Queens

On Evil Premonitions

Shea Stadium, 2008

Saturday, April 12th, 2008
Milwaukee Brewers vs. New York Mets
Shea Stadium
Major League Baseball, National League
Queens, NY
1:10 PM


Outside the Game:
This was just another Saturday game at Shea -- PATH and subways all the way. However, in preparation for the new field, they have finally renovated the subway stop entrance/exit for the stadium with a more copacetic situation that relieved the previous funnel effect of one tiny entrance that plagued getting the hell out of Flushing after a game.


At The Game With Oogie:
I splurged for some lower-deck seats behind first base. The day was a little overcast so I didn't bake like a pig on a spit as can sometimes be the case in the lower deck in the summer.


The Stadium:
This was the last year for the other stadium in New York as well. Shea was never a jewel, but it was home, even with the constant air traffic from LaGuardia. So if you don't like it, fuck you. (Lord knows this house of horrors has done the same to its fans over the years.)

Citi Field loomed just past the center field wall. Since last season, it grew out of a parking lot into a new stadium that one hopes will get completed, unlike its predecessor. I am ambivalent towards it, but will shall see.

The countdown to the new stadium was handled on the outfield wall in a pre-game ceremony by Mr. Met.


The Game:
This was the Shea Stadium debut of Johan Santana. The Mets jumped out to an early lead, but Santana kept on giving up home run after home run, leading to a 5-3 loss. This also would be a harbinger of the season to come, or certainly, at least, it’s pathetic end.


The Scorecard:

Brewers vs. Metropolitans, 04/12/08. The Brewers win, 5-3.

The scorecard is part of the $5 program. The card is a heavy weight cardstock two-page spread that has a good amount of space, even if you were to, say, meticulously record balls and strikes.

Click here to see all the pictures from this trip.

2008 NY Last Stops

Bronx

On Unnecessary Endings

Yankee Stadium, 2008

Saturday, April 5th, 2008
Tampa Bay [Devil] Rays vs. The New York Yankees
Yankee Stadium
Major League Baseball, American League
Bronx, New York
1:05 PM


Outside the Game:
As part of the last year of Yankee Stadium festivities, a friend of mine's family was coming to see their last game at the stadium. His sister brought their newish baby all the way up from Florida just so that he would be able to go to the stadium before they tore it down. We managed to all meet up at 34th Street from various locales and head to the stadium.


At The Game With Oogie:
It was an early season game in the last year ever at the Stadium against what was thought at the time to be a gimmie win, so it was a sell-out. With a relatively large group, the best we could do was upper deck on the first base side, but all things considered, they were not bad seats.


The Stadium:
There's nothing more that I could contribute to the now endless talk about of Yankee Stadium. With all the renovations and all the history in the place, tearing down the beating heart of baseball seems an unbelievably short-sighted move that has the potential to severely anger the gods of the game. Time will tell.

The new replacement across the street was still under construction and looming like a sad disappointment waiting to happen -- a modern replica of an ancient classic that will lack the soul of the original while simultaneously not be modern enough for whoever they are building it for anyway.

The Yankees handled the countdown to the last games at the stadium on one of the scoreboards and with relatively little fanfare.


The Game:
In retrospect, it was a precursor of the season to come. Although the Yankees jumped out to an early lead, Pettitte collapsed in the middle innings, and a Yankee attempt at a comeback in the 8th inning feel short. The Rays won, 6-3.


The Scorecard:

Rays vs. Devil Rays, 04/05/08. Rays win, 6-3.

The scorecard was part of the $7 program. The scorecard itself is a one-page glossy sheet, which seems unnecessarily small, even for an American League card that will no doubt lack the constant double-switches and other permutations to be found in the National League.

Click here to see all the pictures from this trip.

2008 NY Last Stops