Yankee Stadium Rant Part I

I've been to 3 games this season and have had the pleasure of sitting in a number of locations throughout the stadium while trying to find what section(s) I like the best (Upper Grandstand, Lower Grandstand, Lower Terrace, RF Bleachers as well as the Field Section.) I think I have a pretty good idea of what the stadium has to offer to fans like me. (Super fan with an extreme lack of funds)


I obviously loved the Field section seat, the seats are ridiculously comfortable but that comes at the cost of ~ $300 a ticket. That cannot be a sustainable seat and clearly just a treat. 

Bleachers: I absolutely loved sitting in the RF bleachers, Section 203 row 8 for $20 on Stubhub. Sat right next to Bald Vinny (The leader of the Bleacher Creature Chants). he bleachers are a great place to catch a game, especially the rowdier crowd all sauced up. The Bleachers will not partake in the shenanigans that is the wave. (Not those  The wave is probably my number one pet peeve at a baseball game except for adults that bring gloves to the stadium.




With the new stadium it seems as though the acoustics and crowd noise have all but disappeared. Not sure if this was because the Tier trapped and vibrated all of the loge and main reserve noise but the new digs certainly does not have an intimidating aura to it.

I think the fact that they have trouble filling stadium has an obvious effect on noise, as well as taking out 5,000 seats and placing more people indoors in the various suite areas. They are currently #1 in average attendance in the MLB at 44,502 out of a capacity of 52,325. That's about 8,000 a game. The vast majority of those empty seats lie in the uber expensive seats. 

A good buddy of mine has some pretty ridiculous seats at Citizens Bank Ballpark, about 3 rows from the 1b dugout and the ticket includes a $25 food voucher. I think those seats are $100? For the reigning WS champions they have a beautiful park with very affordable seating. In fact we even garnered the attention of "Pat The Bat" where he went on to point at us and stare at us with his piercing blue eyes and Burly Burrell chest.



Check out this link to see how big of a joke the suite and legends seats are. It's really pretty sad, and apparently they are going to increase the ticket prices next year. 


As for the Terrace and Grandstand seats I do enjoy sitting in the terrace but I don't like the idea that you can't get a single foul ball because that's how far they are recessed compared to the old stadium.  In the Grandstand they flattened angles so that I have people's heads in my sight lines. It really is not enjoyable up there. 

When they speak about the wind effect you can really feel it on the concourse. No wonder it's turned into Coors Field East. It makes perfect sense once you're up there to feel what the wind is really doing. I also saw an updraft of sorts near the lights during the game this week as it was misting yet i didn't get wet at all as the winds seemed to keep mist moving upwards. 

I do enjoy the idea of the open concourse yet they still need to tweak the food setup. Set up some of those barriers you see in an airport to allow a clear walk way! I'm not going to buy any of the mediocre food the Yankees have to offer. Possibly a sausage and peppers but that's about it. At least they still allow you to bring in food and water! Nothing I hate more than paying $4.00 for a bottle of water.

On a side note check out this great article about the man, the myth and the legend that is Donnie Baseball


Stay Tuned for Part Deux

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