BILLY MCKINNEY "MAY SURPRISE US"

Stories about comebacks and guys that everyone doubts are good stories... especially when they succeed.  

The other day I wrote about how the Yankees were taking a chance on Billy McKinney, offering him a major league contract as a way to move players around in the wake of the Aaron Judge injury.  At the time, Facebook was a tizzy and of course the doubters came out of the woodwork.

Now that guy Rich Grobarcik and I are on the same page for sure. McKinney is a decent player. I think the problem with McKinney is that he wasn't given a decent shot, or, he just wasn't ready. But guys like McKinney are solid athletes. Sometimes you just gotta let things gel. 

Last night it was McKinney who made things happen for the Yankees. The New York Post writes:

“I was a little disappointed that I never got to get a hit in Yankee Stadium as a home player. I played here as a road player,” the 28-year-old McKinney said. “Getting the home run means a lot.”

McKinney tripled in the opener and homered in the fifth inning of the nightcap, continuing the torrid stretch he had been on with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

He hit his homer, on a high 94 mph fastball from White Sox starter Mike Clevinger, into the bleachers in right-center field.

“It was cool. I was pretty fired up,” he said. “Glad it went out and glad we got the win.”

The bottom line is we just need to see the consistency from this guy. There's a lot of factors that go into that. Does Boone decide and rest the guy today? If so, it breaks momentum. Will they let McKinney settle in and see what he's made of? It's like a Jake Bauers. No one knew this kid and he's been consistent and showing us all what being hungry for an opportunity means to the individual player. It's beautiful.  

This I guess is a "tip of the cap" post. McKinney has always been a kid I liked watching play. I will leave you with this, from BYB's old buddy Dave Goode, who also commented on Facebook about Billy:

He did Dave... the certainly did.

Happy Friday, Go Yanks!

TORRES & KAPRIELIAN ARE 'KILLING IT'

I am a fan of getting feeback and info from the Arizona Fall League.  My buddy Dave Goode loves it too.  He's in Arizona and checks in with me every year because he tries to go to games and get a few quotes for us at BYB because Goode's been a BYB fan since the beginning. In fact, we even interview Goode here a while back because he was a vendor at Yankee Stadium a million years ago, (I kid), and so I wanted to see what he saw in the old Yankee Stadium. 

Read THE VENDOR FROM THE HOUSE THAT RUTH BUILT... you will be entertained.

Anyway... I'm getting sidetracked, but I wanted to give you some info on some of our kids that are at the AFL right now.

Keith Law of ESPN writes:

"New York Yankees right-hander James Kaprielian, their 2015 first-round pick out of UCLA, was outstanding in his AFL debut Wednesday night, his first outing since he went down in April with an undisclosed arm injury. He was 94-97 mph with a hard cutter-like slider that was 85-89 early but slipped a little in his third inning, and he showed a plus straight changeup with great arm speed at 82-87."

Mike Rosenbaum of MLB.com writes of newly acquired Gleyber Torres:

"Gleyber Torres may be one of the younger players in this year's Arizona Fall League, but you would never know it based on the 19-year-old shortstop's impressive showing in the season's first week.

'I don't try to put too much pressure on myself,' Torres said. 'I just want to show everybody my abilities and go out there and have some fun.'

The Yankees' No. 2 prospect accomplished both of those on Friday night as he delivered a bases loaded walk-off single to lead Scottsdale past Glendale, 8-7, at Scottsdale Stadium."

The future of the Yankees looks bright, folks. Here are 2 more examples of that.  Gotta love the youth movement.

Keep looking back here for future updates from the AFL, be it actual reporting or some exclusive nuggets from my friend Dave Goode! He'll do his best to try and get exclusive and unique info from the Yankee players for the BYB readers! Thank you Dave!

ROAD TO 28 IN 2014: A FAN'S TAKE

It's amazing that it's February and I just received my annual invitation to join my fantasy league, a league  I won last year by the way.   I live in Arizona an Spring training is gearing up here!   As I make my way to the park to see players gearing up for a new season, I drive by many winter homes of major league teams and while I will take in a few of those games, I have to say, my 2014 New York Yankees are shaping up nicely.

Thank goodness for Bleeding Yankee Blue. They had numerous great posts this past off-season and while I may not have had many comments about them, it was easy to keep up with what my Boys of Summer from he Bronx because of BYB.

The past few off-seasons were kind of a bummer for me, and I know you too.  In the past, I've commented on how since the passing of George Steinbrenner, both Hal and Hank were turning the team into the "Dollar Store" Yankees.  Well, I am pleased with the way things changed for us this past winter.  Sadly, we had to see the retiring of both Andy Pettitte and Mariano Rivera but on the other end of it,  we also no longer have to deal with the ups-an-downs of Phil Hughes and Joba Chamberlain.  In fairness to them though,  I hope they do well on the Twins and Tigers... except for when they play us of course.

Finally Hal and Hank opened their wallets. Thank goodness. They've allowed Brian Cashman to go and sign stars like Brian McCann, Jacoby Ellsbury, Carlos Beltran and the biggest prize that we Yankee fans hoped for... Masahiro Tanaka.  Bleeding Yankee Blue kept us going this winter,  hoping we'd get Tanaka, as well as keeping us occupied with the saga of Alex Rodriguez, his suspension and loss of Robinson Cano to Seattle.

Cano bailing on us was interesting. Let's see how much press coverage he gets up there.  We even picked up a few to fill the holes...  Brian Roberts, a guy we truly need lightning in a bottle from, Brendan Ryan, Kelly Johnson, and even Scott Sizemore.

Mark Teixeira is hinting he may not have a good year, but I'm hoping despite his age, our fearless Captain Derek Jeter is fully recovered from his injury and will make a big impact for us.

While I am a big David Robertson fan, I think we need a closer with a bit more experience and I am not 100% set on our starting staff.  We will do great if Ivan Nova continues the way he finished last year.  And an IF, a big IF is that we get a solid Michael Pineda. Hopefully he'll be a pleasant surprise.  Oh, and we can't rule out Manny Baneulos either!  As Casey has written... is Ervin Santana next? Hey, I agree in that regard...  I don’t think we are done spending and I look to see another few signings before the first pitch is thrown.  Overall though, I am much more optimistic going into this season than I have been the last few seasons.

I see a flashback and I see a Yankees vs. Dodgers World Series 2014... but the Yankees win in 6...

 --Dave Goode, Die-hard Yankee fan
Interviewed for his 30 plus years experience as a vendor at Yankee Stadium
THE VENDOR FROM THE HOUSE THAT RUTH BUILT




Thank you to all the Bleeding Yankee Blue readers for continued success.  You've made BYB the fastest growing Yankees fan site in the history of Yankees fandom.  Thanks for reading, sharing and enjoying. Follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue (Official) on Facebook, just type it in.

NOT AT YANKEE STADIUM: THINGS I DON'T UNDERSTAND

There are many  things I don't understand. I wish I was all knowing. But in this case, there are a lot of baseball oddities that I am trying to make sense of. I spent the weekend at Chase Field the home of the Arizona Diamondbacks....and let me tell ya, my head is still spinning from some of the things I saw.

I have been to a lot of baseball games over the years. I have been back and forth to the Bronx, and then there is Chase Field here in my own backyard. With just a short drive down the freeway I am there and checking out the scene. As close as I am to the stadium, the differences between what I see here and what I see in New York couldn't be more opposite. It's not even apples and oranges. It's like comparing a kid's toy dump truck and gelato.

To understand what I am talking about you just have to be there and look past the whole "National League vs American League" thing. You have to look deeper at what happens when the cameras are off. Let me tell you....it was weird. On Saturday I went to a night game with BYB friend Dave Goode. We interviewed him in THE VENDOR FROM THE HOUSE THAT RUTH BUILT... and these are some of the things we saw....

First things first here.... The Hot Dog Derby. Yes, you heard me. It's a cute idea for the kids, but wow....what the fans saw on the screen versus what as happening on the field was strange. I know other teams do this but, the Diamondback take kids from three different sections in the stadium and dress them up in a hot dog suits. There is one person racing for team relish, one for team ketchup, and one for mustard. You watch the kids run in place as the animated hot dogs jump up and down on the jumbo tron across popular downtown Phoenix sites until they cross the finish line. As I am watching team relish jump up and down feverishly, ketchup looks like he is skipping yet he wins the race. Go figure. Oh and the prize for team ketchup was everyone sitting in that section won a coupon for a free hot dog from Circle K. Seems odd to me.....

Then came the Legends race. The Diamondbacks send giant bobble head looking "legendary" players and race them halfway around the stadium. The crowd watches to see who gets out of the bullpen gate first as Luis Gonzalez, Randy Johnson, Mark Grace, and Matt Williams will try to trap the other players behind the gate. They hobble halfway around the stadium until one of them crosses the finish line. Then they make their way into the stands and walk through all of the seats. They keep score throughout the year of who has the most wins. Interesting stat here....Grace has never won a race and he spent most of his years on the Cubs. Dave and I were wondering....were we the only ones questioning why the Diamondbacks are clinging so closely to their association with Mark Grace given his recent DUI charges? Hmmmm....

Sunday was just as strange. This time though, I went with my Diamondbacks and Mets loving father. I was curious to see who he was going to be cheering for. Just so happened he was on team Dback as I was cheering on the Mets. I can't believe I just said that, but I did. We saw some more strange games.

The Diamondbacks play a roulette game where they spin this over sized wheel and wherever the "coin" drops in you get a prize. They chose a season ticket holder to play. Cool, right? So they start talking to the guy and they zoom in on him. They ask him how long he has been a season ticket holder and he says "since the very beginning." Awesome, right? Dude was wearing Milwaukee Brewers gear. Really? I don't get that at all....

Then came "The Bongo Game!" Sounds odd already, right? So the announcer puts on music with a conga beat to it. The jumbo tron will show the drums and they pan the stands looking for someone that looks like they are drumming to the beat. What happened to player trivia?

This one was my favorite....let's play Float or Sink! How do you play, you ask. Let me tell you! So Chase Field is known for their exclusive section in the outfield that has a swimming pool. It comes in very handy down here. So during the game the people in those seats have to guess if the randomly chosen object will "sink" or "float" once thrown in the pool. Winners get a $25 gift card. This weekend they threw a full bottle of ketchup into the pool. My dad guessed it would float. I said sink. The bottle did sink but really....again I ask, what happened to player trivia?!

Another thing to add to the list....I don't understand is WHY every year when the Mets come out here David Wright is on the disabled list? I always buy tickets just so I can watch him because I think he is a good player, and I respect him for the way he plays. Every year though....he's unavailable. Are you allergic to the desert, Wright? If you are, I guess I can't fault you too much but come on!!

But the kicker for me, and not even my dad can explain this one to me....why on earth did the Diamondbacks change their colors? When they first came out here they were looking to make a statement and set this team apart from the rest. The turquoise and purple colors did just that. It was unexpected, and unique. Here we are years later and now they are red and black. Maybe I shouldn't question this because they haven't won since so maybe it is bad luck for them and good luck for me.

Now if someone could just explain the mascot thing to me, I could let all of this go. The mascot's name is Baxter....and he is a cat. A CAT! The team is named after a snake. It is even in the logo and part of their rally sound over the intercom is the rattle sound a snake's tail makes before they attack their pray. So why the cat?! It makes no sense, Arizona....no sense!

Yankee Stadium is like a whole other planet. I now step off of my soap box and return you to your usual, very logical BYB reporting.....

--Jeana Bellezza, BYB Senior Writer and Editor

Twitter: @NyPrincessJ

 

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TIME FOR HAL & HANK TO READ BYB!

Well, here we sit... just a 1 day away from the All Star game at Citi field in Queens.  Many of us die-hard Yankee fans have been so frustrated by all the injuries the Yankees have had all season... it's a mess, but BYB gets me up to speed daily.

We look at guys like Joe Girardi and his binder and we want to blame Kevin Long too.  Many of us are outraged because of all the so-called "rejects" the Yankees have picked up off the scrap heap... I think of them as re-treads like in the tires.  Many of the DFA's end up signing and wearing Pinstripes within hours of being let go by their former teams.  You can read the BYB archives about any of these guys. Meanwhile, many of the Yankee baseball prospects are near the top of the list... so why are we wasting our time on DFAs?   I, like many, scratch my head and think about what Brian Cashman is thinking by NOT bringing MORE of these prospects and giving them a shot.

I have stated in some of my past Bleeding Yankee blogs that we pay and develop players have for years. My question is, what does that say about our farm system if they don’t bring these guys up and use them? It's time... it really is.

 

(In Photo: Mark Montgomery)

Now, some of you know that I have attended some AZ Fall League games the last 3 years (Read HANGING OUT AT THE ARIZONA FALL LEAGUE), and I've seen some of the best in the Yankee minor league system play. For example;  Mark Montgomery for instance. I've heard some talk about how he could be our next closer. Montgomery should be up!  How about Slade Heathcott?

Slade should be given a shot... he has great ranger and can hit some monster shots.  The bottom line is we can't do any worse than what we have up here now.  Heck, with all the injuries this season, we then end up rushing Derek Jeter back too fast,  and he pulls his quad the first day back Come on! Now, we're all hoping it isn't too serious, but time will tell.

I, and others feel like Hal and Hank Steinbrenner don’t care about the Yankees and us fans and are laughing all the way to the bank. Cashman's hands are tied with the tightening of the wallets, it's clear aid is NOT on the way.

Sure, if the Boss were around, heads would roll, but sadly, he isn't and his sons now run the show. Man, I truly wish Hal and Hank read BYB, because if they did, they'd see what many fans feel. I wonder if it would change anything?  I don’t know, but if we got some kind of response, it would be nice.  Look, rumors are all around us lately, but will we actually do anything to better ourselves as a team? I wonder.  It's crazy, but this current 2013 Yankee team reminds me of the late 1960's teams when we had guys like Clete Boyer, Tom Tresh, Dooley Womack & Fritz Peterson... remember them?

(In Photo: Tom Tresh)

Now, you're reading this thinking, "Oh great, another Yankee fan giving up on his Yankees!" NO WAY! I am not bailing at all!  In fact, if you check the standings, this 2013 Yankees team has won 50 games before the All Star break. This is the 6th year in a row we have done that!  Check the standings, every team but the Blue Jays has won 50 or more games in the AL East. As I type this, we are currently in 4th place, only  6 games out of first in our division. So, once again we remain in the toughest division in baseball.  But, what am I hoping for? I am hoping the boys and Cashman shock us fans and make some beneficial trades before the July 31st deadline. I am hoping we start obtaining quality ball players, or at least get more of the kids up here to contribute! That's what I want. So folks, while it hasn’t been pretty the first half, we are still in the thick of this race, remember that. We just may need alittle extra to put us over.

As Sir Winston Churchill once said... "Never, never, never give up!" 

 --Dave Goode, Die-hard Yankee fan
Interviewed for his 30 plus years experience as a vendor at Yankee Stadium
THE VENDOR FROM THE HOUSE THAT RUTH BUILT

The Bleeding Yankee Blue store is opened! CLICK HERE TO START SHOPPING! Also, follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue (Official) on Facebook, just type it in.

"A NEW YANKEE SEASON MEANS A CLEAN SLATE"

We've had an interesting week. Opening Week. After all the "so-called" moves or non-moves the Yankees did this off season, we now start over. It's a new page, a new chapter in yet a new book called the 2013 Yankees season.  It's amazing, but it's April and baseball is back.

Not to rehash, but I must...many fans, myself included were disappointed that Cashman didn’t sign any big free agents this off season.  Plus, injuries seemed to cloud the team in Spring training.

Some questions still exist with big time Yankee players...Will ARod come back or not?  How long will Granderson be out for? Tex? We know he's fielding grounders, but when is he going to practice hitting? And our captain, our life line, Derek Jeter, how long will he truly be sidelined for officially?   Time will tell, and I'm beginning to hate that expression!

As a daily reader of Bleeding Yankee Blue, we have seen that some in the sports world, like Yahoo Sports or CBS Sports, rule the Yankees out before the first pitch was even thrown.  We even say Andrew Marchand make a simple, yet odd prediction on Twitter the other night writing:

Shortly after, Casey wrote Marchand with his thoughts:

It seems like the predictions are coming too soon, too fast and there are many that are just "out there" when it comes to the Yankees.  Then there are the sports writers that actually see the Yanks doing OK. Look at Will Leitch of nymag.com predicts the Yankees winning the division with 89 wins, read HERE.  They would then lose in the ALDS to the Tigers.  Bill Livingston of the Cleveland Plain Dealer predicts the Yankees to make the playoffs  as Wild card team, read HERE. Paul Reindl of Seattle also picks the Yanks to make the playoffs as a Wild Card team only to lose to the Rangers, read HERE.

But what does this all mean? It means no one really knows, do they? It is what it is right now, but I can say this... George spoiled us fans and the Steinbrenner sons are not.  It was evident this winter and who knows if it will ever change.

Yes, we have a decent team and yes we are also older, but yes... we'd all love ourselves a Giancarlo Stanton in pinstripes as well.  I first read about it on Bleeding Yankee Blue and it made perfect sense.  Instead, right now we have a very excited Vernon Wells. With him, I believe we will catch "lightning in a bottle" from he and others, but ultimately, we'll have to wait and see.  The biggest thing and the most though, is Derek Jeter.  When he comes back, we can count on him to rally the team. Without him, it seems lifeless this first week, don't you think?

But look, it's been a stressful, slow and nutty off season, but like I said through this rant... we turn the page now.  We watch our club and root and cheer for whomever is out there, because no matter what, it's our team.  The doubters have already given up and the believers know we'll be playing in October. But I'm getting ahead of myself, aren't I...

We're finally here, Opening week.  A clean slate. Man, I still remember one of the first opening days I worked at Yankee stadium as a vendor.  Standing behind the home plate screen and watching Robert Merrill sing the National Anthem. That grass smelled so fresh... I can still smell it.  I knew that winter was over and it was a fresh start and a chance to win the World Series. And you know what? I feel the same way today. A new Yankee season means a clean slate!

So put a smile on your face... It's time to play ball... Go Yanks!

 --Dave Goode, Die-hard Yankee fan
Interviewed for his 30 plus years experience as a vendor at Yankee Stadium
THE VENDOR FROM THE HOUSE THAT RUTH BUILT



Please comment, we have DISQUS, it's easier than ever. Let me know what you think and follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue on Facebook, just type it in.

"IT'S GONNA BE A LONG SEASON!"

I guess I would call this a follow up to my piece titled I'M MAD AS HELL AND I'M NOT GONNA TAKE IT ANYMORE.  Normally I'm psyched up around this time of year. Spring training has begun and that means my beloved Yankees start yet another season for the ultimate goal,  another World Series championship.  Sadly though, this season is starting to look like it may be a very long season, especially after a winter of doing absolutely nothing by the boys of Yankee brass. 

There are 2 good things. Derek Jeter & Mariano Rivera.  We have a healed Derek Jeter,  back at 100% and that's great.  Sure, some have stated that given his age and injury, he will never be the same. But my gut tells me if anyone can fully recover, Derek is the man who can and will. Also, the whole Mariano Rivera stuff is bittersweet. I believe this season, his last, he will be back at 100% too, but sadly for us fans, this season is the last we'll see the great Mo pitch.

Those injuries to Curtis Granderson, Mark Teixeira and Alex Rodriguez are killing us.  We lost Eric Chavez, Nick Swisher, Raul Ibanez and Russell Martin... I know, I know, we all know this. But what did we do to fill in those holes? We signed an aging Kevin Youkilis and Travis Hafner. I'm not too jazzed. 

I'm not sure Youk will be the surprise people are talking about and Travis Hafner is a DH... he won't be playing the field.  To all of that, I say this... give me a break.

Oh and let's not forget the signings of Chris Bootcheck and Dan Johnson. We released Jack Cust and Colin Curtis and Chris Dickerson is now with the Baltimore Orioles and all the others who were claimed and then released.  Yankeeland is in a tizzy. And just recently I was reading of a trade to get Garrett Jones and Casper Wells.  Again, how much is this really going to help this club?

(In Photo: Kyle Seager)
My suggestion is simple. Go after Chase Headley or even a Kyle Seager and of course BYB's brilliant idea to snag Giancarlo Stanton now! But no.  The boys won't even get Carlos Lee.  Aubrey Huff might be available... and it's just mind numbing.  Enough already! I truly am sick of what has been done, or should I say, NOT been done this off season.

I've written, as well as BYB about bringing the kids up from the farm. Let's not forget, that's how we molding championship teams, starting with guys like Bernie Williams, Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, Jorge Posada and Andy Pettitte. Have we forgotten? We need to  give the kids a chance.  Instead, we keep hearing that "they're not ready" or "not groomed enough."  I say, groomed for what?  Who's getting married here?  Can these youngsters be any worse then the nobodies we've already signed?

Yes, as a die hard 50-year Yankee fan, I am spoiled rotten.  After surviving those late 60's early 70's losing teams, I do expect a winning championship, caliber team every year and sadly, while not one pitch has been thrown in the regular season, I just don’t see this team winning 90 games or dare I say, even making it to the playoffs.

I hope I'm wrong, I do.  I hope this is a great Yankee season, but mentally, I am prepared for a long, aggravating season. Maybe... just maybe someone in management wakes up before it's too late.

Is it April 1st yet? Let's play ball already! Go Yankees!

 --Dave Goode, Die-hard Yankee fan
Interviewed for his 30 plus years experience as a vendor at Yankee Stadium
THE VENDOR FROM THE HOUSE THAT RUTH BUILT



Please comment, we have DISQUS, it's easier than ever. Let me know what you think and follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue on Facebook, just type it in.

"I'M MAD AS HELL AND I'M NOT GONNA TAKE IT ANYMORE"

Here's another installment from my good friend Dave Goode, a die-hard Yankee fan... and my friend.

As your blog says, The Yankees are looking to 2014. I am going to be like a bear and go to sleep.  You can wake me just in time for Spring training 2014.  It is my opinion that this Yankee team sadly reminds me of being a young Yankee fan.

(In Photo: Jake Gibbs)
I remember being around 11 years old and seeing that 1967 Yankee roster... an aging Mickey Mantle in one of his last years. Jake Gibbs as catcher, Charley Smith at 3B. There was Tom Tresh, Joe Pepitone, Ruben Amaro, Steve Whitaker and many other so-so players past there prime.

Last season they BATTLED to barely make the playoffs with so-so pitching and no clutch hitting. Now I see this off season and there is nothing. It has been the "Off Season of Stugots."

Yeah, we signed Kevin Youkilis because we had no choice. Alex Rodriguez is down through mid-summer at best and he "could" be out all season, read HERE.   Youk could surprise us, true, but his better days are behind him.  We couldn’t even get a so-so Scott Hairston to sign with us, never mind a Justin Upton who ended up going to the Braves. Plus, instead of going after Michael Morse, we signed Dan Johnson, a .237 lifetime hitter. To me, it's pathetic. BYB blogs have talked all the players the Yanks have missed the boat on and I'll tell you, I wish I could talk to both of the Steinbrenner boys and tell them that's it's been a disappointment.

We are in the toughest division in baseball and after the Toronto Blue Jays made that trade with the Miami Marlins, things just got tougher. Plus, who's left to sign? Michael Bourn?  I don’t see that happening.  I've been in sales for over 30 years. We usually have mock sales sessions. But look, until you actually interact with customers, it is all nonsense.  That is why the time is NOW to get the kids on the farm up to the bigs! Another year down on the farm won't matter that much. not when we sign  guys like Dan Johnson. Instead of waiting, give the kids a shot.  My gut tells me they can't do any worse and it will mature them and give them the big league experience they need. Who knows, we may actually get luck too! Forget about Giancarlo Stanton. The Yankees just won't spend the money.

I think the only way the boys wake up is if us fans revolt. I back BYB's idea, hit them in the pocket book. Read YANKEE FAN'S REVOLT: "ENOUGH'S ENOUGH". Let the attendance dwindle, let food and souvenir sales fall flat and all revenue sources dry up and if in 2014 they put a team that can win #28 on the field, we will be back, but not before!  Hey, when they spend money, fans will spend money.  As was said in the movie Network. " I'm mad as hell and I am not going to take it anymore!"

Finally, on paper, I don’t see a team that can go out win the division, a pennant and a #28 championship, so wake me in 2014.  Hopefully I'm wrong.  If I'm not, hopefully next winter these guys will wake up and go after some quality players.  Hey, it never hurts to start looking early... right?

 --Dave Goode, Die-hard Yankee fan
Interviewed for his 30 plus years experience as a vendor at Yankee Stadium
THE VENDOR FROM THE HOUSE THAT RUTH BUILT