Last Friday, I went to my second Yankee game of the year, and first since I started the 101. We were playing the Tigers, with AJ Burnett facing Lucas French.
My mom’s friend Lew used to have season tickets near the field on the third base side, and I went to a game a year. Then, the Yankees overcharged and global economy collapsed. Lew now occasionally borrows center field bleacher seats from a friend. Hurrah for the economy!
Even with the far away seats, the view was great, and it was cool to be at the first game back from the All-Star Break. Despite Curtis Granderson being very good at baseball, AJ pitched a great game and kept it close.
In the 7th inning, the Yanks were down 3-2 and it started to drizzle, causing a decent number of fans to go under awnings. In the 8th, it was absolutely pouring. There was insane lightning and thunder and Cody Random was swept away in a flood.
I was sitting next to Fonzworth Bentley
Right when the game was becoming unplayable, Jeter singled, Damon doubled, then Teixeira crushed a ball into the second deck to make it 5-3. The place went nuts.
Immediately after that, God went nuts, and the place started to flood. This was not ordinary rain. This was the kind of rain that might make you lose sleep at night if you were a Pharaoh (ed. note – plague reference).
As I’ve said, I make it a point to never leave games early, but at this point there were probably 5,000 fans left, we were up in the 8th, and it didn’t look the game was ever coming back. I ran outside to head home.
Blame it (the blur) on the rain
I have never seen anything like this. In about 5 minutes, everyone was drenched. 161st Street started flooding, and several people lost sandals that were swept away in the gutter. The above-ground subway stairs had so much water coming down them that the police closed most of them.
Fortunately, I was the last one on the 4 train. Being crushed between a thousand wet people on the 4 train is an experience everyone should have once. As punishment.
When I got home, it was just in time to see Mo close out the game and start the second half off right. My next game will probably be on 8/6 vs. Boston, courtesy of Brett. Can’t wait.
