Monday, November 25, 2013

The Yankee Stadium Experience - Part Five: The Concessions

PART FIVE: The Concessions

Let me be clear...I am not talking about all of the concessions made to Alex Rodriguez in his last free agent contract negotiations.  What you will see here is a vast array of concessions offered at the New Yankee Stadium.  I challenge you to stop by a few of these on your next visit to the Bronx.  I have compiled a TOP TEN list of concessions for the avid fan to explore:

#10 Highlanders.  Sections 111, 233A, 305, 311, 318, and 325.  You will find all of the staples you would expect to have at a Major League Baseball game: Hebrew National hot dogs, brats, peanuts, Cracker Jacks, and pretzels.  This stand makes the top-10 due to its name mostly as the team was known as the NY Highlanders when they first came over from Baltimore.

#9 Garlic Fries.  Sections 108, 205, and 331.  If you like the taste of garlic, and you like the taste of fries go grab a snack during the 3rd inning at this tasty stand.  But make sure to share with someone, because halfway through the taste (and smell) can become overwhelming!

#8 Wholly Guacamole.  Sections 104, 233A, and 327.  Do I really need to explain this one?  Just think a nacho plate the size of your head.  I made the mistake of eating one myself during the Old Timer's Game and missed the 6th AND 7th innings.  Not really a fan of guacamole, but a BIG fan of nachos in general.

#7 Triple Play Grill.  Sections 115, 205, and 334. Nathan's Famous Hot Dogs...they are famous! And you don't have to eat 57 of them to feel good about yourself.  You can also get grilled chicken, chicken fingers, and sliders here...perfect for the little ones.

#6 NYY Steak Express and NYY Steak (the 2nd).  Sections 109 and 221B.  You can get a small sampling of what you'll get inside the main NYY Steak at these concession stands.  Although if you really want to partake, make sure to get a reservation before the game.  See "The Yankee Stadium Experience - Part Two" for more information on the actual venue.

#5 Noodle Bowls/Sushi Stand.  Section 127.  When you have players such as Hideki Matsui, Ichiro Suzuki, and Hiroku Kuroda, you must expect to have some sort of sushi stand within the Stadium.  It won't disappoint!

#4 Johnny Rockets.  Sections 132, 212, and 326.  All the great classic diner food without the annoying singing and dancing.  Make sure to get a malted shake while you are at it.

#3 Brother Jimmy's Barbeque.  Sections 133, 201, 214, and 320A.  Southern-style barbeque served by New Yorkers.  So you are sure to get it slow from a rude person...I kid! I kid!  The food is great and you have a selection of pulled pork, BBQ chicken, and BBQ beef sandwiches.  Add in some homestyle mac n' cheese and you are set.

Sooooo-ey!
#2 Lobel's of New York.  Sections 134 and 322.  Hand-carved steak sandwiches made to order by one of New York's finest butchers.  You will not be disappointed but bring an extra wallet as one of these delectable delights will cost you upwards of $15.
Yeah...I'll take that cut right there in the middle...medium please!
#1 Carl's Steaks.  Sections 107, 223, and 311.  My personal favorite.  You will have to wait in long lines for the Cheesesteaks made specially by Carl...yep every employee at each of the three stands is named Carl! Bonus! But really, you will probably go back for seconds after eating one of these sandwiches.  But do yourself a favor and order it with grilled onions and White American Cheese instead of Cheese Whiz.
Trust me...it's worth the wait!
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Other places that did not make the list: Beers of the World, New York Pretzel, Dylan's Candy Bar, and Fried Dough.

Stay tuned for next week's edition of The Yankee Stadium Experience as I delve into the eateries, bars, and establishments around Yankee Stadium.

Carlos Beltran Now The Yankees Top Target


Now that the New York Yankees have signed free agent catcher Brian McCann they are turning their attention to 37 year old right fielder Carlos Beltran as their new top target. Mark Feinsand reported the "news" on Twitter this morning and it really perplexes me when I look at the stats.

Let's look at Beltran's and Corey Hart's prior two seasons, courtesy of NoMass:


Player A is Hart and Player B is Beltran.. one wants a four year deal and one wants a one year deal. One wants $15 million a year and one could be had for about half to a third of that. Sounds like a no brainer to me, sign Hart not Beltran.

Cano's Offer Has A Time Limit

The Yankees are set to meet with the agents for Robinson Cano today. And one thing they plan on letting Cano's camp know is that their current offer has a time limit.

If the team wants to stay under $189 million, then they can't afford to go much higher than the 7-year $160+ million deal they've already offered Robbie.

The team has been in talks with many free agents, and they aren't going to wait for Robinson to make his decision before moving on them. History has shown us that this is a good plan, as most of the top free agents get gobbled up in a hurry. Just look at Jhonny Peralta and Brian McCann for proof of that.

"He just made a Thanksgiving pun!"

We've Lost Another Great Man

First and foremost, The Greedy Pinstripes is a Yankees blog. A place to share information and thoughts regarding our favorite baseball team. Actually, they are my favorite team... period.

But things happen in our lives that transcend the Yankees, and even the game of baseball.

Back in June I lost my father. He had been fighting illness for years, but his body finally gave out. My father was tough, and I know that many others would have succumbed to that illness long before him. But the thing about that situation, even though it was the toughest thing I've ever had to deal with, is that I was able to prepare for it.

That's not the case for one of my best friends, who lost his father yesterday morning. His father was a great man, who will be missed by many... many... people. I'll never forget how he treated me like one of his own children, and did so with a smile on his face at all times.

Leslie Noble will never be forgotten, and will live on in our hearts forever.

Yankees Have Not Made An Offer To Stephen Drew

Buster Olney (sorry, I don't have a link) is reporting that while the Yankees have made offers to free agents Carlos Beltran, Jacoby Ellsbury, and Shin-Soo Choo, one guy they haven't made an offer to is Stephen Drew.

This news saddens me a bit, as I was hoping the Yankees were looking to replace Jeter at shortstop. But I suppose Drew doesn't fit a need, which is somebody that could spend time at third base as well. Drew has spent every inning in the field as short. Unlike Jhonny Peralta, who has spent quite a bit of time at both positions on the left side of the infield. Unfortunately, Peralta just signed with the Cardinals.

I suppose this doesn't mean Drew is off the Yankees radar, but it does tell me that he's low on the list of priorities. Which is understandable.

What I Am Thankful For: The Return of Brendan Ryan


Thanksgiving is this week and obviously all the talk is what we are thankful for, well that and turkey, gorging ourselves, and Black Friday deals, and The Greedy Pinstripes is no different. This week we will cover what we are thankful for when it comes to the New York Yankees, and we may throw a personal touch in there as well. Today I wanted to start small and start slow with the little things that don't get enough attention, things like having a capable back up for a 39 year old short stop that is coming off of basically a missed season due to injury. Enter Brendan Ryan.

I fully expect Derek Jeter to come back healthy and ready for the 2014 season, I even expect him to play 140 games or so at short stop, but it never hurts to have depth. Last year we saw the Yankees throw guys out in a baptism of fire like Jayson Nix, Brent Lillibridge, Luis Cruz, Eduardo Nunez, and Alberto Gonzalez to name a few as every day players at short. None of these guys outside of Nunez has any business playing every day or even more than once or twice a week but with Ryan the Yankees finally had a legit backup in 2013 and will once again in 2014. Ryan is widely considered to be the best defensive short stop in the game right now and has range for days, as we all saw in 2013, and made plays last year that no infielder on the Yankees roster would have gotten to.

Ryan is not going to win us a lot of games, he probably wont have a positive WAR, he probably wont hit above .230, he probably wont hit for power or hit at the top of the order either but he will save a lot of games, he will probably save a lot of miles on Derek Jeter's legs, and will save a lot of runs.

To put in a Thanksgiving kind of perspective Brendan Ryan is not the turkey, he's not the stuffing, and he's not the pumpkin pie. Ryan is more like the rolls or the bread that no one keeps coming back for plate after plate for the weeks to come but is always have to wipe up the gravy and all the good stuff on the plate.

The Psychology of a $300 Million Contract

So Jay-Z wants $300 million over 10 years for his new client, the one and only Robinson Cano.

What is the reasoning behind such an outlandish offer?  The richest contract ever signed was for a player in the same clubhouse by the name of Alex Rodriguez valued at $275 million over 10 years.  Prior to that signing (in which the Yankees were bidding against themselves the whole time), A-Rod...performance-enhancing drugs or not...was putting up monster numbers and MVP seasons.  Is Robinson Cano even close to the baseball player A-Rod was in his prime?  The second richest contract was for $252 million over 10 years, also to A-Rod...and that was when he was REALLY mashing it (and really taking PEDs according to him).

Besides those 2 contracts you will have to visit the ones signed in the last few seasons for Albert Pujols (10 years, $240 million), Joey Votto (10 years, $225 million) and Prince Fielder (9 years, $214 million).  Robinson Cano is clearly the best second basemen in the game, but is he Pujols, Votto, or Fielder? The short answer is no.  The best comparison for Robinson Cano would be his counterpart from the Red Sox, Dustin Pedroia, who signed a very rich contract for a 2nd basemen at $110 million over 8 years.  Do I think Cano is better than Pedroia...obviously.

So who in their right mind would give Robbie that $300 million over 10 years.  In 10 years my oldest son will be in college...and there might not be a United States by then either.

The answer is...no one in their right mind will give Cano $300 million dollars.  He knows it and Jay-Z knows it.  So why ask for that much??  Simple, it is all a ploy to set up Cano as the hero.  The hero that takes a huge cut in his demands to take the "hometown" discount.

"I can be your hero baby..." (compliments of Enrique Iglesias)
Every blog I've read about Cano states something to this effect..."I wouldn't pay more than $180 million over 7 years for Cano..." and so on and so forth.  So the expectation is that Cano will be somewhere between $180 and $300 million.  Does anyone for a second think that he would be unhappy with a 8 year, say $190 million dollar contract to re-sign with the New York Yankees...or $200 million to go across town to don the Orange and Blue?  That's between $23.75 million and $25 million a year.

THAT'S BETWEEN $23.75 MILLION AND $25 MILLION A YEAR...which would almost double the average value of Pedroia's $13.75 million per year.  Is Cano twice as good as Pedroia...me thinks not.

The Yankees currently have 3 players making that kind of money a year, which amounts to higher than 8 major league baseball teams' entire payroll for 2013.  If Cano was signed for that money as well, the Yankees would be paying 4 players (pending A-Rod's suspension) more than 17 major league baseball teams' entire payroll.

Cano is going to get a big contract, no question about it.  Whether he stays with the Yankees or not depends on whether he wants to play the part of the villain or the hero...a villain making a ton of money as a Dodger or Met or Blue Jay, or a hero making a ton of money (albeit it less) and looking good while doing it.

However...if he won't accept anything less than that $300 million...let him walk.  The Yankees have a former 2nd basemen playing left field that has more rings with the Yankees than Cano anyways...

dm23HOF

The Evolution Of MLB Baseball Video Games


The evolution of MLB Baseball games. This is an awesome video and I have had most of these games myself and still play them on various emulators, etc. Very cool video to pass the time on this Monday morning. Enjoy!

This Day In New York Yankees History 11/25


On this day in 1970 the Yankees catcher Thurman Munson was named the American League Rookie of the Year. Munson received 23 of the 24 first place votes in an absolute landslide over the Indians Roy Foster.


On this day in 1980 the Yankees and George Steinbrenner hired Gene Michael to be their manager. Michael would be the 25th manager in Yankees history and would replace Dick Howser after he led the Yankees to a first place finish in the AL East and a 103-59 record. "Stick" did what Howser couldn't though when he won two American League pennants in his first two seasons as the manager.


On this day in 2009 the long time New York Yankees public address announcer Bob Sheppard announced that he would not be back to do any more games. The 99 year old Sheppard cited age and lack of stamina, imagine that, for the reason for his retirement. Bob was the voice of the Yankees, and the "Voice of God," for over 50 seasons and saw the likes of Joe DiMaggio, Derek Jetah, and Mickey Mantle in his time with the team.