It was the first day of the end of its life, the final opener at Yankee Stadium, where the countdown to demolition has begun. After five innings on Tuesday night, George Steinbrenner, whose fortune is financing most of the construction across 161st Street, pulled a lever in his office, and the scoreboard digits flipped to 80.
That is how many regular-season games remain at the ballpark that has housed 26 championship teams. Joe Girardi wants to guide the next one, and the early returns are encouraging.
Thirty hours after the season was supposed to start, Wang Chien-ming fired a called strike. The promise of summer was there on a crisp spring evening, when the Yankees edged the Toronto Blue Jays, 3-2, before 55,112 fans. The Yankees have won their home opener 11 years in a row.
The game ball found Girardi at the end, when it felt like old times for the new skipper and former catcher. Mariano Rivera earned his 444th career save and his first for a manager other than Joe Torre. He gave Girardi the prize.
“Special,” Girardi said. “It kind of reminded me of when I actually used to catch Mo. What a great feeling it was when the door opened and he came in, and I had that same feeling tonight.”
Alex Rodriguez doubled home a run in the first inning and singled to start the go-ahead rally in the seventh. Melky Cabrera dazzled on defense and lifted a home run down the right-field line, another gift from the old ballpark. Wang, Joba Chamberlain and Rivera stymied Toronto.
“You get seven from Wang and one from Joba and Mariano,”” catcher Jorge Posada said. “That’s what we need to do all year.”
Wang allowed six hits and two runs in seven innings, and Chamberlain struck out his final two hitters in the eighth, twirling and punching the sky after pumping a fastball past Frank Thomas.
Rivera finished a 1-2-3 ninth by getting Marco Scutaro to dribble a harmless grounder to second base. It was Scutaro, then with Oakland, who felled Rivera with a game-ending homer last April. The Yankees hope this game-ender is a better omen.
Girardi worked all winter to give the Yankees their best chance. The Yankees have failed to win a playoff series since 2004, and Girardi has prepared meticulously since replacing Torre last Nov. 1.
The players responded before spring training, with Johnny Damon, Bobby Abreu and Jason Giambi among those coming to camp in better shape. All three showed evidence of spring in their steps on Tuesday -- Damon slashed a triple, Abreu scored from first on a double and Giambi sprang from his feet to grab a liner by Scutaro with the infield in and a runner on second in the seventh inning.
Toronto starter, Roy Halladay, came into the game with a 10-4 record against the Yankees. He flummoxed Damon and Derek Jeter with darting fastballs and curves in the first inning, but then fell behind Abreu and Rodriguez, who made him pay.
Abreu singled and Rodriguez drove a double to the gap in right-center field. Rodriguez spread his arms wide and clapped as Abreu hustled home for the game’s first run.
“You have to use all your abilities,” Abreu said. “It’s not just about hitting, but your speed. I know I don’t look like I can run that much, but that’s a big part of the game, to try to get the extra base.”
Wang, who was blitzed twice by Cleveland in the playoff loss last fall, was shaky in spring training as he developed his slider and changeup. But he was sharp on Tuesday, using the slider for his two strikeouts and his usual sinker for most of the rest.
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