Yankee Stadium Tour

The day had finally arrived in September 2012 where I could say that I set foot inside Yankee Stadium, home of the legendary New York Yankees. For my 30th birthday, I decided to spend it taking a tour and catching game at the ballpark. Just like the tour of Fenway Park that I took a few days later, Yankee Stadium is one of the must see tours for any fan.

The tour began at the Yankee Museum after the teams security detail went over the ground rules and do's/don'ts while on the tour. The Museum is what any museum should contain, legendary items and artifacts that have made this team who they are. Residing in the middle of the museum are two bronze statues which pay homage to the Don Larsen/Yogi Berra perfect game in the World Series. Situated between the statues is a massive glass case containing over a hundred signed baseballs that included Yogi Berra, Babe Ruth and Randy Johnson. I was able to spend about five minutes in the museum taking in all the sights that included exhibits dedicated to Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle and The Boss, former Yankee captain Thurman Munson's locker as it appeared prior to his death and the World Series Trophies.

After departing the museum, we made our way to legendary Monument Park in center field. Monument Park is a living tribute to the legendary Yankees who donned the pinstripes during their career. The tour guide explained to us the history of Monument Park, the plaques of the retired numbers and the plaques dedicated to the 9/11 Attacks and Pope Benedicts visit.

The final stop on the tour took us through the lower level of the stadium until we reached the playing field and dugout. We were given a few minutes to take photos in the dugout and of the field but security was very strict at this point as they did not allow any photos of you on the field unless it was by their photographer. This was the low point of the tour as it gave us a feeling like we were being hurried along the entire time and weren't really given the opportunity to soak in everything.

Later on that night, I returned to Yankee Stadium to see the team take on the Tampa Bay Rays. Near the end of the game I was able to witness history as Derek Jeter surpassed Willie Mays for sole possession of 10th place on baseballs all-time hit list.