One of the great "comebacks" of the sports debate world (aka, "idiocy") is the notion that a fan can't celebrate their entire teams' history.
To this, I say, watch me...oh wait, you can't over the glare of these championship trinkets my teams have amassed.
I was probably seven or eight years old when I begged my father to buy me a baseball book at Caldor (a discount department store that was around the northeast). He gave in and I inhaled it. For the record, I still have it.
Eventually, I'd begin absorbing other baseball books, having moved onto the adult section of the store. I began living and breathing baseball history.
And, even more, I began to want to know about the Yankees, so I bought up books on their history also. With that, the years became etched in my mind...
1922 (Lost WS to the Giants with one tie due to darkness)
1923 (Beat Giants in first year at Yankee Stadium)
1926 (Lost to the Cardinals, Ruth thrown out to end series trying to steal second)
1927 (Beat Pirates in -- "Murderers Row")
1928 (Beat Cardinals in -- Ruth: .625, Gehrig: .545 and 9 RBIs)
1932 (Beat Cubs -- Ruth's "Called Shot")
1936 (Beat Giants -- Kid named Scully feels bad for Giants after seeing Game 2 score, becomes fan)
1937 (Beat Giants...again...)
1938 (Beat Cubs)
1939 (Beat Reds -- Ernie Lombardi "snoozes")
1941 (Beat Dodgers -- Mickey Owen drops third strike of spitball)
1942 (Lost to Cardinals)
1943 (Beat Cardinals)
1947 (Beat Dodgers -- "Oh Doctor")
1949 (Beat Dodgers -- Tommy Henrich walkoff HR in Game 1)
1950 (Beat Philles -- "Whiz Kids" are no match. Kid named Whitey Ford wins Game 4)
1951 (Beat Giants -- "Shot Heard Round the World" doesn't resonate in the Bronx)
1952 (Beat Dodgers -- Yankees win final two in Brooklyn to secure title)
1953 (Beat Dodgers -- Billy Martin has 12 hits and Mickey Mantle hits a grand slam)
1955 (Lost to Dodgers -- Jackie was "out" but safe and Sandy Amaros saves series with catch)
1956 (Beat Dodgers -- Larsen and perfect in final NYY/BKN matchup)
1957 (Lost to Braves -- Burdette too much)
1958 (Beat Braves -- Bullet Bob Turley is huge)
1960 (Lost to Pirates -- heartbreak of Mazeroski in Game 7)
1961 (Beat Reds -- Mantle barely a factor but Whitey and Roger lead the way)
1962 (Beat Giants -- Rain delays series and Giants nearly walk-off Game 7)
1963 (Lost to Dodgers -- Koufax is brilliant as Bombers are swept for first time)
1964 (Lost to Cardinals -- can't pull Game 7 out. Mantle's last WS)
1976 (Lost to Reds -- Cincinnati embarrasses...I hated the Reds for years. First Yankees WS of my life)
1977 (Beat Dodgers -- Reggie times three. So that's what winning feels like?)
1978 (Beat Dodgers -- Down 2-0, Bombers storm back to win in six as Nettles puts on a clinic)
1981 (Lost to Dodgers -- Bobby Murcer finally makes the Series. The result still bothers me.)
1996 (Beat Braves -- They're baaaaaacccck...behind Core Four and the earth-shaking triple by Girardi)
1998 (Beat Padres -- As dominant as any team I've ever seen)
1999 (Beat Braves -- Team is relentless)
2000 (Beat Mets -- 1st Subway since '56. Mets celebrate one win. Jeter HR on first pitch of next game)
2001 (Lost to Diamondbacks -- After Sep 11, NYY gets three stirring victories but loses on walk-off)
2003 (Lost to Marlins -- NYY had little in tank after brutal ALCS vs. Boston. Marlins played great.)
2009 (Beat Phillies -- Matsui shows he's a big-game player and Damon swipes extra base.)
Does that -- all off the top of my head -- make me legit? Can I dare to celebrate everything prior to 1976?
Yes. Yes I can. It's frankly none of your business how a fan handles this. You're entitled to your opinion, of course.
I get the "27 titles/history" statement can seem lame and tiring but, if you know your stuff, then you're very much welcome to go with it.
Look, one can't live in the past of course. It's the here and now that matters but you better believe I'm proud of the 27 titles and my knowledge of it all.
I mean, it's such idiocy. Does that mean one can't acknowledge any history before they were born? It's arbitrary. So, let me see if I've got this straight. You're not entitled to discuss Abraham Lincoln because...
Come on now. The fact is it's the only bullet you've got in the gun and I've just deflected it as if you've shot off a dud.
I can do the same thing with the Steelers, though I've been alive for all six Lombardi Trophies. The same goes for the Knicks (again, I was alive for both titles). I admit I've only been alive for one Rangers Stanley Cup (out of their four) but, again, it's not invalid. I'm fairly comfortable with Tex Rickard ("Tex's Rangers," after all), Lester Patrick, the Bread Line, Eddie Giacomin, the GAG Line ("Goal-a-Game"), and so on.
Oh, and about the "rings," they weren't handed out in baseball until 1922. Before that, pins or pocket watches were often the keepsakes. The Yankees got a watch in 1923 and didn't distribute their first rings until 1927 when Ruth and Gehrig basically ran the Pirates off before Game 1.
So, twenty-SIX rings and one pocket watch, anyone?
No comments:
Post a Comment