IT'S OUR PARTY & WE'LL DO WHAT WE WANT TO

If you are a New York Yankee fan then you probably have a few of these people in your life.  They usually hail from Boston or the borough we should trade to New Jersey to get the Giants back…yes, I’m looking at you, Queens.  These folks are obsessed with what the Yankees do.  They say the Yanks buy titles, lie, cheat and steal.  They believe that the Bronx Bombers are what’s wrong with baseball.  Some of these people might be friends of yours.  Perhaps they work with you or are even, God forbid, members of your family. Whatever the case they are lost souls.  Just tune them out and go about your business.  They won’t change.  They are set in their misinformed, misguided ways.  It’s sad, but hey, you can’t save everybody.

Lately the moaning from these poor fans of the “Also Ran’s” has been due to the news that 3 former Yankee greats will be having their numbers retired in the Stadium’s Monument Park.  Jorge Posada, Andy Pettitte and Bernie Williams will join the ranks of pinstriped legends.

Snarky media types (Heyman) and those outside the Yankee Universe are losing their collective minds! “Oh my lord! How many numbers can you guys actually retire? What’s the deal?”

The answer to this question is simple; WE CAN RETIRE AS MANY DAMN NUMBERS AS WE DAMN WELL PLEASE! What does it matter to other teams, fans and baseball writers? It is the business of the New York Yankees, end of story.

If they feel like it, they can even hang up the numbers of Charlie Hayes, Pat Kelly, Omar Moreno, Matty Nokes, Ruben Sierra and Deion Sanders!  Go for it!

(In Photo: Matt Nokes)

Let me ask you Mets fans, how many awful alternate uniforms can you wear? See what I’m saying? Who cares? Those are issues the Mets can deal with.  It makes absolutely no difference to me.

Why are the Yanks retiring #20, #46 and #51? It’s because of the FACT that these players defined an era in New York Yankee baseball.  Just as the Babe and Lou defined the Yankee way, so did Jorge, Andy and Bernie.  They were champions on baseball’s biggest stage and were an extremely special group of players.  They meant a lot to the fans, the city and the organization.

Just as Whitey, Yogi, the Mick and Joe D. meant so much to the organization’s history, this new crop of recent retirees are no different.

Some day soon Captain Derek Jeter will join his former teammates out beyond the center left field wall.  They will all become the Patron Saints of the Big Ballpark in the Bronx.  As Yankee fans we will pass on the stories and the memories of watching them play the game and win it all.  And to those who feel the Yankees retire too many numbers…well, their opinions didn’t matter then, they don’t matter now and they won’t matter when the new Yankees begin to write their page in history.

** Here’s to the New York Yankees past, present and future. Cheers. **

1, (2), 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8,8, 9, 10, 15, 16, (20), 23, 32, 37, 42, 42 44, (46), 49, (51)...

AND THE BEAT GOES ON…




 
--Mike O'Hara
Senior "Features" Writer
Twitter: @mikeyoh21



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GUESS WHO'S COMING TO OLD TIMERS' DAY?

I wanted to send put this out because it's always fun to see who shows up to Old Timers' Day and who was asked.  For instance, this year there are a few guys that were asked for the very first time.  Those new guys are:

Sterling Hitchcock

Stump Merrill

Gene Monahan

Matt Nokes

Tanyon Sturtze

Believe me, Old Timers' Day is one of the most exciting moments at Yankee Stadium all year.  This year will be the 66th Old Timers' Day and will take place on Sunday, July 1st at 11:15am.

Here the rest of the list in alphabetical order:

Luis Arroyo

Jesse Barfield

Yogi Berra

Ron Blomberg

Dr. Bobby Brown

Homer Bush

Jerry Coleman

David Cone

Bucky Dent

Al Downing

Brian Doyle

Cecil Fielder

Whitey Ford

Oscar Gamble

Jake Gibbs

Joe Girardi

Rich “Goose” Gossage

Ron Guidry

 

Charlie Hayes

Rickey Henderson

Arlene Howard

Helen Hunter

Reggie Jackson

Tommy John

Pat Kelly

Don Larsen

Graeme Lloyd

Hector Lopez

Jill Martin

Tino Martinez

Lee Mazzilli

Diana Munson

Kay Murcer

Paul O’Neill

Joe Pepitone

Lou Piniella

Willie Randolph

Bobby Richardson

Mickey Rivers

Aaron Small

Mel Stottlemyre

Darryl Strawberry

Ralph Terry

Joe Torre

Bob Turley

Roy White

Bernie Williams

There's 1 person missing from this list.  Chuck Knoblauch.  I'm not exactly sure why he wasn't, but Chuck should be asked. This guy's been apart of 3 World Championships and he gave those Yankee teams his blood and guts. Come on Yanks send the invite!

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WHY THE NERD SHOW OPENED MY EYES

6 years ago, I was lucky enough to go to a card show and meet 3 very important Yankees. Yes, 2 were much older men, but the other was a new kid on the block. That stuff didn’t really matter though, they were Yankees and played with the greatest and played on the biggest stage. They were Gil McDougald, Bobby Murcer and Chien Ming Wang.

I walked into the auditorium of the event with my wife, who likes to break my balls when it comes to memorabilia collecting. She calls them “Nerd” shows. This isn’t to say that the actual shows are nerd shows, she’s making fun of me for being a nerd. Anyway, that being said, when I saw these athletes live, I turned into a little kid, and dare I say, a nerd… so maybe she’s onto something. Anyway, back to my point.

The first line was a short one. When I saw Gil Mcdougald, he looked nothing like the 1956 baseball card I had of him, but it was the ACTUAL Gil Mcdougald. I had a baseball and when it was my turn, I went up shook his hand and told him while I never saw him play, I thanked him for some great years on the Yankees and appreciated him. He smiled at me and told me he appreciated it. “A lot of youngsters tend to go up to the new guys.” That broke my heart but he laughed it off and signed my baseball. I took a picture and thanked him.

Next we waited on a longer line, but it was worth it, Bobby Murcer was on the end of it. He was healthy at the time, smiling, shaking hands and really just larger than life in my mind. I always liked Murcer and I loved him more in the booth. Just a likable guy. My fondest memory of Bobby Murcer was that home run he hit in the Munson game. I was a kid, but I remember where I was when I saw it and how important it was. I became a fan right then and to meet him now was incredible. When it was my turn, I walked up and shook his hand. I was really nervous. “I love you in the booth Mr. Murcer”, I said. “Thank you” he said. He took my ball, then he grabbed an action shot of him and signed it for me too. “Wow” I thought. We posed for a picture and after alittle more conversation I was on my way.

Then I got on the longest line in the room. At the end of it was Chien Ming Wang. Wow, maybe Gil Mcdougald was right, could it be that a lot of these kids don’t know about the other Yankee Greats of the past?

(In Photo: Bobby Richardson)

When I was a kid, my dad didn’t sit with me teaching about the Yankees of years past, but he would drop a name and a memory,like Bobby Richardson, "he was great for the Yankees," he'd say. Or “Moose” Skowron, "He had some great years for us," he'd say. My dad watched them play and he’d mention them. Me, in turn, would go and read about them, just so I knew who he talking about. When I was old enough, I’d go to card stores and save up to buy a card. If my dad says that guy was good, then he must be good, I thought. And that’s how I did it. Now, waiting on Wang's line, I realized maybe many had forgotten about the others.

I walked up, shook Wang’s hand. The conversation was limited, just a lot of nodding and pictures and signing my baseball and to me, it was exciting, but I have to tell you, at the time, Wang was the new guy and it was definitely a different feeling for me. Yes, he was a Yankee, but he wasn’t yet a Yankee great, the others were.

I tell you this story merely because the Yankee history runs long and deep and has so many incredible players over the years, even not so great ballplayers, but great stories and stats just the same. Mickey Mantle and Babe Ruth are the most well known, but what do you know about Wayne Tolleson or Bobby Shantz. How about Matt Nokes or Jim Abbott? (In Photo: Jim Abbott)

Do you remember Bobby Meacham? I do, it was not a good career, but he was a New York Yankee and that means something I think. Check out Baseball Reference and type in a New York Yankee. Everything about them is there, stats and information that you never knew. It's really great. The Yankee history is truly awesome.

I love my New York Yankees and it really doesn’t matter who they are, they were Yankees and to learn about them and the teams they played on is great. Know the players, love them, they were Yankees, members of the greatest team in the world. It’s damn glorious.

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WHY WE NEVER GIVE UP ON OUR YANKEES

(photo: NY Daily News)
There are plenty of things that happen around Opening Day. Raw fan emotion for 1. For 2, raw player emotion, yes, it's just a job to them, but they still want to win.

For the fan watching, we anaylze very simply. We look at the at bats for instance. In 4 or 5 plate appearances, us Yankee fans get a batch report of what a player may or may not do that season. Yes, it's a small batch, but put simply, this is where fans gauge players. It's not fair, but that's how our minds work.

The reality is, anything can happen after Opening Day, but comfort level of an individual player is tested and the fan knows that. Butterflies are in everyone's stomach on Opening Day, and as days move on into weeks, comfort becomes dominant in a player's psyche. That confidence at the plate usually will translate to the fan, hence, jersey's are purchased, kids formulate who their favorite player is, females want to marry that player.

Sometimes as the season progresses, certain players can't get that confidence. The mind doesn't sync up with the body, they're slow at the plate, they're booed at the plate. Fans leave, and no one's asking for autographs anymore. Bottom line, you see that happening a mile away, the player knows too, but sometimes you have to just chalk it up as a slump.

One thing I've noticed as a Yankee fan though, We never give up on our guys, EVER. Yes, we get hasty, we want the big hit, but we never ever desert our players. We love our Yankees. I've seen crappy players come and go but whenever they come back, Opening Day or Old Timer's Day, there's alwayshuge applause.Look, I rooted for the Yanks when Bobby Meacham and Dale Berra were the left side of the infield. Those were dark days. But no one faults a bad Yankee player. They may be bad sometimes, but he was qualified to wear the pinstripes, so over time, he's embraced. We, the fans love our Yankees and if you wear the pinstripes and get out there and do all you can do, we salute them... Why? Because Yankees keep fighting, no matter what.I joked about how bad Sergio Mitre was for us. Well, he was, but he gave it his all, it just turned out, he wasn't terribly good, but he never gave up. Remember Kevin Maas? He was crushing homeruns early on in his career, then, once teams figured out he couldn't hit anything but fastballs, he eventually vanished, but he never gave up. And still, to this day everyone remembers Maas, and if he showed up at Yankee Stadium, people would love to see him.

How about Glennallen Hill, or Jack Clark... maybe Matt Nokes. All these guys were Yankees, all had flashes of greatness for the Yanks, but none of them panned out the way we wanted, yet, Yankee fans know those players, and we love our Yankees. Why? Because they never gave up.
There's something that happens to players when they put on the pinstripes. They become super heroes to us all. They are leaders, they walk with pride, they never stop fighting. That's what I grew up watching. Today, nothing's changed, except of course the athletes themselves. At the end of the day, It's the unique history and a unique pattern. Yes, it's great to win every year, but year after year we remember every player good or bad who ran out on the field as a New York Yankee. Because when you wear the pinstripes, you never give up and the fans never give up on you.

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