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The End of Yankee Stadium
Even Yogi Berra knew this was the end. As baseball said farewell to Yankee Stadium Sunday night, one of the game’s most beloved players stood beneath the stands in a full vintage uniform. Now 83, the man who coined the phrase “it ain’t over till it’s over” put his own stamp on the day.
“I’m sorry to see it over, I’ll tell you that,” Berra said.
The sad farewell completed an 85-year-old run for the home of baseball’s most famous team. What began with a Babe Ruth home run on an April afternoon in 1923 ended Sunday with Mariano Rivera retiring Brian Roberts on a grounder to first baseman Cody Ransom, completing a 7-3 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on a warm September night.
But before the game even began, all the greats were remembered during a 65-minute pregame ceremony that included 21 retired players, six of them Hall of Famers.
“I feel like I’m losing an old friend,” Reggie Jackson told the crowd.
Bob Sheppard, the 90-something public address announcer who started in 1951, read the opening welcome. He missed this season because of illness but recorded his greeting and the introduction of the Yankees starting lineup.
The 1922 American League pennant, the first to fly in the ballpark, was unfurled in the black batter’s eye beyond center field. Young men and boys were introduced representing the opening-day lineup in 1923.
Then came the living Yankees who make the stadium a standard for excellence.
Willie Randolph slid into second base when he was announced. Fan favorite Paul O’Neill pointed to the Bleacher Creatures in right field. Bernie Williams, back at the ballpark for the first time since the Yankees cut him two years ago, received the longest ovation, which lasted nearly 2 minutes. Don Larsen scooped up dirt from the pitcher’s mound in a plastic cup, assisted by Whitey Ford.
Accompanying them were the sons of some deceased stars: Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris, Billy Martin and Thurman Munson, joined by the wives of Catfish Hunter, Bobby Murcer and Phil Rizzuto, the daughter of Elston Howard and Murcer’s son and daughter.
No mention was made of Roger Clemens, whose legacy has been clouded by accusations he used performance-enhancing drugs. George Steinbrenner, the team owner since 1973, did not attend.
Julia Ruth Stevens, the 92-year-old daughter of Babe Ruth, threw out the ceremonial first pitch before a crowd of 54,610 - bringing the stadium’s lifetime total visitors to 151,959,005.
Outside the stadium, the marquee that usually has the day’s start time and opponent said: “Thanks for the Memories.”
It’s just so sad!!!!
New York Yankee Stadium was such a HUGE part of American culture… Thoughts??? We’re here for you if you need to shed a tear…
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