A Yankees Old Timer's Game

Toward the top of my "bucket list" is an Old Timer's Game at Yankee Stadium. I have attended games at the old Yankee Stadium before and after the 70's renovation, but never an Old Timer's Game. I have been a Yankees fan for 55 years. I grew up two blocks from Greensboro War Memorial Stadium which was the home of the Yankees Class A minor league team when I was a child. For me, that Yankee logo and those Yankee black pinstripes represent excellence and a host of childhood memories.

The tradition of Old Timer's Day actually began in the late 1930s as the Yankees had special days to celebrate the lives of Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig as they became sick. One of the most memorable Old Timer's Days was when in 1939 Lou Gehrig gave what fans consider the Gettysburg Address of baseball when he said he was the luckiest man on the face of the earth, even in light of his ALS disease. Gehrig died at age 37 in 1941.

Above are photos from the 63rd Old Timer's Game held July 29, 2009 before a Yankee game with the Detroit Tigers. It was the first Old Timer's Game in the new Yankee Stadium. In the photos are Yogi Berra, Reggie Jackson, Goose Gossage, and Whitey Ford. I hope I'm able to one day strike a Yankees Old Timer's Game off my bucket list.