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Tuesday, May 27, 2008 

Yankee Stadium: The Official Retrospective

It's been eighty-five years since Yankee Stadium opened. Soon the Yankees will leave the field, fans will file out and the lights will fade. But the lights will never go out on the Stadium that has proudly worn the moniker "The House That Ruth Built."

Yankee Stadium: The Official Retrospective recounts the story of this extraordinary American landmark. It captures the creation of a home for the New York Yankees that began in 1923 and was driven by co-owner Jacob Ruppert, who envisioned a ballpark grander than any other conceived at the time. It takes the reader from the field to the dugout, from the press box to the clubhouse, from principal owner George Steinbrenner's office to Monument Park. Every corner of the stadium is revealed.

But Yankee Stadium is more than a ballpark. The most iconic moments in history have taken place within its walls: Lou Gehrig's poignant farewell to his team and the fans who would never forget him; epic heavy-weight fights, from Louis versus Schmeling to Ali versus Norton; the 1958 National Football League championship, christened the "Greatest Game Ever Played"; exciting college football games, including the one immortalized by Knute Rockne in which he asked Notre Dame to "win one for the Gipper"; and the unrivaled record-breaking successes of the New York Yankees, from the very first home run hit at the Stadium by Babe Ruth to Alex Rodriguez' 500th.

With the unprecedented cooperation of the New York Yankees organization, photographs have been culled from every conceivable source. More than 250 photographs - many never before published - will allow you to walk in the Stadium beside Mantle and Maris, witness the only perfect game in World Series history, and see the Stadium during the stirring 2001 World Series.

Yankee Stadium: The Official Retrospective is more than just photographs. It is also graced with firsthand accounts of what it was like to be there as history unfolded. Some of the contributors include: George Steinbrenner, Presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton, former Vice President Dan Quayle, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, former New York Gov. Mario Cuomo, Paul McCartney, Muhammad Ali, Jim Brown, Don Shula, Sugar Ray Leonard, Frank Gifford, Regis Philbin, Joe Torre, Derek Jeter, Don Mattingly, Roger Clemens, Alex Rodriguez, Yogi Berra, Phil Rizzuto, Reggie Jackson, and Cal Ripken Jr.

It has been said that the shaded outfield of Yankee Stadium houses the ghosts of long-gone Yankee greats - at least that's what the players swear they feel as the long days of summer wane into the heated race for the pennant. Or could it be the knowledge that, within those walls, they will always be measured against the titans who came before them? It is the power of the place that led Sports Illustrated to call Yankee Stadium the greatest venue of the twentieth century. And only here, within the pages of Yankee Stadium: The Official Retrospective, can you feel what they feel.
Customer Review: Beautiful Book
For any historian, let alone a New York Yankees fan, this is a beautiful book to own and enjoy. The photography is stunning and the interviews are very interesting. The price also can't be beat, if you are buying through Amazon.com.
Customer Review: Yankee Stadium A retrospective
This was an awesome book. I have gone to Yankee Stadium since The 1940's. It is really one of the most beautiful places in the world. This book has the Stadium coming to life.


Baseball glove repair would really not be a concern around this time of year if players and/or parents would just perform a little bit of "routine maintenance" on their baseball gloves right after the playing season is over and then maybe a little bit more right before the beginning of the next season. But this doesn't seem to happen that much from what I can tell.

So here we areanother High School Baseball and College Baseball season. I've already gotten a couple of baseball gloves in the last month or so that have broken. And it's the same thingvery, very dry leather and laces. The laces on one of these baseball gloves were so dry, hard and brittle that they didn't even feel like leather. The laces were so stiff that it was actually a little tough pulling these laces out of some parts of the glove.

The condition of your baseball glove during and after a season will somewhat depend on where you live in the country. In the southeast and southwest you probably aren't going to see a lot of snow, ice and mud. Your glove may face very strong sun and heat, though.

The baseball gloves that I have just repaired were used in the northeast part of the country which can be terrible for leather. The leather can see snow and freezing temperatures. The baseball gloves will definitely get wet and muddy. This mud and water gets ground in sometimes day after day. This water eventually strips the leather of its original oils, softness and color. Then, summer comes. The sun beats down on the glove and dries it up even more. The laces become stiff, weak and brittle. They eventually break. Sometimes parts of the glove, like the eyelets and leather holes, rip. This even happens on the good, expensive gloves that are not cared for.

All of these things can mostly be avoided. Simply try to implement some of the following tips:

  • Clean off your baseball glove during the season when it needs it. Just a warm, damp cloth will do. Don't soak the glove. You're just trying to get some of the dirt off.
  • During the season, if the glove has seen a lot of water and then a lot of sun, you should rub in a little bit of conditioner (not any kind of oil!) and let it soak in. This will restore some of the leather's oils, softness and color.
  • Most importantly, give your glove a good cleaning and conditioning after your season is over. Wipe off all of the dirt and then after the glove dries rub a good coat of conditioner into the glove. Sometimes you may have to do this two or three times if the glove soaks up all of the conditioner right away. Wipe off any excess conditioner. Your restored glove will look and feel new during the off-season.
  • Tighten up loose laces and definitely repair broken laces or laces that you have a good feeling will break the next season. Do it now while you have the time.
  • And then, right before the beginning of your next season, inspect your glove again, tighten things up if necessary, put a light coat of conditioner on. There you are! Almost a new glove again.

Believe me, these simple baseball glove repair and restore tips work. I have taken care of a catcher's mitt for three years nowand yes, it's up in the northeast where a catcher's mitt takes water and mud in great amounts in some games. But this glove, after three years, feels great and looks great. The laces and leather show no signs of weakness. This is all because I religiously follow the tips above.

The kid who's glove I fixed the other daythe real dry one, says his glove looks and feels new again. He actually likes the all-black laces better than the original gray ones too. I hope he takes care of it now. But I bet I see it again someday.

And I bet I'll repair a good number of gloves starting around now. These are all of the gloves from last season that were just thrown in garages or basements with no after-season conditioning or tightening or repairing of laces.

So that's where I'll come inagain. Baseball glove repair and restore. I do it all of the time and never once have I advertised this. It all started with one glove, as a favor, and word got out. That was about six years ago and I'm still repairing gloves today.

So try to keep in mind some of these baseball glove repair and restore tips. Your glove will always be in great shape and you'll prevent those unexpected breaks during a gameand there will be no "down time" of your favorite glove.

Do your own Baseball Glove Repairs. Learn how to repair, relace and restore your own baseball glove with "Fix That Glove". Save yourself time and money.

Baseball Glove Repair

http://www.BaseballGloveRestore.com/

Chico Reese has been closely involved in youth baseball, softball and High School Baseball over the last twelve years. He also is known as "The Doctor" for his quick baseball glove repairs and restorations for many kids and adults throughout the summer.

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