Virginia Tech and the New York Yankees

As one who has never been a fan of the New York Yankees or of George Steinbrenner I have become at least for one day, and possibly for one week, and perhaps even one year a huge fan of both.

I did not know until I read it today that George Steinbrenner had following the tragedy at Virginia Tech vowed his personal and his team's total support for the school and preserving the memory of those 32 students who died in the Virginia Tech shootings. I did not know that Steinbrenner donated $1,000,000 to the Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund which is used to provide grief counseling, help with costs associated with construction of a memorial and to aid the families of the victims.

I didn't know.

I didn't know that in addition to personally calling many of the families to offer his condolences Steinbrenner also personally met with the members of his team, perhaps the most successful in the game of baseball, to encourage their total and active support of the Virginia Tech family and the families of the victims.

I didn't know.

I didn't know that as part of his pledged support Steinbrenner had vowed to bring his entire team from their spring training camp in Florida to the campus of Virginia Tech where they would as a team visit and pay their respects at the campus memorial for the 32 slain students.

....or that they would then go on to play a seven inning game against the host team in front of stadium filled with friends and family of the Virginia Tech victims.

I didn't know.

It was obvious from the team's arrival on campus how sincerely they wanted to honor the victims and the survivors. After visiting the memorial the team entered the baseball stadium (small by their standards) to an enthusiastic, standing ovation by the Virginia Tech family. Dressed in Yankee pinstripes, but wearing Virginia Tech caps they spent every free moment prior to the game smiling and signing autographs, balls and bats. No Yankee failed to join in.

It didn't matter that the Home Team failed to win the game or even score a run. It was a day that would make any Yankee or Hokie fan proud.

Over the past few years with baseball strikes, player boycotts and demands for ever increasing salaries, and drug scandals, baseball has gotten a tainted image. Our heroes of past years disappeared into a fog of self-indulgence and over inflated egos.

My impression of George Steinbrenner was one of an arrogant multi-millionaire who got his kicks out of micro-managing and second guessing and eventually firing one of the best and most proven managers in baseball, Joe Torre.

But, today, I know this was not the case.

I was very wrong about George Steinbrenner.

I didn't know.