King George Gets His Salute

What we see on River Avenue now is the Yankee Stadium of George III and his Bronx Zoo, a cast that reached its first World Series in '76, the "new" park's first year. Fittingly, the Yanks played in their last postseason with George in active charge in '07. A perfect coincidence of dates. This rebuilt park, a blue symbol of greenback power, was always and foremost the Boss's office, the place where pennants came to be bought.

Now we have arrived at a time for summations and reconciliation. When Steinbrenner arrived at the mound, he never left his golf cart. Yogi Berra, who feuded with the Boss for years and wouldn't come to old-timers' games for a while, hugged the legendary owner and kissed him on the cheek. Ford, Gossage (who enters Cooperstown this year) and Jackson also clustered protectively around the owner.

All around the field were assembled 49 Hall of Famers as well as both all-star teams, more than 100 of the best players of this or any time. If George's famous checkbook had been in his coat pocket, it might have spontaneously combusted.

Few could miss the parallel between George's trip to the mound and Ted Williams's similar journey at Fenway Park before the '99 All-Star Game. There, Williams was surrounded by players, some of whom cried as they met him.

No one needs to tear up for the Boss. But all forms of appreciation are deserved. Sometimes, hindsight is kind. In '76, when New Yankee Stadium opened, free agency began to bloom. Without Steinbrenner's bottomless budget, the offseason auctions that fueled a generation of hot-stove debate never would have been half as intense. Without his Yanks to hate in public but grudgingly respect in private, the game would not have mushroomed to its current popularity, especially in New York.

The third and most opulent iteration of Yankee Stadium that opens next season will not be the only new ballpark that has the stamp of Steinbrenner and his Yanks on it. For a third of a century, and an extremely healthy one, this team has energized and enriched the game. To compete with them, you had to get smarter, build bigger, spend more, think larger. Or George would crush you and laugh as he did it.

Here in the venue that always will be associated with his success, Steinbrenner probably took his valedictory lap. On the same stage where the greatest Yankees have gotten their biggest ovations, no one forgot to stand and cheer for the Boss.