The Final Day Game at Yankee Stadium

The Final Day Game at Yankee Stadium: Baltimore Orioles vs. New York Yankees; NY, NY, Sep. 20th, 2008

Well, I am back home after a day at Yankee Stadium on Saturday, and what a splendid one it was not only for a ball game, but the final day game at the Stadium.

Although most Oriole fans detest Yankee fans who come to Yard and take over, yesterday, they were for the most part very hospitable and friendly -- in a New York kind of way.

The good thing about yesterday was seeing all the fans who came from all over the country -- especially, a good-sized contingent of Oriole fans decked out in orange and black along with shouting the "O" during the National Anthem -- making the trek to Yankee Stadium.

I sat in the Bleachers, for only the second time ever, but sat in the first row and had a ton of fun. The fans up there are passionate about their baseball, and are certainly knowledgeable, as I sat next to a kind man and his son who chatted with me on various topics throughout the day. I even sat through the roll call that the "Bleacher Creatures" partake in before the game chanting out each and every player (except the catcher and pitcher for obvious reasons.)

We all know what happened -- the Orioles lost 1-0 in the bottom of the ninth as Robinson Cano looped a hit to center off Jamie Walker; however, it was nice to see the Orioles fight and especially Brian Burres look nothing short of impressive against one of the powerhouse offenses in the sport.

I was a bit apprehensive about sitting in the bleachers just for photography purposes, but it could not have worked out any better.

Before the game, legendary slugger Reggie Jackson caused a scene as he took a tour of the bleacher area and decided to spot where he hit all of his legendary home runs during that amazing game in the '77 World Series.

I have seen Jackson act standoffish with fans, and at times a gentleman; thus, on Saturday, I was completely amazed by what I saw -- he posing with fans, chatting with them, and being very emotional when he was gazing at where his shots landed. It was an incredible moment to see, and being a baseball fan I appreciated every minute of it.









In the ninth inning, I expected Jim Miller to need a police escort to get out of the stadium after being drilled on the hand as a fastball tailed towards Derek Jeter.

Of course being called an a**hole by anyone is never a good thing, but when about 80% of crowd is doing it as you're walking to the dugout, it can be humbling. Miller got the royal treatment on Saturday afternoon, and you only had to feel for the kid.







Finally, look at all the police that swarmed the field after the game! I guess they have to protect the stadium, and when you see stuff like this on EBay, you can only wonder why.