Who’s Watching Over Your Construction Site?
Posted on April 13th, 2008 – 1:13 PMBy La Velle
I’m not sure if everyone was aware of this story but I have several reactions.
1. I weep for us as a sports society because someone had the brainstorm to toss a perfectly good jersey into the concrete.
2. I weep for us as a sports society because the Yankees were so paranoid about it that they went in to retrieve it. Just read Hal Steinbrenner’s reaction in this AP story.
3. Was the time capsule full?
4. Why couldn’t the Yankees spin it their way and say it reflects how the Yankees have buried the Red Sox for a majority of the past century.
5. Big deal, someone threw a jersey in there. Some curses over the years have been documented but think of how many have failed. As a young sports fan, I attempted to place curses on the Cubs, Red Wings, Pistons, St. Rita High School, every sports team in Wisconsin and Dino Ciccarelli. None worked.
6. Um, who’s watching over the Twins’ construction site?
Seriously, I’ve heard the New Yankees Stadium will be the ultimate in opulence. For instance, the Yankees are basically getting two clubhouses. They will meet with the media in one area, but there will be a large separate area behind that first one where they can dress and unwind.
That seems unreal to me, but I was told during the Twins road trip there last year that the Yanks clubhouse will stretch to the right field foul pole. For Twins fans who have toured the clubhouse during TwinsFest, think about how big it would be if the current Twins clubhouse stretched to the foul pole. But that’s what $1.3 billion gets you.
By the way, the New Twins Ballpark is going to be pretty nice too. Jim Souhan wrote a great column about the day we got a look at the ballpark model and looked through a downtown window at the construction site.
I’m impressed with how most of the lights are attached to the canopy that runs from foul pole to foul pole. There’s only one, `light tower,’ and it will be over the scoreboard. The scoreboard won’t be as large as the monster you’re seeing in Kansas City this weekend, but it will blow the Dome scoreboard away.
I like quirks, so I think the overhang in right field is a nice touch. And the plaza behind right field is a no-brainer, as it will be a key point of entry from First Avenue into the stadium
The concourses will always be open, so commuters can take the light rail to the stadium, get off the train and cut through the ballpark on the way to work.
It’s unfortunate that there’s not a retractable roof on the ballpark, but it should be a great place to watch a game. Just remember, the last row of the upper deck of the new ballpark is equal to where the first row of the Dome’s left field upper deck is. Wow.


