12:30pm - The day was Sunday, September 27th. The weather was wet and there was a chance the game would be delayed. Our seats were wet as well as the tarp that was over the infield. Fans were filing into the stadium not knowing what would happen today, no matter how confident they were their team would win. The stadium was a much newer version of the much older stadium across the street. The make-up of the park was almost the same as the old with exception, over the fence in center field, there was a much nicer big screen that would come in handy a bit later. The concession stand areas were much more open than before and the outside of the stadium was a much more modern older look, if that makes any sense!1:05pm - The game was supposed to start but the tarp was still covering the infield. Half the seats in the stadium were empty and it didn't look good that the game would even start anytime soon. Minutes later, on the big screen over the center filed wall started showing the New York Giants football game. This went on for about a half hour. Our seats were dry by now but our clothes were still wet from sitting. We could have been wetter but we were just sitting under the over hang.
2:05pm - The game finally started. OK, it wasn't that long of a wait but when your wet.... Anyhow, the starter for the Red Sox was Paul Byrd, Andy Petite for the Yankees. The Red Sox scored first in the 1st inning with a base hit from Mike Lowell. He would also help score the second run in the 3rd inning. Things were looking pretty good until the bottom of the 3rd inning when Paul Byrd gave up a home run to Melky Cabrera. This was a 1 run homer, but it cut the lead to 1. The next 2 innings would go without a score, and the crowd was now getting restless. Chants of "Red Sox Sucks!" would fill the stadium, and a smile would show on my face. Now as I watch this game, I would be wearing a Red Sox cap, even though I don't like them. I was there to watch the Yankees lose and find out what it was like to be at a Red Sox Yankee game. So far everyone was very nice to me. I would however get some dirty looks when the Red Sox got base hits or score. From from this point on, there would be no more scoring from the Red Sox. In the 6th inning, with 2 on base, Hideki Matusi got a base hit scoring both runners, giving the Yankees the lead for the first time in the game. The crowd was electric. On the big screen was a picture of Godzilla holding a bat. Byrd would be pulled after that hit. Even though he would claim the lose that day, it seemed it was a quality pitching performance on this day. The Yankees would score an insurance run in the 8th with a Mark Teixeira home run. With 3 outs by the Red Sox in the 9th, the Yankees had won the Eastern Division in the American League.
5:00pm - The game had ended and the crowd was loud. Everyone was out of their seat cheering and giving high fives even the strangest of strangers. The Yankees were in the infield celebrating their win as well as the division. Singing and more chanting of "Red Sox Suck!" were filing the air, again as a smile appeared on my face. We sat in our seats until some of the other seats that surrounded us cleared out. Then we headed out to the main area which was a mad house. Even with the bigger walking area, there wasn't much space found. It took us about a half hour to make it outside the stadium.
All in all, my experience was a great one. This was the 3rd time I had been to a Yankee game, watching the first 2 against my team, the Baltimore Orioles, but first at the new park. I would say that the seats were perfect, even though I hadn't found a bad seat yet. The concession area was nice as well as everything I could possibly set my eyes on. Food was very pricey, but the hamburger and hot dog was pretty good though. Fans were very well behaved, which was actually a concern before arriving. Yankee fans and Red Sox fans don't do well in small places. It can be arguably, the biggest rivalry. in all of baseball. I would suggest everyone, Yankee fan or not, come to the park and enjoy a baseball game. I will certainly be doing it again.
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