Sorry, Yankee-Haters, New Stadium Is an Absolute Palace

NEW YORK -- Warning: The following column could be hazardous to your health if you are enraged by brand new sports arenas being built in this economy, if you think taxpayer subsidies ought to be used for something besides fun and games, if you are aghast at the ungodly cost of premium seats and $10 beers.

Oh, and if you hate the New York Yankees and everything they represent. Take a deep breath before reading on ...

Because the Yankees' new $1.5 billion ballpark in the Bronx opened Friday night, and oh my, what a sight it is to behold. It's grand, majestic, very fan friendly, the perfect palace for the most expensive team in all of sports.

Because Ivan DeJesus, a guy who has been around baseball for more than 50 years, was little-boy giddy from the moment he stepped onto the Kentucky bluegrass. In a few hours, the Yankees would play the Chicago Cubs in an exhibition game, officially christening the new Yankee Stadium, but for now DeJesus, a Cubs special assistant, couldn't stop taking photos of the mountainous video board hovering over center field. It's 59-feet wide, 101-feet long, and the 16mm high definition quality is like technology beamed from the future. DeJesus thought he'd send a few pictures to someone in Cubs' PR, in case Wrigley Field ever gets a makeover.

Because even the players can't help but sneak peeks at replays on the video board of whatever it is they've just done. "It's that awesome," said Yankee outfielder Johnny Damon. "You want to watch the whole game on it."

Because while the model of the actual field is basically the same as the old stadium across the street -- "It looks like the ball's carrying the same way," said Yankee catcher Jorge Posada -- some of the dimensions have been slightly tweaked. The space between the batter's box and the seats behind home plate has been shortened by about 20 feet, making it feel as if fans are breathing down the umpire's back. "Yeah, it's pretty intimate," Posada said. "You can really feel the energy of the crowd."

Because a few feet have been added to the warning track in right field, creating hits and runs that would have sailed foul in the park across the street. Hideki Matsui clanked a home run off the right-field pole in the third inning against Cubs pitcher Ted Lilly, and one inning later, Cody Ransom smashed a monster hit to left field. The ball curved and bounced off the pole for another home run and yes, Ransom glanced at the massive video board as he rounded the bases. Assigned to keep third base warm until Alex Rodriguez is healthy, Ransom drew a hearty ovation from the crowd of 48,402.

Because Yankee officials helped make the journey across the road a bit less traumatic for the Bleacher Creatures, those unruly souls who set up camp beyond right-center field. In the old Stadium, concrete walls boxed in the Creatures, to prevent harassment of folks in the box seats. More appalling, the Creatures were banned from buying beer. But now that they've been relocated from Section 39 to Section 203, to seats that cost $12 per game, Bleacher Creatures can purchase beer and get chummy with the aristocracy one section over. There are no walls, only expectations the Creatures will behave themselves. "Full-out warfare is possible," said Filip Bondy, a New York Daily News columnist and long-time chronicler of the Creatures. "They're going to have to build moats, soccer moats."

Because the Bleacher Creatures sounded heartier than ever during their traditional roll call of Yankee players. They even managed to make the first name of center fielder "Brett Gardner" reverberate, as if it had two syllables. Could have been the beer.

Because George Steinbrenner demanded a facility unlike most anything in sports. The Boss' hands-on, first-class approach is felt everywhere. "I f there was a towel on the floor, he'd pick it up," said Yankee manager Joe Girardi. "You look at what he's built here and it's one-of-a-kind." And at that very moment, a gloved usher was, for the tenth time, hand-wiping the wide leather seats that ring the field, the ones that go for $2,625 per individual game.

Because the players' clubhouse is unlike most anything they've ever seen. They have touch-screen computers built into their lockers, which are the size of some New York closets. The amenities -- weight rooms, video rooms, training rooms, lounge areas, batting cages, the kitchen with two chefs -- must have been modeled after a mansion in the Hamptons. "Big enough to throw a party in here," Posada said. But couldn't all those luxuries lead to coddled players, maybe take off some of their edge? "I believe it will lead players to work harder," Girardi said, adding his team has every opportunity to succeed, to stay healthy, to have enjoyable experiences.

Because of the above line, the Yankees have no excuse, none, to not win 26 more championships in these digs.


Because while Derek Jeter has the original sign that hung in the bowels of the old stadium, the one with Joe DiMaggio's famous line, "I want to thank the good Lord for making me a Yankee," a replication now swings from the tunnel connecting the home clubhouse to the field. The floor here is lushly carpeted, unlike the floor across the street, which always seemed to be ankle-deep mud.

Because before Jeter recorded the first unofficial hit by a Yankee in the new Stadium with a lead-off double in the bottom of the first, he got lost trying to go from the food room to the clubhouse, and didn't know what doors to use, and it took him an inning and a half to figure which scoreboard recorded balls and strikes, and he still said, "I can't see any stadium being better than this."

Because the visitor's clubhouse is nearly as salubrious as the one down the hall. It's stocked with leather chairs, four huge TVs and enough toys to make Chicago Cubs manager Lou Piniella joke that players might not be ready to play at 7:05 p.m. His only gripe: he misses the old coffee pot, because Friday it took him 30 minutes to figure out the fancy cappuccino thing.

Because as Piniella also said, sports are for fans, "and fans will really enjoy this." And even though Yankee fans are spoiled (it's not like they've had to endure a dump like Shea Stadium all these years), the new Stadium offers visitors a smorgasbord of delights. The dimensions off the field are super-sized: there's an additional 500,000 square feet, and close to two-thirds of the seats are in the lower half of the building, opposed to the old stadium where most of the seats were in the upper half. The concourses are so roomy, you could drive a bus through parts of them, and the multiple concession stands include caloric counts next to menu items. There are 1,500 wide-screen TVs scattered around the open concourses, so fans never lose sight of the game.

Because visitors are bombarded with tributes to the old Stadium, from the familiar frieze that rings the grandstand to the short porch to the vaulted archways to the manually operated auxiliary scoreboards that evoke memories of Don Larsen's 1956 World Series perfect game. "We hoped to create a living museum," said Lon Trost, the Yankee executive who oversaw the building of the new Stadium. The Yankees bullpen has been relocated to right field and Monument Park, with all its plaques and artifacts, is restored in center field, behind the fence. It's impossible to go more than a few steps without bathing in images of Babe Ruth and DiMaggio and Yogi Berra and Thurman Munson and Bobby Murcer and Don Mattingly and Paul O'Neill. "I was hoping coming here, you would recognize the old Yankee Stadium and you really do," said Piniella, who played in the old, old Stadium (pre-reno vation) and managed in the old Stadium. "There is still history, tradition and charm of great Yankee teams of the past."

Because while Aura and Mystique, the names of the ghosts coined by Curt Schilling during the Yankees' last World Series run, have yet to appear, the field angle toward the sun is the same, and the elevated No. 4 train can be glimpsed in the gap between the bleachers and the right-field stands. Once they arrive, Aura and Mystique will feel right at home.

Because the Great Hall is eco-friendly, relying on natural cooling. The green design ensures that beverage cups are made of biodegradable material rather than petroleum based plastic, divert approximately 40 percent of Stadium trash away from landfills.

Because for the fat cats who can still afford it, the halibut at NYY Steak, an upscale restaurant located above the Hard Rock Café, is delish. And because as soon as you walk through Gate 4, there's a fresh fruit cart featuring a bright array of Anjou pears, apples, bananas and naval oranges, all locally grown. It's exactly like the carts on New York street corners, though slightly more expensive.

Because while the old Stadium still abuts the new Stadium, it will eventually be demolished, allowing the South Bronx neighborhood to regain some of its precious parkland.

Because while the regular season doesn't officially start for a few more days, the Yankees, by virtue of their 7-4 win over the Cubs, are 1-0 in their gussied-up, spectacular new ballpark, and fans who love the pinstripes haven't any reason to gripe.