My Brother in Law's Trip to see the Yanks...

The Yankees in Sarasota

By Christopher Pierznik
Special Guest Contributor


Unlike most Phillies or neutral fans, I’ve never hated the Yankees. There may have been times that I haven’t been pulling for them, but I’ve always respected them and Derek Jeter should be revered as being the epitome of what a baseball player should be.

So when I found out that the first spring training game I would ever attend in person would be pitting the Yankees against the Cincinnati Reds, I was almost as eager as I would’ve been had it been a Phils game.

I was visiting a close friend in Sarasota and he lives less than ten minutes from the Reds home field, Ed Smith Stadium, in Florida (until the club’s probable move to Arizona next year). Approaching the “stadium,” it feels as if you’re attending an American Legion playoff game, only with more traffic. Parking wasn’t a problem since there is a large grass lot that is open to everyone for the astronomical price of $5. No umbrellas are permitted in the stadium and with rain appearing on the horizon, it looked ominous but I wasn’t deterred. (After all, I was on vacation.)

Once inside the gates, it feels crowded but not cramped. Those who are afraid of the weather purchase see-thru Reds ponchos but most of us decide to take our chances rather than looking like the Kool-Aid guy. We buy a few beers (great selection, by the way) and make our way to our seats.

Here again the old-time ballpark feel is evident. While there are seats (not benches) in almost every part of the stadium, there aren’t many aisles, so if your seats are in the middle of the row, like ours were, then getting to your seat and going to the bathroom is a much bigger ordeal than even in the oldest of MLB parks. Also, it’s Florida, so old retired people are everywhere and they do not like to get up for young people (nor do they move very fast).

We get situated and the sightlines are fantastic. I’ve heard the term “not a bad seat in the house” used repeatedly but I only felt it was appropriate when talking about Citizens Bank Park (sorry, The House That Ruth Built). However, this place is so small and the seats are so close to the field – and one another – that there really isn’t a bad spot in the building. (If you’re willing to stand throughout the whole game, then your spot is even better because the walkways of Ed Smith Stadium make you feel like you’re standing next to Jeter & A-Rod.)

The bottom of the first sees Rodriguez hit a 3-run jack over the wall in left-center field and the assault on Matt Belisle was underway. (Giving up seven runs and eight hits in three innings? Ouch.) Ken Griffey Jr. also had an RBI (he finished 1-for-4) in the first – and probably last – game I’ll ever see him play live. Phil Hughes gave up “only” four runs but did he allow nine hits in less than three innings of work.

After five innings, Jeter, A-Rod, and Damon are done for the afternoon. They make their way to the warning track in leftfield and 65% of spectators follow to watch them do wind sprints from the leftfield corner to the scoreboard in center. Despite pleas and stares of love and adulation from both males and females (of all ages), they make their way back to the Yankee dugout and immediately to the showers. Speaking of showers, as if the clouds were waiting for the stars to get undercover, the sky immediately opened up and a heavy rain descended upon us as we ran under the bleachers in shallow left.

The tarp was brought out and it looked like the game was over (we were stuck there as our ride had to run to the office for an hour) but the rain let up and the teams’ young future stars and hopefuls got back out there. We took a walk around and saw a white dude wearing a backwards hat with a pad of paper on his lap signing autographs. As it turned out, it was the architect of the Yanks, Mr. Brian Cashman, with a crowd waiting patiently to meet him.

Meanwhile, a much larger crowd had gathered around a roped-off walkway in the concourse near the front of the stadium where the visiting team’s players left the locker room. Fans with bats, balls, pictures, cameras and notepads waited for a glimpse – and hopefully more – of one of the Yankees as some cars more expensive than many houses waited just outside the gate.

Johnny Damon was the first to emerge and he signed a few autographs for the crowd on his way out. A-Rod was next, led by his manager with an expensive blue pinstripe suit, and he didn’t even acknowledge the fans begging for his time. He hopped in the passenger seat of the biggest – and whitest – white Chevy Suburban I’ve ever seen. Finally here comes Jeter, signing a few items, smiling that famous smile, before hopping into his tricked-out champagne-colored H2 and taking off. Without him, there wasn’t much more to see and the rest of us followed their lead and left while the younger kids played on, trying to earn a roster spot.