THE YANKEES, 2020

By: Lewis Grosso

First off, I really enjoyed this assignment because it allows the students to be able to share their knowledge on topics they are passionate about. For me, it was super simple to pick a topic because as a Yankees fan, I know one of the greatest sports curses of all time very well. Sports-related curses can be described as “myths” surrounding a certain team, city, or sport. I focused on 3 different sports curses that are known throughout the U.S. and have affected some of the most well-known franchises in the country. 

The first curse that I presented was the Curse of Bobby Layne, which many Detroit fans would say is still haunting them to this day. I felt it was timely to include this curse because Matthew Stafford played 11 seasons with Detroit and in his first season with the Rams, he wins a Super Bowl. While on the Lions, Stafford was referred to as one of the biggest wasted talents during his prime because he was in that franchise. The curse comes from the 1950s when the Lions’ QB Bobby Layne was traded and on his way out, he cursed the franchise and said they would never win again.

The second curse in my presentation was the Curse of the Bambino, which is probably the most well-known universally out of all the curses I presented because of the large market team that was affected, the Boston Red Sox. Babe Ruth used to play on the Red Sox up until 1919 when the Red Sox did not want to sign Ruth to a larger contract, so he was sold to the Yankees. After this move, the Curse of the Bambino took a team that won 5 of the first 15 world series ever and completely demolished their hopes and dreams. The Red Sox would not win a world series until 2004, and it seemed like they could just never beat the New York Yankees. The Yankees would dominate them and knock them out of the playoffs, and people really thought this curse was real because there weren’t many other explanations for how a team could have such little luck against their rival. In 2004, the Red Sox defeated the Yankees in the playoffs, and they swept the Cardinals in the World Series, ending the curse. The Sox have won 4 championships in the 21st century.

Lastly, I talked about the Curse of the Billy Goat and how the Chicago Cubs were plagued with this myth for decades. A tavern owner put a curse out on the Cubs saying they wouldn’t win a pennant of the championship again. It took until 2016 for the Cubs to win the title and some think that curse still hasn’t broken fully because while they may have won a title, the Cubs were supposed to continue to succeed with the team they had when in reality, they found no more success after the 2016 year and now find themselves once again, arguably the worst team in the major leagues at the moment.  

One quote that stuck with me during the lecture in class on 2/14 is from our textbook by Professor Drucker:

“It’s important to note that there are no heroes and villains in sports. Media and fans   create these constructs and place athletes in the heroic or villainous categories of   designations” (Drucker 1994, p. 83)

With that said, do you think these myths are real? Or are they a product of the fans’ imagination? Many sports fans describe sports as being their whole lives… do fans create storylines based on coincidences? Or were these teams actually cursed?

With the recent rise and takeover of the Coronavirus pandemic, people across the globe have been left in a world of destruction with no answers. In the United States, Americans have been ordered by law to stay indoors and quarantine themselves from the masses. Although this is a worldwide tragedy history has never seen before, it is not the only time of destruction that people have been faced with. Sports have always been an outlet for Americans to turn to and entertain themselves with. During previous wars, sports continued to play, and people could relax themselves by watching their favorite players on American soil. However, two months ago during the rise of the pandemic in mid-March, all sports were forced to shut down with no plan of returning in the near future. Months later, sports fans have been left with no answers and only their hopes of once again seeing their favorite athletes… but luckily that has now all changed…

On Monday, May 11, 2020, baseball fans received the news they have been waiting so long to hear. The owners finalized and agreed upon a plan for the MLB season to begin Fourth of July weekend, according to the New York Times and ESPN. The MLB season was originally scheduled to begin on March 26, but all that changed when the Coronavirus put the entire world on hold. However, players cannot just dive right into exhibition play after this long hiatus. Therefore, spring training games will begin in mid-June to allow the players to condition their bodies for regular season play.

While this is great news for baseball fans, this plan is not 100% set in stone. The owners agreed upon this plan, but fans must wait until Tuesday when the league presents a full proposal to the players association.

The 2020 season proposal will include an 82-game season along with expanding the playoffs to host 14 total teams instead of the original 10. Teams would be matched up by region and would be allowed to play in their home ballparks with no fans upon government approval.

MLB fans are not only hoping for the season to begin soon because they miss the game, but because they are afraid of its future:

If Players don’t Play in 2020 and next year there’s a Strike due to Labor Relations? MLB could never return. It’s frightening to say. Economics of the game were breaking before the epidemic. We faced an existential threat… We’ve got a lot at stake here beyond money in 2020..

— MLBExecutiveBurner (@HotStoveintel) May 12, 2020

With this pandemic controlling of the entire population, fans are looking for some sort of control when it comes to bringing back sports. With this optimistic news, we could be just hours away from deciding the future of baseball.

The most annoying part about being a child is hearing about all the old stories from family members about what life was like in their day. You sit there and try your best to listen and seem intrigued, but in reality, you just want to return to the current world. However, today’s current world has been flipped upside down in the past two months…

With Covid-19 spreading extremely fast and killing millions of people, countries all around the world have tried their best to adapt to this unprecedented situation. With schools closed down, businesses not running, and the same news every day, it can be very hard for people to continue to work and make money. Luckily for journalists, they are still able to connect to the population and help them during this historic time.

I attended an online event on April 30 called Journalism During a Global Pandemic with Professor Christopher Vaccaro. As a journalism student, this definitely made me feel more comfortable in the world we are living in right now. Professor Vaccaro currently serves as vice president of Digital News for Altice USA and has been staying involved in the media world during this pandemic.

Something I took away from this webinar was Vaccaro’s confidence in journalists being able to continue their success even while being forced to work from the safety of their home. “As reporters and journalists, it is most important to continue to produce and keep connections with your viewers.” He encouraged his audience to do the best they can to persevere through this and continue to work via webinars and other media outlets such as the one he was conducting this meeting on.

Another takeaway I found from being a member of his seminar was his positivity for the future. Although the world is scary right now, mostly for people who need to work in the future, Vaccaro says this time in quarantine can be beneficial if you use this time the right way. “Use the time you have right now to better yourself and continue working on your craft.”

I found his words extremely inspiring because during this time, I have been trying to work on my craft from home like he said. I created my own sports podcast and blog since last month and have been continuing work with WRHU from home. As journalists, it is our responsibility to be there for the people and entertain/inform them, even in a time of crisis. Vaccaro believes in continuing doing this in any way you can, from home or a safe distance, to continue producing in the world of media.

I would like to thank Professor Vaccaro for conducting this webinar and allowing us to all feel more comfortable and less stressed during this time. Seeing someone who is successful in the world of media such as Vaccaro and learning from him about adapting to this pandemic is something I will remember as quarantine continues. So to tie this all up, when my children ask what life was like while I was in college and the world was battling a deadly pandemic, I will tell them that instead of becoming lazy and unmotivated, I worked hard from home continuing to produce for Hofstra as well as my own personal growth.

Ever since covid-19 became a global pandemic and took over the entire world, people have been forced to stay home in order to reduce the spreading of this disease. With all of this time at home, things can definitely become boring, but one upside we can take from this global disaster is that people now have the time to work on projects they wouldn’t normally do… With Mother’s Day coming up this Sunday, my father Scott Grosso decided to paint most of the rooms in our home as her present. This is something she has wanted for a long time, and instead of being able to take her to a nice restaurant in New York City as usual, my Dad decided to do this for her due to the current circumstances in the world.

I interviewed my Father about how this painting job has been going and how it has benefitted him. My Father is one of the many people who are not working right now and has been stuck at home with little income. It has been a very difficult time for everyone, but good distractions and projects such as painting can help pass the time. My Dad and Project Manager Teddy (my dog) have put a lot of time and effort as well as having higher spirits since beginning the paint job during this unprecedented time…

“Hopefully by the time I am finished painting the house, we can go to the beach!”

-Scott Grosso

I hope so too!

As you may have realized due to the coronavirus forcing colleges to send students home, assignments have become harder on both ends. For this video blog, our options were very limited since we are forced to stay inside by law, so I chose to focus it on how I am staying constructive and occupied during this very boring and scary time…

I sleep late in the mornings, but always wake up to a nice breakfast made by one of my parents. I start work early, bringing my computer down and starting the day while I eat and drink coffee. I began my own website where I have a personal sports blog and podcast. I have been trying to work on my craft while I have been in quarantine, as I am a working to be a sports broadcaster for my career. Missing out on school and the radio station has been difficult, but I make my work days here at home long and useful.

I will usually play a bit of MLB The Show on PS4 in the morning to start the day to relax and get my mind in sports mode. Games such as MLB The Show and Madden that I play regularly are not just games, they give you opportunities to learn about players and work as head coaches, making real sports decisions. As a broadcaster, it is extremely useful to be knowledgable on the physical end of playing sports, and not being able to go outside has me resorting to playing sports video games.

Then, I record my podcast with my friend from home. We talk NFL, MLB, NBA, and do regular segments every week. This is something we enjoy and have a lot of fun doing, while also improving every week. While editing and working on the blogs/podcasts, I surround myself in my room with my idols and inspirations. Constantly working from home, I realized it is best to have a good set-up and not to lay in bed all day even though it is tempting. Therefore, I sit at my desk, surrounded by signed baseballs by MLB legends, pictures of Yankees, and more. There is always constructive and fun work to be done… even from home!

During this difficult and unprecedented time in the world, humanity is doing their best to come together to stay strong and fight this virus. As sports fans, we must do the same… we are a community and stay together during this time where no live sports are occurring

I created the Lewis Grosso Sports Podcast because I wanted to stay constructive during quarantine. During the first days of this quarantine when sports were called off, I was left hopelessly searching through Youtube and other platforms for sports highlights because I was so bored. However, here at the Lewis Grosso Sports Podcast, we are not alone, we are all together and we are talking sports.

The Red Sox cheating scandal has finally come to a conclusion and you can hear about it by clicking the link above OR right HERE

Listen to Lewis Grosso joined by long-time friend and sports-fan Nick Lister as they break down the results of the Red Sox investigation released earlier this week!

During this global pandemic, sports fans are just looking for an outlet of entertainment. That is why I am here to talk all things sports and try to stay optimistic during this difficult time in the world.

This unprecedented time has left many of us wondering, “what is next?” and “when will the world go back to normal?” We are left full of questions and have no answers, which is why I felt it was necessary to make a slideshow of the daily routine of my Father, Scott Grosso. Thrown off of his regular lifestyle, my Dad now lives day-by-day and has become more flexible without having to work for the majority of the day. In this time of chaos, enjoy this slideshow of my Dad at home during covid-19.

My Dad starts his day by brushing his teeth. After doing this he comes downstairs and makes breakfast for the whole family. He enjoys making food for everyone and hanging out with the family. After breakfast, he cleans the dishes by using the dishwasher. He hates it when we leave plates in the sink, so he always uses the dishwasher. My Dad then works on his laptop, but not before hanging out with our dog, Teddy.

After doing some work, my Dad will sometimes watch the FoodNetwork, it gets him hungry and excited before dinner. Then he does the laundry while my Mom finishes work from home.

After dinner, my Dad cleans everything. He gets mad if anything is left on the counter of the island in our kitchen after cooking. Dad makes sure to clean everything with a rag every night. Finally, he is done with his day and can go to bed! Wait– a couple more things…

Before going to bed, Dad likes to snack on oreos, but especially in times like this with a pandemic spreading through the entire world, he MUST wash his hands first. “I deserve an oreo after being a Dad all day.” Okay Dad, enjoy those oreos.

Wide Shot

Medium Shot

Close Up Shot

Extreme Close Up Shot

Creative Shot

The New York Yankees are arguably the top franchise team in all of New York sports. The Pinstripes have always been based in the Bronx, but have played in different stadiums over the years…

In 1923, Old Yankee Stadium was opened and was the home of the Bombers until the end of their 2008 season. It was renovated in 1976 which improved the overall quality of the park. The stadium was the host of 6,581 regular season games during its 85-year run, but after long thought, the franchise decided to move across the street into a brand new home.

Opening day for the Yankees in 2009 was the first time fans watched the Pinstripes play in their new stadium. Even fans who witnessed the game from their television at home were blown away by the looks of the new stadium. The Juxtapose link attached to this blog post is made to show the difference from the inside of Old and New Yankee Stadium. The two stadiums are displayed next to each other to show the difference. The fans are what are most important, so that is why I chose to picture the interiors of the stadiums rather than the exteriors… fans gather together inside and are the reason why teams are so successful. Current Yankee Stadium will be opening its gates for the 11th season in 2020 where more historic games will be played…

To see the Juxtapose image, click HERE