QUARANTINE BLOG # 323

February 16, 2021

In QB 112 (July 20, 2020) I wrote about the Alaska state flag.  Doing that research I discovered Elizabeth Peratrovich, an American civil rights activist, Grand President of the Alaska Native Sisterhood, and member of the Tlingit nation who worked for equality on behalf of Alaska Natives.  In the 1940s, her advocacy was credited as being instrumental in the passing of Alaska’s Anti-Discrimination Act of 1945, the first state or territorial anti-discrimination law enacted in the United States.

I bring her up today, because in 1988, the Alaska Legislature established February 16 as Elizabeth Peratrovich Day “for her courageous, unceasing efforts to eliminate discrimination and bring about equal rights in Alaska.”  In 2020, the United States Mint released a $1 gold coin inscribed with Elizabeth’s likeness in honor of her historic achievements.

👉  The Bro and I got to see several of the 6,581 New York Yankees regular season home games from the first base box seats at the old Yankee Stadium (not the new stadium where field box seats go for $285 a game – 5 times that when the stadium first opened).  Back in the 1960s our uncles had season tickets and when we’d go to visit, they’d take us out to the ball game, buy us some peanuts and Cracker Jack, and we’d root, root, root for the home team.  They won more often than not.  During one double header we saw Mickey Mantle hit 7 home runs.  And we saw a game of the 1964 World Series from the left field seats.  So, with that introduction, let’s look at “The House That Ruth Built.”

Home to the New York Yankees from 1923 to 1973 and then from 1976 to 2008 (the gap was due to stadium renovation) the stadium was built for $2.4 million ($345 million today), and paid for entirely by Yankees owner Jacob Ruppert.  The New Yankee Stadium was built for $2.3 billion with $1.2 billion in public subsidies.

Yankee Stadium opened on April 18, 1923, with a game against the Boston Red Sox.  John Philip Sousa conducted the band in playing The Star-Spangled Banner.  New York Governor Al Smith threw out the first pitch, and the Yankees went on to defeat the Boston Red Sox, by a score of 4-1, with Babe Ruth hitting a three-run home run into the right-field stands.  The Yankees went on to win the first of their 27 World Championships that year.

Opening Day, 1923

Yankee Stadium was the first three-tiered sports facility in the United States and one of the first baseball parks to be given the lasting title of stadium.

One of the most famous traditions for Yankee Stadium was playing Frank Sinatra’s version of the “Theme from New York, New York” over the loudspeakers after every home win, since 1980.

My favorite Yankee is Mickey Mantle, one of the best players and sluggers in the game, and regarded by many as the greatest switch hitter in baseball history.

He has the second highest career on-base plus slugging percentage among center fielders, and he had the highest stolen base percentage in history at the time of his retirement.  He had the lowest career rate of grounding into double plays, and he had the highest World Series on-base percentage and World Series slugging percentage.  He also had an excellent .984 fielding percentage playing center field.  He hit 536 MLB career home runs, batted .300 or more ten times, and is the career leader in walk-off home runs, with 13 – twelve in the regular season, one in the postseason.  He is also the only player in history to hit 150 home runs from both sides of the plate.

In Yankee Stadium on May 22, 1963, batting left-handed, Mantle hit a ball that many claimed was still rising when it smashed into the 110-foot high façade in right field and then caromed back onto the playing field.  Estimates suggested that the ball would have traveled over 500 feet had it not been blocked by the façade during the ascent.

👉  Here are a couple of visual aids to contribute to a feeling of facetious merriment:

👉  Today’s close is “A Prayer for When You are Battle Weary” by Bobbie Schaeperkoetter

“Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the LORD will be with you” (2 Chronicles 20:17).

Do you feel the tension that seems to permeate the air of this world lately?  It seems as if this whole world is worn down from struggles and it would be so very easy to just give in to the pull of weariness and discontent.

In the middle of the strife and struggles, we can start to feel overwhelmed, worn, and just plain weary.  When these feelings come, and they linger far past their welcome, what can we do to keep our heads up?  How do we remain hopeful when things just seem so difficult?

Maybe a good place to start is to look at someone else who was weary in the battle and see how they overcame it.  In 2 Chronicles 20, Jehoshaphat is facing a multitude that has come against him.  When he seeks God’s battle plan, the prophet says, “The battle is not yours, but God’s.”

Battle weary friend, we do not need to be overcome by the strife and the difficulties that surround us.  Let’s give up our battle plan with all of the fear, worry, discouragement, wobbliness, and struggling that it brings and follow God’s plan instead.  We can embrace the peace, hope, and assurance He offers.  After all, His record for victory is undefeated.

Let’s Pray:

Lord, I admit, I am weary.  Life is going a million miles an hour and I am just trying to hang on.  I am tired and I am afraid when I look to the future and think about all that is coming.  Lord, I know You want me to trust You through this.  I know You want me to surrender this weariness to You.  I surrender now.  Fill me with Your strength.  Fill me with Your presence.  Help me find moments today of rest and rejuvenation.  Thank You that You never abandon us in the midst of the battle.  Thank you for your everlasting faithfulness.

In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

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