New York Yankee Reminiscence
Preview:
The New York Yankees are the most successful professional franchise in all of professional sports history. The Yankees are a team that plays games not only for themselves, but for the families watching. These Yankees games take on a meaning that is greater than just a simple regular season baseball game. I had the privilege of viewing Yankees games live at Yankee Stadium, in their home ballpark and City Field, where the New York Mets play, while I had the chance to understand the historic reality that the Yankees truly are the greatest and most successful franchise in professional sports history, proven through every one of their 27 World Series Championships and Titles.
The “Subway Series” Recollection:
On a hot and steamy summer evening in June at City Field, my father and I had the honor of attending a New York Yankees versus New York Mets “Subway Series” game, two longtime crosstown rivals, who are literally separated by a river/body of water. It was an extra significant and special game that took on a family-oriented meaning and playoff atmosphere. It was the first of three games between these bitter New York rivals battling for bragging rights in the latest chapter of New York baseball supremacy. This game was memorable in part I had the opportunity to view an extremely rare event, which was personally seeing the greatest closer in baseball history, Mariano Rivera, taking the mound in the 9th inning, and closing out and sealing an eventual New York Yankee 2-1 victory. The Yankees managed to escape with a narrow 2-1 win, as the fans, including my father and I, were deeply invested into each and every play throughout the night from the very first pitch to the last. I vividly remember the right field seats my dad and I sat in at City Field. They were amazing seats because we had a perfect, bird’s eye view of the subway series showdown between the Yankees and Mets. It was amazing to see all of the Yankees players donning their uniforms with pride on a hot and steamy night in Queens. The New York stars were out in conspicuous form, as I explicitly remember Derek Jeter making nice infield, defensive plays as he patrolled and captained the infield. Getting a grand, wide-shot view of the entire outfield and infield was an experience worth re-living, and made me wish I could attend every single “Subway Series” game between the two crosstown rivals. Seeing Core Four members Jorge Posada, Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera in the same game (let alone a “Subway Series” game) was a phenomenal experience and made me truly proud to be a die-hard Yankee fan. I was elated to see the Yankees take care of business against their longtime crosstown, New York rival Mets on that hot Subway series night in Flushing, Queens.
This “Subway Series” contest was super memorable for myself and my father because of the electric New York playoff intensive atmosphere, along with the inevitable skirmish between clashing Mets and Yankees fans. The skirmish occurred in the centerfield bleachers, as a pair of car keys were thrown violently onto the warning track, where is a dirt area patch in the outfield that “warns” outfielders of the wall behind them in their “track” to catching a baseball in flight. This skirmish made the intensity of the game escalate a notch, on top of the already intense and rivalry-based environment. In addition to that skirmish, this game took on a family bond presence because it made my father and I feel a part of the Yankee tradition of diehard New York Yankees fans, and a part of the constant slogan coined by captain Derek Jeter, “Yankees fans are the greatest fans in the world”; this statement was confidently stated by Jeter in 2008, when he saluted the Yankee fans of the old Yankee Stadium at the House that Ruth Built, while carrying the Yankee tradition to the new stadium (the House that the Boss Built).
Opening Day Pandemonium:
Sure enough, the Yankees and their fans lived up to the Yankee tradition of the “greatest fans in the world” notion, and christened the new Yankee Stadium with a World Series Championship Title in 2009, which was their 27th title in franchise history, by far the most in professional sports history. On an overcast afternoon on April 13th, 2010, I had the opportunity to personally see the Yankees and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim play against each other, two longtime American League rivals. It was an Opening Day game the year immediately following the Yankees’ 27th Title, and I went with my father and some friends of his that he grew up with. Fortunately, I was able and privileged to observe the Yankees receive their World Series rings on their home field at Yankee Stadium prior to the start of their game and, essentially their succeeding season in their attempt to defend their title as defending World Series champions. In addition, and what made the experience even more awesome, was viewing former Yankee and World Series MVP in 2009, Hideki Matsui, receiving his World Series ring as a member of the opposing team. I felt that viewing this with my family (father) and friends made the occasion and event all the more special because we were Yankees fans of diehard nature and were a part of the fabric of true-to-the-heart Yankees fan hood. It was significant to me, personally, because I have heard plenty of stories from my peers in school about them going to Yankees games in the regular season, but I have never heard a single story or recollection from a peer saying that they had the privilege to go to an Opening Day New York Yankee home game, let alone see them receive their World Series Championship Rings. It is a remarkably rare coincidence that I was able to not only go to an Opening Day game, but to go to one the year after they clinched a World Series crown/title, and thus have a chance to see the team receive their honors live in person with my father and friends. What a surreal experience it was!! That game was the first of 162 in 2010 as the Yanks were defending World Series champs seeking to defend their title. The Yankees are the ultimate example of class, and that testament of example is something I had the once-and-a-lifetime opportunity to experience. It was pretty cool and grand to see all the Yankee players and team get their rings from the 2009 campaign. It was also phenomenal to see former Yankee Hideki Matsui receive his World Series ring from the Yankee organization, after we was traded to the Angels during the 2009-2010 offseason. It made me wish he continued playing with the Yankees, after his magnificent and productive career with the Yankees. Matsui tied an MLB-World Series record in the 2009 World Series by collecting six RBIs in Game 6 of that memorable Fall Classic. The miraculous part was that it was not only his final game as a New York Yankee, but Matsui also accumulated those six RBIs in the final game of that World Series.
Analysis: My creative nonfiction was a collection of two memorable New York Yankee games that I attended with my dad and friends. One memory was a Yankee/Met “Subway Series” game that I went to at City Field with my dad and friends. The second memory was a Yankee opening day game I went to with my dad at Yankee Stadium against the Los Angeles Angels, game one of the 2010 regular season, (April 13th. 2010) after the Yankees won the World Series the season before in 2009. I wrote about the experience of seeing the Yankees players receive their World Series rings at the World Series ring ceremony before the start of the inaugural game on that overcast afternoon. That game was the first of 162 in 2010 as the Yanks were defending World Series champs seeking to defend their title.
Overview:
In hindsight, this was by far my favorite work of mine this semester because it represented my favorite sports team in professional sports history- The New York Yankees. I had a lot of personal memories and descriptions from 2 memorable Yankees games I went to in my life- Opening Day in 2010 and the Subway Series game at City Field. I did not make any revisions to my creative nonfiction because it was not critiqued by others and I felt it was good outright.
I felt Bradley Lockwood’s Free Verse Poem titled “Our Wooden Boxes” was a successful piece because it had good imagery and alluded to a broader life concept. To elaborate, there was a genuine and true message presented, while the message was also powerful and applicable to life applications. My favorite lines were the last two lines that read, “Because were it not for that box, You could not live a life unlocked.” It stresses to live an open-minded life and to be open to all types of circumstances and possibilities.
