A couple of weeks ago, friend of the blog Mike Vidoni (owner of the satirical Yankees blog "Bronx Goblin" - formerly Matsui Fan), approached us about co-hosting a night out in Manhattan for Yankees fans.  At first we were hesitant, unsure of whether there would be interest.

Then, a couple of things changed.

First of all, he told us about the specials, headlined by free wings, $15 buckets of beer (5 beers per bucket) and $4 Jager shots.*  Then, we realized that the night Mike had chosen was April 23 - a Friday night in the middle of a west coast Yankees trip.  What better reason is there for a blog outing than a west coast game on a Friday night?!  Finally, we realized that while we engage with our readers daily via our Twitter account, and in the comments, we've never met the vast majority in person.  It seems like the days of being creeped out by people you meet on the internet are long gone, so let there be wings!

This little shindig is going down at Finnerty's on 2nd Avenue between 13th and 14th in Manhattan on April 23 from 8:30 until the end of the Yankees win over the Angels. We've never been to Finnerty's before, but it is known to be a Yankees bar, and it gets good reviews on Yelp.

Mike has created a flyer for the event below.  Feel free to spread the word, and also RSVP for the event on Facebook.

* NYY Stadium Insider will not be responsible for any side-effects of consuming Jager shots, including (but not limited to), acting like an idiot, vomiting or blacking out.  We'd recommend staying far, far away from the little black poison.  You have been warned.

Scroll past the one minute mark for the carnage.

The fact that nobody with power stepped up to pay for whatever conservation efforts were necessary to save gate 2 is despicable. The Yankees wanted no part, the city wanted no part, it was a bunch of dedicated New Yorkers fighting to save a bit of history without any support.

On a positive note, this whole thing can now be put to rest.  The 2010 season is about the get underway in a beautiful second-year ballpark across the street.  While we won't be able to enjoy a piece of U.S history in the vicinity, we can take solace that the kids of the Bronx will finally get their parkland back without any other delays.

Starting today, Time Warner Cable customers will be able to watch live, in-network Yankees games from their computer, according to a press release from MLB Advanced Media and the YES Network.

Last June, Cablevision was the first to announce a similar partnership, leading to a slew of obnoxious YES Network promos touting the possibility of watching Yankees games even at the beach!

The service isn't free, and it is only really useful if you travel a lot within the YES Network coverage area.  According to the release:

YES Network will allow eligible Time Warner Cable customers to purchase this package
and use high-speed Internet access to watch YES’ Yankees telecasts live on their computers throughout the Yankees’ entire home broadcasting territory. Customers can purchase a package of all of YES' 127 regular season Yankees telecasts for $69.95, or can pay $19.95 for any 30-day period.  All games will be available in true HD.

If nothing else, this brings us a bit closer to "a la carte" cable television offerings, possible freeing us from the shackles of overpriced bundles of useless programming.

Interested as we are in social/digital media and new technology, we don't often have the opportunity to write about it in this space.  That's why we were especially excited to get in touch with the gurus behind "Venuing" - a new IPhone app that claims to "revolutionize the way people experience live sporting events and concerts."

Released for free in the ITunes Store on March 22, the "Venuing" experience will fully launch on April 4 at Fenway park when the Yankees take on the Red Sox. Venuing will also roll out in three other MLB stadiums during the 2010 season - Citi Field, Citizen's Bank Park and you guessed it - Yankee Stadium.

Designed as an immersive experience, the user can communicate with other fans at the game, find nearby facilities, get reviews of concessions, play pub-style trivia games and check for news updates, all within a geo-fenced, 3D environment.  If you aren't at the game, you can't use the app.

It basically turns your IPhone into a GPS device, loads it with an interactive stadium map (with 5 different views) and integrates familiar features from well-established social media properties such as Twitter, Yelp and Foursquare.

Undoubtedly, Venuing will be met with its fair share of skepticism.  After all, why would someone go to a live sporting event to immerse themselves in an IPhone app?  Ira Eckstein, Venuing, LLC founder and CEO doesn't look at it that way. "Venuing is turning the focus back on the fan. You're not just in the audience, you are part of the game. This app is about the fans. When viewers watch at home they get a catered experience. Fans at the games deserve a unique entertaining experience as well. They are the ones living and breathing the game, enjoying the action in real-time. Venuing is social community that will intensify that experience."

MLB Advanced Media is also planning to play in this arena, announcing "At The Ballpark" features within their 2010 At Bat app.  Unfortunately, they're not ready to unleash them.  In an email to NYY Stadium Insider, a spokesman for MLBAM said that "we have not yet released any details on that feature."

Venuing considers itself completely unique from "At The Ballpark" and isn't yet officially sanctioned by any teams or leagues. According to Chief Community Officer/Director of Content Tom Stuart, meetings are taking place, but it isn't their top priority.  "We see ourselves as a fan source regardless, one that doesn't rely on official sanctioning," he said by email.

While we have no doubt that fans truly are a top priority for the folks at Venuing, tapping into a healthy revenue stream surely plays a major role in the creation of this new type of social network.  While revenue models and projections are being kept internal, marketing initiatives can easily be integrated into many of the features, advertising relevant specials for fans at the games and engaging them in long-lasting relationships. "We are most geeked up about striking partnership deals with entities such as other sites, pro teams/schools, leagues, and also, cool, forward thinking sponsors," explained Stuart.

Taking it one step further, the Venuing team will also launch "Venuing Live" for fans stuck at home watching the game on television.  This web-based micro-blog feed will revolve around the in-stadium fan banter, along with live game threads and news feeds.  Their marketing team is referring to it as "gamecast on steroids."

In addition, they have a Bleacher Report style network called "Venuing Voices." This venture will feature creative content by an editorial staff - blogs, podcasts and videocasts - all meant to capture the passion of the in-stadium experience. They're actually projecting this creative aspect to draw more of an audience to the site than their technology.

This all looks compelling on paper, and it meshes perfectly with the mission statement of NYY Stadium Insider.  Imagine if we were the source of some of the editorial content available to live users of rhe Venuing app.  Currently, most of our new readers find us on Google when they're searching for something stadium-related. Utilizing Venuing, these potential readers can communicate with us while we're at the game and find out all of the  information that typically lives on our blog.

Unless it is riddled with technical errors, this app can only add to the fan experience.  Yankee Stadium doesn't have public wi-fi access, so Venuing will be at the mercy of AT&T's sometimes shoddy service. Stuart acknowledges that plenty of testing for stability will be taking place during the inaugural season and that all features won't immediately be active. "We'd rather have 5, killer, working elements before we roll out dozens of half-baked ideas."

Venuing is definitely something to pay attention to for 2010.  It might even convince us to get with the times and pony up for an IPhone!

Finally - after a long, cold, snowy winter, 2010 Yankees season tickets booklets are about to arrive on our doorsteps (or with our doorman, or unattended in a public hallway outside of our apartment building). This week, the Yankees updated their website with a chart indicating ship dates for the various different levels of 2010 season tickets.  The chart is below, but be sure to click over to the official website to enter your account number and track your individual shipment.

Very nice of the team to give us such a narrow range of dates, making it especially easy for New Yorkers to plan a lunch break to make sure that the FedEx guy doesn't just drop the tickets off in a public hallway (that actually happened to us a few years ago).  '

Don't even bother calling the ticket office for more details. They will grunt at you and point you to the website.  It should be noted that some full season licensees have been reporting shipments with a scheduled delivery date of March 29, so be on the lookout.  An email is also generated by the team to give people a convenient heads up.

UPDATE: Photo of the tickets after the jump (courtesy of "headshoes" on the NYY Fans message board, via "Jerry From Section 1")

While the big news of the day was the final section of the upper deck being torn down, the real action was happening elsewhere at the old Yankee Stadium deconstruction site.  Demolition crews began to tear down Gate 2, one of the most historically significant sections of the renovated "old" Yankee Stadium, ensuring that future generations of Yankees fans will never have a piece of the old structure to remember.

We have mentioned the "Save Gate 2" movement a few times in this blog's history, but that movement appears to have been in vain.  The leaders of this grassroots movements sent the following Facebook message this evening, admitting defeat:

Well everybody, I have some unfortunate news. Today, demolition began on Gate 2, and it is expected to be complete rather soon. I on behalf of the entire Gate 2 family want to thank all of you for supporting the cause, as your support brought this from a simple idea on paper to a legitimate possibility. Unfortunately, due to the ignorance of some of our politicians, the Gate will be no more. Please await further update from an official from the movement.

It was a valiant effort, but it appears that shortsighted politicians have once again ruled the day, guaranteeing that there will be no tangible memory of the ORIGINAL Yankee Stadium.   As always, the great "DemolitionOfYankeeStadium" blog captured the scene:

Unlike most others, we've actually been happy to see the accelerated deconstruction of the old Yankee Stadium. As we've mentioned, the faster the stadium is gone, the faster the kids of the Bronx will have their parkland back.  That being said, this is definitely a sad day.  We can't fathom why city officials and politicians couldn't agree on a plan to save a part of the original Yankee Stadium.

One day in the not so distant future, when we're remembering the majestic structure with a token plaque, there will be remorse and regret. Until then, we have no choice but to sit back and helplessly watch the carnage, knowing that a huge mistake is being made.

Editor's Note: Today I introduce a new voice to the NYY Stadium Insider team.  Brenden Monroe went to college with my brother Nick and is the creator of "Smoking With Hank," a Yankees blog inspired by the cartoon-like Hank Steinbrenner.  Brenden has some pretty cool hookups and enjoyed some once in a lifetime experiences during the first season of the new Yankee Stadium.  From time to time, he will drop in and contribute some stadium-related insights.

One of those experiences was getting the opportunity to step into the batter's box at Yankee Stadium and taking aim at the short porch in right.  The Yankees were wooing current and future Legends Suite licensees and Brenden was the beneficiary of the team's ass-kissing.  His story struck home with me since it was always my dream to play on the field at Yankee Stadium.  Interestingly enough, I was closer than most to that very opportunity.

In 2000, my high school baseball team played in the CHSAA B city championship, originally scheduled to be played at Yankee Stadium.  Unfortunately, New York City had an unprecedented stretch of rain, and the game at Yankee Stadium was postponed.  By the time the rain stopped, the Yankees were home again, so the game was scheduled for Shea Stadium.  The rain continued and the game ended up being played at Mount Saint Michael high school - a far cry from the hallowed ground of Yankee Stadium, the home of my favorite team.

Last summer, Brenden enjoyed the experience that had narrowly escaped my grasp. Enjoy his story, after the jump.

During the first season of their shiny new ballpark's existence, the Yankees struggled mightily to surpass 50,000 fans in attendance for any single game. Overpricing of the Legends Suites received most of the attention, but in reality, the absence of standing room only ticket sales was the cause of the underwhelming attendance numbers.

Much to their surprise, some fans noticed new and exciting ticket options during Friday's public ticket sale - section numbers with an "s" amended to them.  It caused some confusion (since the Yankees never officially announced it) but we have verified with the ticket office that the Yankees have taken the training wheels off of the "new house" and are unveiling their full repertoire of standing room only tickets.

The advance pricing is as follows (no word yet on game day pricing):

• Field Level Standing Room Only (listed on Ticketmaster as Cafe Seating) - $75
• Main Level Standing Room Only - $48
• Terrace Level Standing Room Only - $29

It is great that the Yankees have finally expanded the capacity of the Stadium, but we're a little skeptical about the value of Terrace Level standing room tickets.  The areas behind the wheelchair seating is pretty far back on the Terrace Level and it is hard to see the infield.  Those don't seem like a good deal at $29, especially with the wind tunnel behind home plate.  On the other hand, we can vouch for the great views afforded by the $75 field level standing room tickets, and the cafe-style stool and table are a nice bonus.

Unfortunately, the Yankees didn't take the time to educate fans about these options before they went on sale, so some were left with unusable tickets.  We received the following email from a disappointed fan who thought he had snagged some great tickets to take his young boys to see the Yankees take on the Red Sox:

I just bought 4 tix for Yanks-Sox in September - was planning on bringing the whole family (including 2 small boys).  I was just excited to get anything near the bases so I wasn't really thinking carefully enough to realize that $48 per ticket in 226 was too good to be true.  Then after I processed the order I realized that these assigned seats were in SRO.  Can you tell me if the seats are actually "assigned" or will I be jockeying for position the whole game?  I assume that bringing my 2 young boys also now becomes a bad idea - will there be any opportunity to sit.

We asked our source in the ticket office about this fan's dilemma and were told "standing room could be tough if the kids are really small, as they’ll have to be able to see past the [wheelchair] section at the rear of [section] 226.  That being said, the railing/shelf area will have the numbers on it, so there shouldn’t be an issue about jockeying for space - hopefully they’ll explain the SRO stuff to security during their training sessions."

This fan shouldn't have any problems selling Yankees vs. Red Sox standing room tickets to make his money back, but it is a shame that he had no way of being a more educated consumer before the sale.  Just another reason why NYY Stadium Insider has found a nice little niche on the interwebs - where else would you find elaborate coverage of standing room only tickets at Yankee Stadium?

That sure didn't last long. In an email to fans, the Yankees have announced revised gate opening times for 2010.  Openings are being cut back from three hours before the game (at select gates) to two hours.  One would think the team would love to have fans roaming around and spending money in their mallpark for as long as possible! Here's the letter:

Friday's public sale came and went, and by all accounts, 2010 Opening Day tickets were pretty hard to come by.  Sure, there were some success stories, but look no further than recent ticket sales on Stubhub as proof that supply can't keep up with demand:

But have no fear, Yankees fans - there is hope.  If you take a look at the Stubhub or Fansnap ticket availability maps, you'll notice that sections 405, 407b, 407a, 433 and 434a return zero tickets for sale.  What are the odds that seats have been sold in those sections and not a single person put them up on Stubhub?  Close to zero.

The only conclusion to draw is that the Yankees are holding tickets to slowly release as Opening Day draws closer.  Maybe they'll even sell some tickets to walk-ups on April 13.  It makes a lot of sense to hold a batch of reasonably priced tickets until Ring Day is officially announced (we've nearly 100% sure that the Yankees 2010 ring day will coincide with opening day).

When reached for comment, a Yankees ticket representative said "opening day seats have already been opened up to the general public. Whatever is available for opening day is what is left or sold through Stubhub."

Speculation aside, our analysis shows that there are face value 2010 Yankees Opening Day tickets that haven't yet been sold.  The fun (and tedious) part is keeping an eye on Ticketmaster to snatch them up when they're released.

Be sure to report any ticket news in the comments below.