I am not usually a very chatty person, but when the topic turns to baseball sometimes it’s hard for me to keep quiet. As I embark on year two as a Mets fan working for the fans at Yankee Stadium, I hope to share my musings about both teams and have some fun learning more about the game. I am launching this blog to continue my writing from last season because thankfully I don’t get blocked when it comes to this topic.
In New York City, the 2009 baseball season was a tale of two teams sitting on opposite ends of the performance spectrum. Anticipation was mounting for both the Mets and the Yankees long before Spring Training began, with excited curiosity about the new ballparks and expectations to shake off the failures of 2008. Both teams closed their old ballparks with the same 89-73 record and missed the postseason: the Yankees for the first time after a thirteen-year run, and the Mets for the second time since missing the World Series by one game in 2006. The teams continued to travel on the same wavelength at the beginning of 2009, losing their stadium openers (the exhibition games do not count) and garnering heavy criticism from fans and media alike regarding design. Yankee fans were upset that the House that Ruth Built was being demolished, even though the seats were not removed until a few months into the season. “Why did they build this one when they have a perfectly good stadium across the street?”, I heard one fan lament. Mets fans complained about the lack of history displayed at Citi Field, which was probably because the Yankees had the opposite issue. You can’t escape Yankee history once you get into the building, it’s everywhere, starting when you hop off the train and walk through Babe Ruth Plaza. It is impossible to please everyone, but soon fans of both teams found special features to enjoy at both ballparks.
Traveling on the same wavelength could not last for long though, and after one game both teams blazed different paths: one headed to their first championship in nine years, and the other headed to their worst season since 2004. The game I speak of is one I would like to forget but until the first game of this year’s crosstown showdown, I probably won’t be able to shake. Earlier this spring, Mark Teixeira pinpointed the turnaround in the Yankees season to what is known as the “dropped pop-up game” versus the Mets on Friday, June 12. I had to check the date again because, being in attendance that night, I was sure that the date was the 13th. As a Mets fan working at Yankee Stadium, good-natured ribbing is to be expected but after that game every pop-up fielded by a visiting player was greeted with a “Castillo!” cheer at my work station. Coming into the game, both teams were in 2nd place behind their bitter divisional rivals: Mets 31-27, 4 GB Phillies; Yankees 34-26, 2 GB Red Sox. The Yankees were 0-8 versus the Red Sox, getting swept in Boston that same week. The Mets had a similarly stressful week versus the visiting Phillies, with Johan Santana letting up four home runs in the first game. The Mets miraculously pulled out the win with some power of their own, and a solid appearance by closer Francisco Rodriguez. In the next two games, the Mets dropped leads after the 6th inning and lost both meetings in extras. Looking back, things could only get worse for one of the two New York squads and unfortunately the Mets were the team to wear that mantle. After the ball dropped out of Luis Castillo‘s glove, the Yankees record against the Red Sox was 9-1, splitting the season series and clinching the division title upon the final out of their last game against Boston. The Mets, on the other hand, spent the rest of the season waiting for injured players to return, only to see more added to the disabled list and hobble to a 70-92 finish. The Yankees? They ended the year with the MLB-best 103-59 record and the title of World Champions.
Last year, I officially signed to work for the 2009 Yankees on a rainy February 18th. The reason I remember that is because I felt particularly treacherous having my orientation scheduled for the day the last piece of Shea Stadium was pulled down. Even though it was a coincidence, I can’t help but think that it was an omen. I am really trying not to think about the fact that my orientation for this year is scheduled for this Saturday, March 13th – Johan Santana’s 31st birthday. Despite a few medical issues already in Spring Training, there’s nothing to be paranoid about, right?
Orange Foul Pole 