Road Trip Day 10: Yankee Stadium

Our final stop was Yankee Stadium for Monday night's Yankees vs. Rays game. Wow. New Yankee Stadium is pretty spectacular. We were immediately impressed at how early they allowed us to enter the stadium. We were able to watch Yankee batting practice which isn't always allowed at some ball parks. We were impressed by the customer service of the majority of the stadium's staff. They allowed us to get pretty close to the field, down to the first section, to watch batting practice; they offered to take photos and basically offered to let us do whatever we wanted except for actually getting on the field. Definitely awesome.

We spent some time in center field to see Monument Park, which is also pretty spectacular. We perused the plaques of former players who are in the Hall of Fame and who have their jersey numbers retired. This is very well done indeed.

Our seats were in the bleachers in the first row behind the visiting team's bullpen, so we spent some time there to watch batting practice. Alex Rodriguez teased us during batting practice when two consecutive balls came within a foot of our section; unfortunately they bounced off the wall and back into the field.

Before the game, we grabbed a bite to eat. At New Yankee Stadium, you may have heard that they have an insane variety of food offerings, from the usual ballpark hot dogs and hot sausages to things like sushi and noodle bowls. Jen opted for a cheesesteak and I opted for loaded nachos, all 1410 calories. I know this because the signs in the stadium inform you of your calorie intake, you know, in case you're a freak who has to watch what you eat at a ballpark.

The game was nuts. There were five homeruns hit and these balls just flew out of the park like rockets. Mark Teixeira, Derek Jeter, Johnny Damon and Nick Swisher hit homeruns for the Yankees while Gabe Kaplar hit one for the Rays. The Yankees won 5-3. Another great ballpark experience, and a great final stop on our voyage.