The Giants went to Yankee Stadium last night as one of Tom Coughlin’s team-bonding exercises. Here’s the story Giants web writer Mike Eisen wrote.
By Michael Eisen
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Justin Tuck would seem to be an unlikely fan of Thurman Munson.
After all, Tuck was born in 1983, almost four years after Munson, the great New York Yankees catcher, died in the crash of a small plane he was piloting near Canton, Ohio. And Tuck grew up in Kellyton, Ala., an area that’s not exactly a breeding ground for Yankees fever.
But Tuck is an ardent and longtime fan of both Munson and the Yankees, so it was a huge thrill for him to see the former captain’s locker in the museum in the new Yankee Stadium. The entire Giants team (players, coaches and football support staff) attended last night’s 3-2 Yankees loss to the Washington Nationals.
“I took a picture by it,” Tuck said of the locker. “It was awesome.”
Many Giants players had a similar reaction to the evening. A spring night out for the players has become an annual rite under Tom Coughlin. Two years ago, he hosted a Casino Night in Giants Stadium. Last year, comedians entertained the players. The Giants have had similar outings in training camp, including a bowling tournament. This time, Coughlin made the event a short road trip, and the players had a blast.
The team’s four busses pulled up to the stadium about 2½ hours before the game’s 7:05 start. Most players and coaches rushed up to an opening in the outfield wall, looked all around the stadium and snapped photos as the Yankees took batting practice.
The next stop was Monument Park, where plaques and memorials honor the greatest figures in Yankees history, including players like Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle, manager Miller Huggins, owner Jacob Ruppert and broadcaster Mel Allen. Also displayed are all 15 numbers retired by the Yankees to honor 16 former players and managers, including Munson’s No. 15 (both Bill Dickey and Yogi Berra wore No. 8, which is also retired).
After studying the monuments, the players and coaches took the elevator up to the museum, which houses a treasure trove of Yankees history. In one corner is a display honoring every one of the Yankees’ record 26 World Series titles, including the six they’ve won since the Commissioner’s Trophy was first awarded in 1967. There’s also a corner devoted to Ruth, a revolving model of the new stadium and Munson’s locker, which has never been used since his death and was transported from the old Yankee Stadium (which still stands next door, awaiting demolition).
Perhaps the most eye-catching feature in the museum is a display of hundreds of baseballs, each signed by a former Yankee. The Yankees are trying to get a signed ball from as many of their former players as possible. The baseballs have been signed by prominent figures like Mantle, owner George Steinbrenner, Hall of Famer Wade Boggs and Don Larsen, who pitched the only perfect game in World Series history in 1956. But the majority of balls were autographed by relatively obscure players, like Rich Bordi, Bob Meyer and Hal Lanier.
After leaving the museum, the Giants party dined in the Legends Club. The players and coaches then scattered to watch the game. Coughlin and Tuck were cheered when they were shown separately on the stadium’s huge television screen. Eli Manning spent a half inning in the booth the Yankees’ announcers on the YES Network, then later visited with his older brother and fellow Super Bowl MVP, Peyton, who attended the game separately.
“We had a good, good time,” Coughlin said. “I looked forward to it and I knew I was going to have a good time. What was really neat, I thought, was how well-organized it was and what wonderful hosts the Yankee people were. To a person, they were really nice to all of us. And then, of course, the history of the organization. I stood a long time to try to fathom, for example, Yogi’s accomplishments – three batting titles, 10 World Series victories, 14 appearances. The seats were terrific, the food was great and we enjoyed the game.”
Coughlin believes having everyone spend time together way from football will strengthen bonds among the players and help the team on the field.
“The players with the coaches, with the organization in a different venue, allows people to exchange conversation about topics other than what is the norm when you walk into this building,” Coughlin said. “And people see each other on a little different level. I know with the bowling, they see me throw the ball in the gutter and they laugh. It brings a different opportunity to get to know somebody better.”
And it’s fun. Even those players who have no interest in baseball enjoyed spending time with their teammates somewhere other than the practice field or the locker room.
“Whenever you get the whole team together like that, it’s fun,” guard Rich Seubert said. “It was my first game at the new Yankee Stadium, so it was cool to see. I enjoy baseball, so I just sat back and watched the game. It was fun.”
“I think anytime we get the opportunity to see each other outside of our pads and jerseys, it gives us an opportunity to spark up conversations about something other than sports or football,” Tuck said. “You get a chance to learn the substance an individual might have. I think that is exactly what bonding consists of. We see each other nine hours out of the day, but it is football-based, so you don’t get the opportunity to understand a guy outside of football. Things like this give us that opportunity. It was honestly a great trip.”
What self-described “huge” Yankees fan wouldn’t say that? How, exactly, did a kid from rural Alabama start rooting for baseball’s most famous franchise?
“My father (Jimmy) has been a Yankee fan all of his life and he kind of passed it on to me,” Tuck said. “Growing up in Alabama, we never had a major league team – football, baseball or basketball. I don’t know the story of how he became a Yankee fan. When I was born, all we did was watch Yankee tapes. I mean old tapes, too. His favorite player was Thurman Munson. That got passed down to me. Even though I never watched a live game with him in it, I had the opportunity to go back and watch things he had done in his career. I loved the way he played the game. He actually became one of my favorite players, even though I never had the opportunity to see him. Once I got drafted by the Giants, it was one of those scenarios where I thought maybe I was supposed to be a Yankee fan.
“It has been awesome for me, getting drafted here and having the opportunity. I live right across the bridge and have the opportunity to come here about anytime I want to.
Last night, he went with 120 of his closest friends and had a great time.
EP