Sep 22 2008
The House That Ruth Built
They call Yankee Stadium “The House That Ruth Built” for a good reason.
The Babe opened the ballpark on April 18, 1923, with a home run in a 4-1 victory over the Red Sox that sent the Yankees on their way to the first of a record 26 World Series championships.
Babe Ruth was the Tiger Woods of his day. There is no baseball player today that equates to the popularity and significance to the game as the Babe. Only Tiger Woods matches his stature within his own sport and across all cultural, racial, and athletic competition.
The last game has been played. So it is with some sadness that the old Yankee Stadium gets retired. Retired to be replaced with something new, something flashier, better equipped for today’s media spectaculars and multi-million dollar salaries.
Overall, the Yankees finished 4,133-2,430-17 at Yankee Stadium, originally built in 284 days for $2.5 million. It was the first sports venue to be called a stadium.
The old stadium will not merely be “retired,” of course, but torn down. All that will be saved will be some special memorabilia of the “old Yankee Stadium” to be preserved in a special way in the “new” Yankee Stadium, which will open the 2009 season.
Too bad the Yanks will not make the playoffs this year. The team needs to get better in 2009. Salaries alone will not guarantee a championship–or even a good season. For Yankee fans a good season means a championship.
Though I am not a fan of the Yankees, GO BRAVES, it is sad to see such a storied venue as Yankee Stadium be torn down. Progress is a good thing, though it is not always easy. Will this be the house that Jeter built? A-Rod?