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Verducci: We're not worthy

metsguyinmichigan Oct 07 2007 07:03 AM

5. You really have to wonder sometimes about the people who run Major League Baseball. Yankee Stadium, the House that Ruth Built, the most famous ballpark in the world, is closing next year. And where does baseball schedule the Yankees to finish the season? In Boston, at Fenway Park. The Mets, believe or not, get to take the last bow as they close Shea Stadium on the final day. Don't know how it happened or whether it involved some horse trading with the Yankees, but the schedule needs to be changed -- pronto. What an idiot. And hopefully, the last day of the season won't be Shea's last game anyway -- I expect that to be in the World Series.

Valadius Oct 07 2007 08:18 AM

Wow. I expected better from Verducci.

Benjamin Grimm Oct 07 2007 08:28 AM

You're really expecting a World Series appearance by the Mets in 2008? You're a lot more optimistic than I am.

MFS62 Oct 07 2007 08:49 AM

Valadius wrote: Wow. I expected better from Verducci. Why? What has he done in the past tocause that expectation? Later

Valadius Oct 07 2007 08:53 AM

He wrote an incredible article a few years ago about spending Spring Training as a member of the Toronto Blue Jays that I thought was one of the greatest pieces of sports journalism I've ever read.

bmfc1 Oct 07 2007 09:17 AM

Verducci wrote SI's articles that accompanied the excerpts from Game of Shadows. He's never been shy about saying that Bonds cheated. He can do better than the stupid YS comment. (Perhaps the Yankees should play all 162 games at home to truly honor YS. Perhaps they should receive a bye into the '08 playoffs so that they will have more home games.)

MFS62 Oct 07 2007 09:21 AM

OK, since I haven't read SI in many years, I didn't know much about him or his writing. Thanks, Later

metirish Oct 07 2007 09:59 AM

Never thought much of Verducci, here's the article Val mentioned. [url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/writers/tom_verducci/03/29/blue_jay0314/index.html]Verducci[/url]

Kid Carsey Oct 07 2007 10:18 AM Edited 2 time(s), most recently on Oct 07 2007 10:21 AM

a> Isn't the schedule making still outsourced by MLB? I remember seeing an interesting thing on the tube once about this couple in Nantucket or some- where similar who did it for years. He's likely pointing a finger at the wrong culprit ... maybe the schedule maker is a Sawx fan. *gasp* b> I think it's funny that a high profile and mostly respected sports writer finds it newsworthy of where the 2008 Yanks end their season when everyone else in baseball is wondering where they'll end the 2007 season and if occurs today. c> A big part of the reason the Mets and Yanks don't play at home at the same time is because most of the Aramark employees work both gigs.

SteveJRogers Oct 07 2007 10:18 AM

I laughed at Vic Zigel's comment in the Daily News couple of weeks back with the same view. Essentially he said that there would be complications if the schedule makers decided to rearrange things at this point. His response, "So what?"

Rockin' Doc Oct 07 2007 11:26 AM

Several historic parks have been replaced over recent years and no special arrangements were made in order to make the final game of the season occur in a grand finale of the old ballparks. When Comiskey hosted it's last game in 1990, it was the oldest ballpark in MLB. The White Sox played their final 3 games of the season in Fenway Park against the Red Sox. When Tiger played their final game in Tiger Stadium in 1999, it was then the oldest ballpark in MLB. The Tigers played their final 5 games of the season on the road. They played three in Minnesota before closing the season with two games in Kansas City. There is nothing so special about Yankee Stadium to warrant an exception be made for it now.

Benjamin Grimm Oct 07 2007 12:07 PM

Especially since the stadium is only 31 years old. Shea is actually older, but nobody want to acknowledge that fact.

Edgy DC Oct 07 2007 01:05 PM

Yup. 1) Yankee Stadium is not the House That Ruth Built. It's more correctly the House That Catfish Built. 2) Yankee Stadium probably isn't the most famous ballpark in the world. This is a recording

Iubitul Oct 07 2007 01:09 PM

Edgy DC wrote: 1) Yankee Stadium is not the House That Ruth Built. It's more correctly the House That Catfish Built. It's the House That The Taxpayers Built

MFS62 Oct 07 2007 01:17 PM

Edgy DC wrote: 2) Yankee Stadium probably isn't the most famous ballpark in the world. Then, which baseball stadium in your opinion is? Later

seawolf17 Oct 07 2007 01:32 PM

Edgy DC Oct 07 2007 01:49 PM

Depends on whether "ballpark"="baseball stadium." I'd say it's fair to say that most of the usage of "ballpark" refers to baseball stadiums. So at least Verducci isn't committing to the same "most famous stadium" nomenclature. But a good percentage of references to the Yankee Stadium are to a building that simply doesn't exist any longer.

Rockin' Doc Oct 07 2007 02:10 PM

Nice choice Seawolf. I believe this place has a legitimate claim also.

metsguyinmichigan Oct 07 2007 03:53 PM

Verducci is famous for his blinding love of all things Yankee. I don't think he dislikes the Mets, just looks down his nose at them the way he looks down his nose at every other team that should be grateful the Yankees allow them to share the field. Look for him to get loose with a "this post-season is boring" column once the Yankees are eliminated, which is what he did last year. Plus, he's a raging snob. Track down his piece from the 2002 All-Sar Game where he rips into Milwaukee for, well, being Milwaukee. Apparently the hotels and restaurants didn't meet his cosmopolitan standards. The only thing surprising about the last game column is that he didn't work in a reference to Derek F. Jeter. Bob Klapisch, however, is different because he is an open Mets hater. The only mystery to a Klapisch column is whether he will start ripping the Mets in the first paragraph, or will he wait until the second.

G-Fafif Oct 07 2007 04:05 PM

The final game at Tiger Stadium took place on a Monday afternoon, starting time 4:05 PM (with five road games remaining, as noted). The opponent was the Royals, who had been around for "only" 31 seasons at the time. And somehow it was a sellout and highly memorable and moving, according to reports. There's never a bad time to say this, but fuck the Yankees (and Verducci...and Klapisch). And, sadly, their final regular-season home game in '08 probably won't be their final home game of '08. But even if it is, so the fuck what? The whole fucking world doesn't fucking rise and fucking set on their sorry fucking asses.

Edgy DC Oct 07 2007 04:36 PM

G-Fafif wrote: The final game at Tiger Stadium took place on a Monday afternoon, starting time 4:05 PM (with five road games remaining, as noted). The opponent was the Royals, who had been around for "only" 31 seasons at the time. Did Verducci take the time to note this?

metsguyinmichigan Oct 07 2007 06:44 PM

G-Fafif wrote: The final game at Tiger Stadium took place on a Monday afternoon, starting time 4:05 PM (with five road games remaining, as noted). The opponent was the Royals, who had been around for "only" 31 seasons at the time. And somehow it was a sellout and highly memorable and moving, according to reports In fact, I can report that it was in fact memorable and moving -- I was there! The Tigers all wore uniform numbers representing all-time Tigers. Gabe Kapler took the field wearing no number -- he was Ty Cobb. And became the answer to a great trivia question, who was the last major-leaguer not to wear a number.

SteveJRogers Oct 07 2007 06:48 PM

G-Fafif wrote: The final game at Tiger Stadium took place on a Monday afternoon, starting time 4:05 PM (with five road games remaining, as noted). The opponent was the Royals, who had been around for "only" 31 seasons at the time. And somehow it was a sellout and highly memorable and moving, according to reports. There's never a bad time to say this, but fuck the Yankees (and Verducci...and Klapisch). And, sadly, their final regular-season home game in '08 probably won't be their final home game of '08. But even if it is, so the fuck what? The whole fucking world doesn't fucking rise and fucking set on their sorry fucking asses. Heh, all this reminded me of a caller to WFAN in 2000 before the first two stadium double header, I don't remeber if he stated his allegence, but he had to be a Yankee fan because he suggested that the Met-Yankee double header should have been the only baseball played that day.