The New York Yankees of the American League played their first official game at new Yankee Stadium on April 16, 2009, and they lost to the Cleveland Indians. Yankee Stadium is located in New York City on 161st Street and River Road in the Bronx right near the site of the old stadium. It has a natural grass playing surface and a seating capacity of 50,287. The Yankee Stadium seating chart has more detailed information about the seats at the stadium.
The exterior of the venue is constructed of granite and limestone with inlaid, arched windows. The words, “Yankee Stadium,” in gold lettering are carved into the stone above each entrance. Fans who go to Yankee Stadium should spend some time outside at the Babe Ruth Plaza on 161st Street. Here, with the aid of images and storyboards, fans can read about the life of the legendary Yankees outfielder.
In building their new stadium, the Yankees made a concerted effort to evoke images from their iconic stadium that opened in 1923. For example, the new stadium incorporates the frieze on the front edge of the roof over the grandstand. The only difference between the new and old version is that the frieze in the old stadium was made of copper whereas the new frieze is a steel structure. In addition to this, fans should look for the manually operated scoreboards mounted into the fences in left-center field and right-center field. These mimic the scoreboards from the old stadium. The dimensions of the new stadium are the same as those of the old one, and the new bullpens occupy the same locations that they had in the old stadium.
Although some of the features of Yankee Stadium look to the past, fans will see that there are many features that represent 21st century state-of-the-art technology. The best examples are the 5,900-square foot, high-definition main video board in center field and the superior sound system that bears no resemblance to the echo-producing sound system in the old Yankee Stadium. The main video board has a smaller board on either side, one for player stats and line-ups and one for the scores of other games throughout the Major Leagues. The Yankees also added a lively full-color, LED ribbon board to the facing of the Terrace Level.
Every fan who attends a game at the new Yankee Stadium should make it a point to visit Monument Park behind the fence in center field. This is an outdoor museum of Yankees’ history with tributes to many Yankees’ players from the past. The most prominent part of the area is the semi-circular arrangement of three granite stones, one for former players Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig and one for Miller Huggins, Yankees’ manager from 1918 to 1929.
The food at Yankee Stadium is good and wide ranging. There is the Asian Dining concession stand at section 127 which offers sushi platters. For a less exotic meal, Carl’s Steaks at section 107 makes Philly Cheesesteaks that some New Yorkers think are better than cheesesteaks made in Philadelphia, the city that invented this meal.
