Yankee Talk

I know... I know... Does the title up there say ..."and sports"? I think not.

But I am an NYC weboy, and even I can't completely ignore rumors that Joe Torre may be out.  I mean, every option has to be looked at, but I think Torre will stay, ultimately.  But what do I know?  It's his money.

I also want to put in a word for being a Yankees fan.

Being a Yankees fan is not for everyone.  Not even every New Yorker.  People tell me there's even another team in New York.  (No... I promise to be good.  And anyway as Jennifer says, it is the Mets year.)

I think of being a Yankees fan as like being a fan of Saks Fifth Avenue.  Lots of people like Saks.  But you really have to spend a little something to really be a Saks person.  Not everyone understands why a dress costs $1000, why you won't settle for something cheaper, why you only want the best.  If you do get it, you have to be prepared for the fact that people will stare.  They may even call you names.  You have to remember that you're a class act.  And sure, there's Macy*s, but they're really not even in the same league.

When I got to New York, I liked the Yankees in a general way... kind of how I felt about Saks too, come to think of it.  But as I got to know the place, and as I became of the place, I realized I really was a fan.  I am a New Yorker immigrant; that is, I wasn't born there (and let me tell you those natives are some tough cookies), but I learned the spirit of the place, and when I got there, I knew I'd found a place to call home.

Some people are meant for Saks.  Some people are meant for Target or Wal Mart (which is to say some people Park the Car in Harvard Yard) - they want their team to be of the people, part of the nabe, real folks just like them.  (And we won't even talk about the towns that think you park a stadium at a suburban off-ramp.)  That's fine, for some people.  I want my team to be heroes.  Stars.  Bigger than life.  The kind you spend $25 million for.

I like the Yankees for all the wrong reasons - because they spend like drunken sailors, because they win, because they're not shy about saying they're the best.  We New Yorkers know that everything is for sale at the right price - Your penthouse apartment, that great lefty pitcher, that fielder with a great RBI, Johnny Damon, cable rights, the State Assembly... pretty much whatever you need.  And we spend what it takes to get it.  If you can make it here, you can make it anywhere.  But once you've made it here... well, anywhere else looks pretty small. It's why New York likes Donald Trump, and Donald Trump loves New York.  You can be the best... or you can be that other team.

So, a brief tear for my team.  Probably next year.  At least we made the playoffs. If we have to lose Torre, well, he leaves us as one hell of a great Manager.  We'll be back. That's what we do.

Comments

[j in baltimore]

1) What's all this "we?" Don't you live in Boston?

and b) What's all this "we?" Aren't you a big girly boy?

and thirdly, like Donald Trump and others before you, you are confusing what is impressive (much $) with what is important. Go ahead and spend at Saks if you must. While not heading to Wal-mart, I'm sure I can find a happier medium.

[Jennifer]

I agree with J in Baltimore-you left NY you cannot still consider yourself a New Yorker.

I grew up in a Met house but I can appreciate the Yankees for being a New York team that wins. Ask your new friends in Boston if liking a team that doesn't win and doesn't spend a lot of money is as much fun. And Saks is one of my favorite stores too! I'm also a big fan of Bergdorf's and I never set foot in Macy's.

[weboy]

I'm not going to have mutiny in the Comments section... :) I believe New Yorkers are New Yorkers in tgheir souls, not just in their location. And so I remain an NYC weboy, even during my exile periods. :)

[jinbaltimore]

as in Exile Island? you are watching Survivor after all!