Yesterday I had the pleasure of watching the New York Yankees scrimmage my Virginia Tech Hokies for 7 innings of baseball. Although I'm sure the Yankees fans in attendance enjoyed the game twice as much as me, I can surely say that the entire game projected a surreal aura.The game was slated for a 3:15 start, but I arrived when the gates opened a little after noon. Shortly the Yankees were greeted by an enormous ovation as they took the field for warmups. I don't think Johnny Damon stopped smiling for a second as he shagged fly balls, constantly pointing to fans who yelled his name. After a few minutes of calisthenics Jason Giambi meandered towards us and began signing autographs. Easily the most personable of the Yankees, he must have signed 200 baseballs by days end.
After both teams took batting practice a 10 minute ceremony took place where the 32 Hokies who we lost last April were honored. Joe Girardi and his supporting staff were all given nameplates made from Hokie stone, the most predominant material our buildings are made of. The crowd applauded the Yankees' generous donation of one-million dollars as the announcer gave thanks through the loudspeaker.
The first inning was electric. The Hokies took the field to what has to easily be the largest crowd they have ever seen, all standing and cheering. Although their play was sloppy, they managed to escape while only surrendering a single run, earning a standing ovation. The second ovation came when freshman Brandon Fisher picked up a pair of strikeouts in the 4th inning (Jason Lane and Morgan Ensberg were the victims). They never came close to scoring a run, but come game's end we all stood and cheered for the home team's triumph. It was never meant to be about the actual game of baseball. It was just one more step in the right direction for Virginia Tech.
A sincere thank you to the Yankees from everyone at Virginia Tech. I may have wished Shelly Duncan good luck on his appeal and I may boo Arod the next time he bats at Fenway, but having experienced that game and witnessed first hand the generosity of the Yankees has forever hindered that violent AL East hate.
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Reader Comments ( Page 1 of 1)
1. Being a Red Sox fan I would like to say nice job to the Yankees it was done with a lot of class.
Posted at 3:16PM on Mar 19th 2008 by kevin reed
2. Kevin Reed
From all of us....thank you
Its nice not to read hate!!
Posted at 9:16PM on Mar 19th 2008 by john
3. HOLY CRAP, THE NICEST THING IVE EVER HEARD OUT OF A REDSOX FAN..THANKS MAN...THEY ARE A CLASS ACT AND ALWAYS WILL BE.
Posted at 5:09PM on Mar 20th 2008 by GUAD
4. Yankees suck. This article proves that everyone, including Mr. Dalamora, has a price.
Posted at 12:22PM on Mar 21st 2008 by Blackhawk
5. Its not about price "Blackhawk" its about healing.
This article comes from the heart not the wallet.
Nice Job ! Nick
Posted at 2:29PM on Mar 22nd 2008 by mary dallamora
6. Blackhawk, there seems to be an anger management issue here.
Posted at 11:59AM on Mar 23rd 2008 by Sports Fan
7. Although a lot of bad has come out of baseball over the last decade, moments like this and watching how teams showed their support for NY after 9/11 make me proud to be a fan. Job well done to the MLB. Go Yanks
Posted at 11:36PM on Mar 24th 2008 by jose
8. George Steinbrenner 1, Dalamora family sense of morality 0
Posted at 9:07AM on Mar 26th 2008 by Blackhawk