There were tributes to George Steinbrenner and Bob Sheppard last night at Yankee Stadium. Then the Yanks went out and won a tight one 5-4, Nick Swisher providing the heroics. Not only did Swisher have the game-winning base hit in the bottom of the ninth, he also hit a monstrous solo home run to tie the game in the eighth. Good game on a sad night, made to order.
This one was for the Boss and Mr. Sheppard.
[Photo Credit: Jim McIsaac/Getty Images]
As (rightly) critical as most of us are about how some things are done/handled by the Yankees pertaining to the fan experience at the Stadium, I have to say that last night's pre-game ceremony was just about perfect.
What might have made it perfect was to publicly acknowledge that Steinbrenner (the person) had made some mistakes along the way (but not in any way explicitly stating the Vincent-imposed sabbatical, the Spira issue, and Nixon issue), but that he did what he thought was best for the team/business.
I liked that they cut the public address mic after the ceremony, but watching it on TV, I couldn't tell, did they silence all the music, etc. as well, or just not have the players announced?
I also thought they did a very good job with the ceremony. I misted up when Mariano laid the roses at home plate and Derek made his speech, and I thought that silencing the PA was a nice tribute to Sheppard.
During the game, the crowd didn't seem to know just how to react for the first few innings, myself included. There was more of a "buzz" than I'm used to hearing, and I could have done without the entrance music and sound effects. Of course, at the end of the night, the Yankees gave us all something to cheer for, just like I'm sure Sheppard and Steinbrenner would have wanted.