Time Stood Still For A While

When you engross yourself in your passion for a day, it changes you.  Now, share this day with your son, who shares the same passion, and time stands still, at least for a while.  As luck would have it, I was able to obtain two tickets to the Red Sox-Yankees game at the Stadium for Saturday, but on top of that, I learned late Friday night that #WFAN was having its FanFest and hosting a number of players from days past including David Wells, Mickey Rivers, Bucky Dent and Cecil Fielder across the street from Stan’s, in the place where the old Yankee Stadium once stood.  Yankee announcers Suzyn Waldman and John Sterling along with GM Brian Cashman also joined in to sign autographs for fans across the Tri-State before the evening’s twilight game against the Sox.

For me, and I think my 19-year-old, time stood still or I lost track of it as I introduced my son to some of my favorite players from days long gone but with memories as thick as a foggy day in April or a black and white milk shake from Shake Shack.  I thanked David Wells for his Perfect Game, I appreciated Mickey Rivers for his incredible speed, I expressed to Cecil my delight in introducing him to my son as the Fielder before Prince and then, I needed to make no introduction to Bucky Dent.

My son said to him confidently, “You’re my mom’s favorite.”  

It’s like the day stayed on pause, for four hours and everyone at the FanFest, knew each other.  As one fan said to us as we moved through the different lines together throughout the day, “We are like family; get in line with us!”  But, then at the stroke of four, reality set in and the game began and we quickly realized that the winning teams I reminisced about with my son just moments before first pitch, were not reflective of the team spirit on the field on Saturday evening as the Yankees blew their lead early, only to fall to the Sox, 10-5.

Losing last night really hurt not just because Aaron Judge went 0-4 and Andrew Benintendi had six RBIs after belting two three-run home runs.  Last night hurt because the season appears to be slipping away from the Yankees and there isn’t a darn thing we as fans can do about it.  We can’t just press the pause button…June is long gone.

According to ESPN, “Benintendi’s big day came with his grandfather Robert, a Brooklyn native and recovering Yankees fan living in the Cincinnati area, in the stands, a gift for his 85th birthday. It also continued a torrid two-week stretch that followed a team-imposed two-day breather intended to clear Benintendi’s head and and help the 23-year-old remember everything that has made him one of the game’s most promising young players.” As the article goes on to say, “Judge would likely find a similar break to be useful, and if the Yankees weren’t scratching for every victory to keep pace in a pennant race, they might consider giving it to him.” 

We only have six or seven weeks left of the baseball season right now.  Judge, a clear contender for Rookie of the Year in June, is falling fast while Boston’s Benintendi seems to be on the right road again and could take the would-be crown away from Judge, despite not having a special section dedicated to him at Fenway.  “Odds are, though, the award will still belong to Judge, who nevertheless could learn a lesson from Benintendi. “He’s having an unreal year, and he’s kind of struggling right now,” Benintendi said. “I went through that for two months. I’m sure he’ll figure it out,” reported ESPN.

When we engross ourselves in the passion of the sport we love, time does stand still and we can relive the memories of our childhood, the fond memories of come from behind home runs, perfect games and World Series championships.  We need times like I had today to reminisce on the way things were so that we can believe that these days could come around again for the Yankees.  It’s the calm before the storm perhaps…and who knows, the Yankees’ 28th World Championship, whenever it happens, will be worth the wait.  Slumps happen and then they go away.  Let’s hope that Judge’s luck changes with the Yankees’ luck and time can move ahead to better days and World Series wishes.