1966. During this time, the stadium was given to Rice University. The stadium was painted blue and white during this time, perhaps in tribute to the Texas-based University? The city eventually forced eminent domain and Rice sold the stadium. In the 70’s, major renovations were proposed by the owners, CBS. The renovations would require that the Yankees once again share a field with another team –this time the Mets. The Mets resisted and CBS couldn’t proceed as planned. The team was sold to George Steinbrenner. In 1972, the City of New York purchased the stadium to lease back to the Yankees. This time, the renovations took place as scheduled. The City just happened to own Shea stadium and the Mets would be forced to share.

After these renovations, the stadium didn’t look like itself. Once completed, the new look included Monument Park, to hold tributes and memorabilia from the years past.

In 2008, the final game was played at Yankee Stadium. A few small ceremonies were held, but no closing ceremony. The monuments were relocated to the new field, adjacent to the old. When demolition is finally completed, a park is to be constructed in its place. When demolition is complete, the historic park will be remembered fondly by fans that purchased pieces of stadium. The Stadium did its service and will be fondly remembered by New Yorkers and fans alike.

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This years New York Yankee’s season is diffidently going to be one for the ages sports fans. With the opening season of the new stadium, major changes and upgrades are apparent. With the opening of the new stadium, it is not just larger, but much more suited to save and conserve energy.

With the energy crisis in full swing, every step to help conserve energy and improve usage is being taken from the lighting system all the way back to the restrooms. The new automated system that controls the lighting saves 300 watts than a typical stadium fixture and reduces light spillage by 50%. These improvements reduce CO2 emissions by over 200,000 pounds, which is the equivalent of planting a single tree for every pitch during the home season.

Yankee Stadium is also strategically placed in the city so that people are encouraged to use the subway, Metro-North, and busses so that emissions from cars are reduced. In fact, the cooking oil that is used to fry up the fantastic food everyone loves is recycled and converted into Bio-Diesel fuel. Of the over 8,000 gallons of oil recycled and converted into fuel, almost 130,000 pounds of carbon emissions have been reduced; that’s the equivalent of 11.7 cars taken off the road for a full year.

Even the plumbing system of Yankee Stadium has been improved to increase efficiency. The new restrooms throughout the stadium are designed to save over 3 million gallons of water, and reduce consumption by 22 percent. GoJo hand soap is available in all restrooms and requires no water. An additional 1 million gallons of water can be saved if every guest in the stadium opted to use GoJo, over the traditional soap and water.

Yankee Stadiums service manuals have also undergone changes. A new digital version of all service manuals has been made to reduce all paper and solid wastes. This new system will save 10 trees, 100 pounds of solid wastes, 1,000 gallons of water and 10,000 kilowatt hours of electricity.

The air conditioning system has been redesigned to so that the Great Hall and entryway are not air conditioned at all. Instead, they rely on natural cooling fans, which save as much energy as 10,000 New York City apartments.

It truly is an amazing age we live in when an old stadium can be replaced by a new stadium, increase its size by over 60% and still be eco-friendly. In the midst of the energy revolution, the new Yankee Stadium is the pioneer in retrofitting large halls such as stadiums, auditoriums, and fields and making them more eco-friendly.

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Baseball’s most popular team has had no trouble becoming acclimated with their new home this year. With their powerful hitting and finesse on the mound in Tampa Bay, the Yankees eased their way to a victory over the defending AL-champion Rays on Monday, 11-4. Active bats and another strong seven innings from A.J. Burnett led New York to its tenth win in the last 11 games. Left fielder Johnny Damon made his presence known in the ninth inning as he took a Brain Shouse fastball over the wall for the 200th homerun of his career.

To put it simply, the Yankees are on a roll. The fact that the Yankees are one of, if not the, most successful team in Major League Baseball is undeniable. With 39 World Series wins in their franchise history, how can you doubt that the Yankees are the best team ever? But this year, in their recently built Yankees Stadium as well as on the road, they have played some of the best baseball that New York fans have seen in a few years. The Bronx Bombers have the second best winning percentage in the majors (.01 behind the Los Angeles Dodgers). At home, they are 35-17—a winning team and a beautiful new stadium is a recipe for elated players, coaches, and fans. But you may ask—besides the new stadium, what about this year’s team is so different from last year?

The Yankees made some off-season moves that were pivotal to this year’s success so far. First, New York added a few bats to their roster. With first baseman Mark Teixeira and right fielder Nick Swisher now in the line-up, the team has extra power. Teixeira’s 25 homeruns and Swisher’s 16, including two in Monday’s win over the Rays, have helped New York maintain a strong two and a half game lead in the AL East. Along with the new guys, 10-time all-star Derek Jeter is putting on a phenomenal performance this year, batting over .300 for the fifth straight season. Powerhouses such as Alex Rodriguez, Hideki Matsui, and the extremely versatile Robinson Cano, are also contributing to New York’s offensive success thus far. The team has also added pitchers, who have proven themselves to be kings of the hill. Starters CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett have both done their share to make their first full year as Yankees a success, while the always-prominent Mariano Rivera has tallied up 29 saves in 30 opportunities.

This year, New York fans have a different image of Yankee baseball to come home to. The team leads the American League with a 61-38 record and a current hot streak that seems to be insurmountable. The team has lived up to Yankee standards. From May 14 to June 1, the Yankees defense went without an error—eighteen straight games without a single defensive flaw and a new major league record. Consistently good play, a smart coach, die-hard fans, and a stunning new stadium—all key components of a new and improved Yankees era.

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Bobby Richardson, Brett Gardner, and DeAngelo Mack all have one thing
in common besides playing for the New York Yankees Organization. Each of
these men hail from the Palmetto State of South Carolina and represent the
past, present, and possible future of Yankee baseball. While Richardson and

Gardner have earned spots on the club’s roster, Mack didn’t turn too many heads
while playing for the Staten Island Yankees this past short season in the NY-
Penn minor League. All three men have made their fellow South Carolinians
proud due to their athleticism, sportsmanship, and overall respect for the
America’s favorite past-time.

The Past
From 1955-1966, Richardson averaged .266 at the plate for the Yankees
and played second base. Little is mentioned about this Sumter, SC native in the
club’s history except for his impressive play in the 1960 World Series against

Pittsburgh, which was the infamous Coach Casey Stengel’s last showing for the
title. Richardson was the unexpected star of the series knocking in 12 runs in
the 7 game series.

The Present
Although Brett Gardner recently landed himself on what Yankee fans
hope to be a temporary spot on the Disabled List, this southern gent has been
stirring the pot against Yankees’ opponents mainly with his speed. Gardner’s
been dubbed “the fastest man in pinstripes,” a nickname he has more than
earned with his proven ability to run the 360ft around the bases in an impressive
14 seconds. Basically, making him the fastest base-runner in the Yankee’s
organization. It will be at least two weeks before the extent of Gardner’s thumb
injury is known, an injury that he incurred sliding into second in an attempt to
break up a first-inning double play against Oakland in this past Saturday’s game.

However, Gardner displayed his commitment to his team despite the injury by
continuing to play without faultering in his performance.

New York Yankee fans are anxious for this speedster to regain his starting
status in the lineup. Manager Joe Girardi agreed, “He’s an exciting player. He
creates havoc. He entertains the fans.” There is no doubt that what Gardner
contributes to the team in the batter box as well as the outfield will be missed as
the Yankees depth charts are weakening.

With Gardner’s batting average this season of .275, 20 stolen bases, 3
Home-runs with one of those being an inside-the-park homer, and his awesome
defensive plays that have brought Yankee fans to their feet; this club can only
hope his return is as quick as he has been on the field.

Gardner played collegiate baseball for a school not far from his hometown
of Holly Hill, SC. Initially, he was a walk-on for the College of Charleston Cougars
but eventually the left center fielder became a three year starter. In 2005, he was
drafted by the Yankees in the third round and received a $210,000 bonus mainly
due to his fast feet.

The Future?
Despite him being a late 13th Round Draft pick this past year, DeAngelo
Mack shows similar qualities in his play as Richardson and Gardner due to his
knack for making things happen and wowing the fans. Although he got off to a
slow start this past season in minor league play, Mack is still finding his nitch in
the big leagues. Mack received 2nd Team All-SEC honors this past collegiate
season after leading the University of South Carolina Gamecock’s program with
a batting average of .361, 14HR’s, and 60 RBI’s. He won’t be called up anytime
soon to fill his sandlapper’s brethren’s shoes in the outfield, but Mack has the
potential to bring a lot to the plate for the Yankees once he gains more power in
his swing.

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