On October 10, 1923, in the first World Series game ever played at the original Yankee Stadium (its first season in existence), the New York Yankees lost to the New York Giants 5-4.
And while the opening to the inaugural World Series in the brand new palace deemed the "House that Ruth Built" was inauspicious for the Yankees it ultimately proved to be merely a minor bump in the road for a team that would win the series and soon evolve into the historically revered Murderer's Row.
Driven by Babe Ruth, Bob Meusel, and Wally Pipp, Miller Huggins' Yankees would take down the John McGraw-led Giants in six games for the first Championship in the history of the Highlanders/Yankees team, effectively replacing the Giants as the dominant franchise in Gotham City. Ironically, Casey Stengel hit the lone home run in that first game. Stengel was an outfielder for the Giants at the time who would later famously manage the Yankees (1949-1960) to seven World Series championships and 10 AL pennants.
Over 76 years later, on October 28, 2009 the New York Yankees lost the first World Series game in the New Yankee Stadium's history (also in its first season of their occupation of a new home) to the defending champion Philadelphia Phillies by a score of 6-1. In a battle of former Cy Young-winning Cleveland aces — on an inspiring night to be an Indians' fan — Cliff Lee got the better of his former teammate CC Sabathia. Lee dominated the Yankees for nine innings, allowing one unearned run. Otherwise Cliff strangulated the opposing offense, scattering six inconsequential hits while striking out 10 without walking a single batter on the excessively patient New York squad that led the MLB in OBP with a .362 mark.
Sabathia was tough in his own right — going seven innings and allowing two runs on four hits with six Ks — but even without the breakdown by the Yankees' bullpen that followed his exit, CC's performance was not enough to secure New York a win. Somehow gripping his wicked curve ball and baffling changeup amidst the rain that sprayed the field to varying degrees consistently the entire game, Lee turned in a classic performance and as a result — as in 1923 — a powerful Yankees' squad finds itself down 0-1.
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