After taking a week to get used to the sidewalks of Morningside Heights, first-years from all over the country attempt to assimilate into the bustling atmosphere of the entire city. You’ve undoubtedly received a host of advice from Orientation Leaders, RAs, and various upperclassmen. And sure, never unfolding a subway map in public will make you seem like less of a tourist. But as you sit at the bar to order your Maker’s Mark on the rocks (nobody in New York drinks Jameson—that’s such an L.A. thing), there is one sole topic of conversation that can instantly endear you to bartenders and patrons alike: New York sports.
Yes, New Yorkers love their sports—that’s not exactly breaking news. And nobody is asking you to suddenly root for a new team. But it can’t hurt to get to know the sporting culture, because as cliché as it sounds, there really is no other city like New York, a city that boasts the most famous venues and the craziest yet most knowledgeable fans. So familiarize yourself with the local teams and stadiums. As one of the Sports editors here at Spectator, I will do my part to ease the transition from small-town ESPN watcher to big city sports aficianado. If you learn anything in your four years at Columbia, you will hopefully come out as well-versed in the sports section of the New York Times as in Kant and Hume.
New York Yankees
Sports in New York begins and ends with baseball. This is the city that invented the modern game of baseball and has experienced more success in the sport than any other city in the world. No team exemplifies the pride and tradition of New York sports more than the New York Yankees.
Everybody knows the story: Babe Ruth sold from the Red Sox leads to a century of Yankee dominance. Along the way, there are names such as Mantle, DiMaggio, Berra, Mattingly, Jeter, and of course, Columbia’s own Gehrig.
The last few years, however, have seen postseason futility that has managed to weed out the bandwagon fans. The ones who have remained are, for the most part, here to stay, second- and third-generation Yankees fans who were born into a great tradition. If you are lucky enough to make it out to Yankee Stadium this season, you will be a part of one of the most cathartic experiences in sports, before they tear it down and the ghosts have to move across the street.
New York Mets
On the other side of the spectrum are the New York Mets, who manage to challenge their crosstown rivals with some of the most fervent and knowledgeable fans in the game. The city’s only surviving National League team has transformed from the lovable losers of the 1960s to the new millenium’s division powerhouse that begins every season expecting to win.
The Mets last won the World Series in 1986, endearing themselves to a whole new generation of believers and eventually restoring a winning tradition in the late ’90s, culminating in the 2000 Fall Classic against the Yankees, a Subway Series in which the city stopped for the sole purpose of watching baseball.
Like the Yankees, the Mets will say goodbye to their home field at the end of this season, as Shea Stadium will give way to Citi Field in a much-needed stadium overhaul. If you make it out to Flushing in 2008, however, while you’re waiting for your lukewarm, $8 Bud Light, ask a patron what he thinks about Johan Santana and Willie Randolph. Guaranteed he will either buy you a beer or throw one in your face.
New York Giants
This past season, Giants fans were rewarded for their loyalty on the biggest stage in sports. The team did the impossible: defeated the previously 18-0 New England Patriots to win Super Bowl XLII.
This season, Big Blue will battle through the retirement of Michael Strahan, the injury of Osi Umenyiora, and the dopey eyes of Eli Manning to try and defend their unlikely title. While the rest of the league has yet to lend the team the respect it deserves, the players are confident and the fans riding high.
The Meadowlands give you as good a reason as any to step foot in New Jersey, but be forewarned— tickets are exorbitantly priced and even harder to come by. But if you happen to come across a generous season-ticket holder who is willing to take you to a game, and you walk into the arena and immediately feel an overwhelming rush of emotion, remember: You can never go wrong with an 18-1 chant.
New York Jets
The perennial butt of New York sports jokes, the Jets have simultaneously transformed into a media magnet and made New York the number-one enemy of the state of Wisconsin. The acquisition of Brett Favre brings a whole new set of expectations for the team that, until now, has made losing a state of mind.
Gang Green will look to improve upon its disappointing 4-12 season, hoping that a superstar quarterback and a few key offseason signings and draft picks can make an immediate and significant difference. Nobody will fault you for not wanting to spend hundreds of dollars on a Jets jersey, but should you want to fit in on your trip to the Meadowlands, donning the No. 4 on your back is a pretty safe bet.
New York Rangers
The Rangers have overtaken another Cablevision-owned team to become the greatest sporting event in Madison Square Garden. The World’s Most Famous Arena has been rejuvenated in recent post-lockout years by regular-season surges by the spirited hockey team. Fans came out in record numbers to see future Hall of Famers Jaromír Jágr and Brendan Shanahan share the ice, leading the Broadway Blueshirts deep into the postseason.
Though Jágr’s departure into European markets this past offseason leaves a hole in the team’s star draw, the Rangers have much to look forward to. Last season’s signings of Chris Drury and Scott Gomez give the team a combination of veteran experience and youthful energy, while “King” Henrik Lundqvist will be called upon to continue his dominance behind the goal posts.
New York Knicks
That brings us to the Knicks, the bastard child of owner James Dolan, who has managed to make a mockery of a great basketball tradition in a great basketball city. Mention the team to New Yorkers and fans will express their immense frustration at high-priced, over-the-hill free agents, and the train wreck that is Isiah Thomas. It’s still a good time, as Madison Square Garden will always be, but something has been lost from the Knicks teams of past generations: winning.
