BRONX, NY – I was toying with the idea of changing my column name to “Ambivalent Ward Wednesday” to get in step with the general vibe of everyone (and I use that word liberally) else around here. But, nah. Besides, I got something I really want to write about this week. Don’t worry, it’s not about yet another Golden State/Cleveland NBA Finals. I’m a Warriors fan and even I’m sick of it. Instead I want to talk about the New York Yankees or, more specifically, their fans.
Anyone who knows me, expects this to be yet another in a long line of hit pieces against Yankee fans. Totally understandable. You see the sun rise enough times you kind of expect it after a while. But, not so fast, today I come to praise Yankee fans and not bury them. (See what I did there, Shakespeare fans?) Why this sudden change of heart? Well, let’s just say that the Bronx Bomber faithful, entitled pricks though they all are, finally gave me something to cheer about.
This past Sunday Rudy Giuliani decided to ring in his 74th birthday by taking in the Yankees/Astros game in the Bronx. This should come as a surprise to no one who’s lived in New York for any extended period. From his time as Mayor, straight through his delusional Presidential aspiration years, to his current state as bucktoothed Nosferatu with mild dementia, Giuliani has made no secret about his love of the New York Yankees and even greater love of being their high-profile patron.
Anyway, Rudy went to the game and when the New York Yankees announced his birthday both over the PA system and on the scoreboard, Yankees fans booed him. They booed him! The guy who was once called America’s Mayor simply because he was on the job during the attacks of 9/11, got booed by fans of his favorite team. Captain Combover, the same man who married his cousin, who was Dad to a kid so obnoxious he made Jeffrey Maier seem like a young Gandhi, got booed by his fellow Yankee fans ON HIS BIRTHDAY!
I’m not much for hyperbole, but this might be the greatest thing that Yankees fans have ever done. Don’t get me wrong, the bar is set ridiculously low. But ya gotta start somewhere. By booing a guy who has for years been recognized as “one of your own,” Yankees fans showed that they draw the line at forcing themselves to support the bloodsucker who has supplanted Chris Christie as Donald Trump’s ass-sniffing lap dog.
Y’see, Giuliani was never a New York Yankee. He was just another a-hole fan who figured (wrongly) that he had some sort of lifetime “honorary Yankee” status. Kind of a tough way for him to find out he doesn’t.
Way to go, Yankees fans! There’s hope for you yet.
Come back tomorrow for Buddy Diaz, a guy who never got to see Ed Figueroa pitch for the Yankees. What a shame.
