Yankee Opener # 9

Going to the baseball game yesterday I noticed the new ads on the 86th Street subway turnstiles. It was my ninth Yankee opener, my first one was 1963, Milt Pappas beat Whitey Ford, Boog Powell hit two homers and Mantle hit one. At 9 years old, I was a seasoned fan but that was my first opener.

I still can't get over the terrible 1973 renovation much less that they teared down the entire old Yankee Stadium. Still, there is something inside me that loves the ritual of the opening of the baseball season. It confirms there will be warmth, water fountains will open in the parks and I'll smell the oil I rub into my Catfish Hunter glove.

I don't like pictures of Guiliani inside the ballpark, I miss the quiet in between innings marred by offensive World Wrestling Federation loud commercials. Didn't we pay handsomely for our seat, isn't a $12 beer and a $5 frank reason to stop kicking the fans when they're down? That will not change so I make the best of it and enjoy the baseball: Curtis Granderson's fielding & hitting and terrific Yankee relief pitching.

With the cool wet weather, I felt like the Giants should have been down there playing the Cowboys, but the Yankees provided me with my sixth victory in nine openers. A win always makes the ride home on the #4 sweet.

The Chairman of the Board is Back ~ Ford Starts Friday Night at Fenway

The Chairman of the Board, Edward Charles "Whitey" Ford will start for the Yankees Friday night at Fenway in a ball park he despised. "I hate the place, it haunts me. Time to put that ghost to rest."

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RCSmMUzGqJM

81 years old, Ford said his decision was based on two factors: One: Brett Favre. Ford said, "The guy's Lazarus doing squat thrusts. So why not me?" Ford elaborated on the second reason: "I grocery shop with the wife and when we come home she goes to the fridge and pantry and I throw items to her. I never had much of a fastball, but I started noticing a nasty screw movement on the yogurt cups and juice packs, I like those little straws, and the oranges and pears were dropping six inches right before they got to the plate. I still have the curve and slider. We buy these cheese balls with nuts, I love them, and they're about the same size as the major league ball ~ only thing missing is Joe Cronin's signature. The cheese balls move."

Ford, who spent most of his career outside a starting rotation thanks to Casey Stengel's selective use of #16," said, "I'm prepared to start, do middle work or mop up. Whatever Joe wants."

Joe Girardi, Yankee manager, added, "I'm excited "Slick's" here, and unlike Favre, Whitey never wavered. Vazquez is not right out there, and it's time for a change. I'm sure Mickey and Billy are looking down and laughing their heads off ~ "The Chairman of the Board" is on the mound."

Ford won 236 games for New York (career 236-106), still a franchise record. Among pitchers with at least 300 career decisions, Ford ranks first with a winning percentage of .690, the all-time highest percentage in modern baseball history.

A reporter approached Brett Favre walking on his property. Brett was carrying a skull, and mumbling to himself. Favre made no comment on Ford.

Below, courtesy of The New York York Times ~ photo by Teddy Ryan

Favre Comes in From Yard to Say He’s Still Thinking
By JUDY BATTISTA and DAVE CALDWELL

Brett Favre said Friday that he might need minor surgery to relieve pain in his left ankle. The pain is one of the factors he is considering in what has become an annual N.F.L. rite of spring: waiting for Favre to decide whether he will play another season or retire.

Favre posted a statement about the injury on his Web site several hours after ESPN reported that he was deliberating whether to have the surgery or retire.

Chairman of the Board Beats Cowboys 17-7

Whitey Ford pitched 8 2/3 shutout innings against the Dallas Cowboys today in a 17-7 Green Bay Packer blowout.

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Luis Arroyo gave up a meaningless seven run homer to the hapless Cowboys with no time left on the clock. The failing Dallas hombres are flirting with flipping last place with the St. Louis Browns.
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The Chairman of the Board walked one Cowboy, and struck out seven.
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Tony Romo, Cowboy's shortstop made two fielding errors and several errant throws to first.

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I Miss Bullpen Access

Tonight, Jon & Daniel Calvert, Alison and I visited the new Yankee Stadium for the first time. A terrific game that got fudged up by a foolish bunt call at the right time with the wrong batter. Regardless, it was a wonderful time.