After Monday's game was postponed due to rain, baseball season officially began tonight as the Yankees beat the Jays 3-2 in the final opening day game at "the house Ruth built." I am a devoted fan of the pinstripes. As I was driving to a meeting today I found myself trying to remember the exact moment I chose the Yankees as "my team." There are no lukewarm feelings when it comes to the Yankees. You either love them or hate them. Moving to Miami, the unofficial 6th borough of New York, has suited me just fine as I am surrounded by Yankee fans.
Many fans choose their team based on location but I grew up in Indianapolis where there wasn't a home team. Of course, most people in Naptown will either swing the way of the Reds, Cubs, White Sox, or Cards. Location wasn't my reason.
Neither was my choice based on popularity. The Red Sox and Yankees alone pull in a huge chunk of MLB's revenue because their fans are everywhere. There really isn't a "road game" for either of these teams.
The reason I chose the Yankees as my team is based on several reasons.
1. My dad is a Yankees fan who met Joe DiMaggio and Yogi Berra when he was a kid. There's something very special about the bond baseball builds between fathers and sons.
2. The Yankee tradition is second to none. No team has even close to the number of championships (26) and inductees into Cooperstown.
3. The Yankees enter each season with the expectation of winning the World Series. Anything less is a failure. That's a mindset I can get behind. Even their new manager, Joe Girardi chose to wear the number 27 as a clear message of what his expectations are.
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